On Dec. 31, members of the Weber State University Student Association Senate wrote a letter to WSUSA President Gregory Woodfield concerning his failure to carry out his presidential responsibilities.
The letter was drafted and approved by the Senate and signed by the Legislative Vice President and President of the Senate Jeffrey Henry and Senator for the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences Parker D. Hughes, who also serves as the WSUSA Senate Internal Affairs Committee Chair. It addresses two main issues: Woodfield’s delayed obligations in upcoming student elections and his lack of attendance at official Senate meetings.
Concerning the elections, the Senators’ letter stated, “The student body elections at Weber State University serve as an imperative part of ensuring student voices are both heard and acted upon. … it is the opinion of the Senate that the actions taken by your office are not meeting the demands of the election cycle.”
The specific actions mentioned concern the appointing of an Elections Executive Chair by Woodfield’s office. According to the letter, the by-laws state that the person chosen to fill this position must be selected by the last week in September.
The Senators’ letter stated, “The Senate Internal Affairs Committee recognized these actions did not occur until mid-November, representing a major failure in meeting constitutional mandates.”
Through the violation of this by-law, other regulations were broken in consequence.
A separate by-law concerning the elections expresses that an election committee of at least ten members must be selected by the Executive and Legislative Chairs by the first week of November.
Since an Elections Executive Chair was not appointed until mid-November, an election committee could not have been selected in time.
Another by-law requires that a meeting between the elections chairs, committee and a representative of the Judicial Branch is to occur to discuss the Constitution and by-laws, a training packet and establish the elections timetable.
This meeting was to occur at the end of November. However, with the delayed timing of the aforementioned positions, a meeting could not be held in time.
The elections training packet, which is supposed to be finished and presented by the end of November, did not reach the Senate until Dec. 8.
Concerning Woodfield’s lack of attendance at Senate meetings, the letter cites his responsibilities within the presidential contract and how the Senate believes he has failed to honor those rules.
They state, “Under the General Responsibilities section of said contract, the President is obligated to be ‘thoroughly familiar with policies and keep up with procedural changes as they occur throughout the year.’ Additionally, the President is to ‘work closely with every other member of the WSUSA.’”
The letter continues, “The issues listed above are not new to you. It is our understanding that both advisors and the Legislative Vice President have reached out to you on multiple occasions leading up to the writing of this letter.”
The Senate has requested Woodfield attend an upcoming Senate meeting on Jan. 9 to address these issues and concerns presented by the WSUSA Senate.
The Signpost reached out to Woodfield for comment, but as of writing, had not received a response.
