SGA fills VP position in closed session

The first meeting of the Student Government Association (SGA) on Monday concluded with the election of their new Vice President.

In an unannounced, closed session vote by the Student Senate, Wilmer Castro was elected as the new SGA Vice President, defeating his only opponent, former junior class Vice President, Noel Pendergrass.

Castro replaced Nicole Mershon, who had stepped down last semester not long after being elected. Mershon cited a scheduling conflict.

The SGA agenda for the meeting did not include notice of the closed session.

According to the New Jersey Open Public Meetings Act, “To close a session, a public body must identify the exemption justifying closure and adopt a resolution at an open meeting for which public notice has been given. Public bodies must keep minutes of their closed sessions, and these minutes are not open to the public. A public body must promptly make them available,however, once the necessity for maintaining confidentiality has passed.”

The act also states that the announcement of a closed session must be at least 48 hours in advance.

However, the SGA does not feel that their governing body falls under this act.

“The University counsel informed the SGA last year that the Student Government Association is a separate organization from the University, and therefore does not operate under the same open meetings laws,” said Elizabeth Palmer, SGA President. “However, the minutes of the Senate meeting are public; therefore, all items discussed during Closed Session will be available in the SGA Office Monday the 21st.”

University general counsel, Barbara Kleva, said that she “could not recall” saying that to SGA. However, based on her interpretation of the Open Public Meetings Act, Kleva does not believe that SGA can be considered a “public governmental function.”

Kleva also said that, to the best of her knowledge, “SGA is a 501(c)(3).”

This means that the SGA is a tax exempt non-profit organization and a separate entity from Rowan University.

Adam Goldstein, Attorney Advocate of the Student Press Law Center, said that SGA would not be subject to the Open Public Meetings Act only if they were “separately incorporated,” which would make them a “private institution.”

During her campaign last semester, Palmer made a point to speak on the importance of shared governance.

“Shared governance is making sure everybody campus is engaged with the decision making process. Not everyone is going to be a decision maker, but it is important for everyone to be involved in decision making process,” she said. “SGA needs to be a respectable, responsible, and resourceful part of Rowan community.”

According to the SGA Web site, SGA is responsible for publicly allocated funds. “Although you may not know it, ALL full-time students at Rowan University give money to the SGA. The SGA is responsible for allocating this money to many clubs as well as many activities that take place regularly on campus.”

According to the final 2009-10 Budget Allocation Statement on the SGA Web site, the SGA allocated $925,000 to various clubs and organizations, including The Whit.

Under OPMA, a public body is, “Any public body of the state, county, or municipal level of government that has legal authority to vote on public matters or to spend public funds.”

“Any SGA should be covered under the Open Public Meetings Act, which includes proper notification of a closed session. An SGA should be promoting openness and transparency, not stifling it,” said American Civil Liberties Union Staff Attorney Bobby Conner.

Conner represented Montclair State University’s student run newspaper The Montclarion in a lawsuit earlier this year, which was filed against MSU’s SGA. The lawsuit was regarding what The Montclarion felt was a lack of transparency and openness on the part of the SGA when regarding public meetings. The lawsuit was filed March 2009 and settled out of court, with the SGA agreeing to open its procedures.

Staff writer Rigo Onofre contributed to this report.