RHA amends attendance rules

The association also plans events to help promote dorm life.

By Krissy Tripp

Published Sept. 23, 2008

Residence hall councils who fail to send delegates to general RHA meetings will see fines taken from their budgets, thanks to new legislation passed Monday night.

Residence Halls Association congressional meetings are sandwiched between weekly internal and external committee meetings, all of which help decide where money goes.

Due to both internal communication errors and past problems, RHA will no longer freeze individual residence hall governments' funds after representatives fail to attend general RHA meetings, but will fine them instead. Fines can range anywhere from about $11 to $30, but no more than half of a hall's funds can be taken. Funds will go to the RHA Scholarship Fund.

Congress Speaker Blake Lawrence said the external committee works to plan and execute events while the internal committee deals with RHA legislation.

Congress is a meeting of everyone that allows a chance for overall communication and the communications committee works to publicize events. Committee chairs were recently chosen and notified, but won't be formally inducted until Oct. 6.

In order to promote leadership among its members, RHA fills the 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. time slot during non-congressional meeting days with a leadership series; next week's class will cover the monthly National Residence Hall Honorary leadership awards. Monday's meeting, after passing the new attendance legislation, had guest speakers and discussed upcoming events.

Residential Life Director Frankie Minor addressed RHA on the issues of sexual health in residence halls, the value of living in the halls, how far a campus smoking ban would go, a South African leadership exchange and naming the three new residence halls being built near the Student Recreation Complex.

He also said that the halls were all built to be a mix of suite and community-style rooms with a small amount of people using each restroom so that occupants can have a stronger sense of community.

During the external meeting, majority of discussion focused on event planning. Thursday evening, the band We The Living will play in the Plaza Amphitheater.

"I feel they would get maximum exposure there," RHA Vice President Nate Ballance said. In case of rain, the band will play at Bingham Hall.

Although RHA is not paying for the performance, Programming Coordinator Emily Patterson came to its defense while discussing the $400 transportation budget for the lesser-known band.

"They're kind of an acoustic band," she said "They're awesome."

Also coming soon is Paint it Pink, a T-shirt sale with proceeds going to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

While RHA has traditionally designed one T-shirt to sell and donate all of the money to charity, this year the group decided to have a T-shirt design contest between halls, Lawrence told committee members.

Students can begin preordering T-shirts Oct. 7 for a to-be-decided minimum donation.

Beginning Oct. 24, students will sell the shirts directly to students, but the minimum donation will be increased at the tables.