Town Hall Meeting, 24 June 2012

This Town Hall meeting was held to get feedback from graduate students regarding the ongoing issues with the Board of Visitors and President Sullivan. It began with a brief summary of what had been done to date (the statement issued by GSASC and efforts to pass information along to graduate students). The floor was then opened for general questions and feedback, which is summarized below.

Q: Why didn't GSASC call for Sullivan's reinstatement? A: We didn't call for it for a variety of reasons. First, there was no strong call for this from the graduate students (whom the Council represents). Also, while it was clear the board's decision was made in an improper manner, as an organization we don't possess the insight to judge the rationale for the decision.

Q: (from the council) What would students like to see GSASC do in the future? A: multiple suggestions

• Greater alignment with Faculty Senate, non-tenured faculty/ General Faculty Council, and Board of Visitors. Greater input on behalf of grad students in those bodies.
• Advocacy for A&S grads specifically, concerns that too often grad reps on BOV are law or darden students.
• We want a procedure where grad students select their own rep to the BOV rather than letting the BOV choose its own student rep. And perhaps we should lobby for one undergrad rep, one professional grad rep, and one A&S rep. (We should talk to Susan Harris and Mr. Simon about our desire for representation.)