The Metropolitan State College of Denver student newspaper, serving the Auraria Campus since 1979
Denver, Colorado
Volume 14, Issue 8
October 11, 1991
Senate approves free lunch
A week of demonstrations
Senators will receive $4 card after meetings Sylvia Lei The Metropolitan
l..al11 G"lll"Tonm /The Metropolilan
A protester stands on the west steps of the Capitol during Denver's Columbus Day Parade on Oct 12; American Indian demonstrators disrupted the procession for 45 minutes. In a week of demonstrations, students marched to protest funding cuts in programs for alcohol and drug rehabllhatlon, and gay rights supporters decried clubs unwilling to accept an anti-discrimination clause. See stories, Page 3.
MSCD student senators, who are unpaid, voted Oct. 9 to give themselves free lunches to promote attendance at senate meetings. The "food-card bill," approved on a 7-5 vote with one abstention, would allow each student senator to receive $4 worth of free food at the Student Union cafeteria. Senators would be given a "food card" after attending a full meeting o'f the senate, which meets twice a month. The bill sparked controversy in the senate and among some MSCD students. "I think that the students are entitled to know these things (where exactly their money goes)," said Katarina Ahlfort, an MSCD sophomore. "All students should vote on a decision like that." Sen. Charles Buchanan, who introduced the bill, and Student Government President Chip Wiman said that, unlike at many other colleges, MSCD senators are not paid and should receive a little bonus. Opponents of the bill, such as Xeturah Woodley, one of the five senators who voted against the measure, said senators knew before their election they would not be paid. "No one knows who the senators are, but we can still get food cards," Woodley said. "I don't think this is what we need right now; perhaps after we have accomplished something." In its 1991-92 budget, student government set aside $2,400 for the program, but it still needs the approval of the Student Affairs Board, which allocates funds to various student organizations. Student government is among the programs financed by a student fee of $45,
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News Students debc.:te on Senate hearings
Features
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Sports
Celebrities mix at Plain and Fancy Ball
Rugpy team bruises archrival DU
Page7
Page 16
see Free Lunch page 5