This week at CCSC: council members got to the bottom of the Postscrypt/St. Paul’s Chapel case, the council got schooled on the disciplinary process by the Office of Judicial Affairs, and – will USenate’s silence finally be breached?

Tensions between St. Paul’s Chapel and Postscrypt have been smoothed over according to council members who did some investigating over the weekend. Postscrypt has agreed to cover the cost of the damages inflicted by nails on the walls and new shows are being put up now.

On the housing front, the gender-neutral housing proposal is breaking ground; it passed unanimously through the housing committee – more conversations with Dean Shollenberger, Dean Moody-Adams, and Scott Wright to follow.

For council members or students who aren’t experts on the judicial process, Director of Residential Programming Karu Kozuma and Associate Director of Judicial Affairs Jasmine J. Rush stopped by to give a PowerPoint presentation on the disciplinary process at Columbia.

A comprehensive outline of the judicial process was presented from the receipt of a complaint, to a judicial hearing, to the appeals process. The various levels of offenses and the potential ramifications for each were delineated.

Kozuma emphasized the importance of the educational component of the judicial process, making sure that students who are found guilty for a violation are provided with educational follow-up pertaining to the nature of the violation; from counseling students after a fight to reviewing fire safety policies. Rush also noted that expulsions and loss of housing are rare. “We’re not in the business of trying to get rid of students,” Kozuma said.

Rush expressed her enthusiasm at the idea of potentially having students involved in the judiciary process, an idea that’s been making its way through the student councils this semester.

Last year’s Varsity Show ended up with a surplus of funds which now may be donated to current performing groups if a resolution to that effect passes through CCSC, ESC, and GSSC this week. The funds would be placed in a newly created Varsity Show Technical Support Fund, which would be operated by the three councils. Groups eligible to apply for the money to cover costs like hiring technicians include any recognized dance, theater, or music group in Barnard, CC, SEAS, or GS. The resolution passed through CCSC and will be voted on tomorrow by ESC and Wednesday by GSSC.

The final order of business for the night was discussing the possibility of refining the current University Senate confidentiality policy. Currently the Senate operates under a rigid policy that’s been in place since the ‘70s.

Senate Committee meetings that cover sensitive topics like budgetary issues are held in what’s known as “executive session”, where no one is allowed to sit in or see the minutes of the meeting. The council discussed an addendum that would allow, at the discretion of the head of the committee, minutes to be given out and people to sit in on certain meetings.