The Dixie State University Student Association is planning to update their charter for the first time since 1996.
The DSU Policy Committee calls for policies to be updated every five years, and the charter, formally known as Policy 541, is next on the list.
“When I discovered the age of the policy about three months ago, it became an immediate priority to begin the revision process,” said Luke Kerouac, director of student involvement and leadership. The policy will be analyzed and multiple drafts will be made and voted on before the new charter goes into effect.
Kerouac said he can attribute the initial push for updates to Kendra Jensen and Weston Zimmerman, two officers of DSUSA.
“I was extremely surprised [about the age of the charter] and made steps to ensure that this wouldn’t happen again by adding ‘keeping policy up to date’ in the job description of the chief justice,” said Student Body President Sarah Ramaker, a senior dance major from Midland, Michigan. Instead of creating a new position, Ramaker gave the responsibility to the DSUSA chief justice who is also accountable for interpreting the DSUSA constitution, acting as chair of the election committee and planning applicable activities.
The charter itself still reads “Dixie State College,” which is one of the first aspects of the charter that will be changed, Kerouac said.
“We are now a university, and the charter should accurately reflect that,” Kerouac said.
Kerouac said minor guidelines regarding governing and the election process also need to be updated.
“[The association will make] basic updates to reflect the changes of the university, and updates on policy and procedure,” Ramaker said.
Other than the misnaming of DSU as a college, the old charter lays out the powers and duties of underclassmen representatives. These positions outlined in the charter no longer exist, and the document makes no mention of current positions such as president of the Stampede.
“I feel that now that we are a university, it should probably be looked at and reviewed since that’s longer than most students at the school have been alive,” said Promise Odunze, a freshman business administration major from Las Vegas, and Institute of Politics Committee member.
Odunze said it’s important for the charter to be updated because every person who attends DSU is a part of the student association. He also agreed with Kerouac on the importance of updating the charter to reflect DSU as a university.
“With all the expansion going [on] through 2020, [the update] would only make sense since things at a university level are different than they are at two-year institution,” Odunze said.
The charter is set to be reviewed and updated by the end of the semester.
