Weeks after being written, Student Assembly leaders stalled a vote again Tuesday on a constitutional amendment that would allow the Assembly to select student representatives to sit on the Alumni Council.
In recent years, the sophomore Class Council has nominated students to serve two-year terms as non-voting members of the Alumni Council.
Alumni have ultimately chosen the student representatives, but if the proposed amendment passes when it is expected to finally come to the Assembly's floor next week, the Assembly would assume this responsibility.
A vote on the amendment has been delayed by discussions within the Assembly about which committee should choose the student Alumni Council representatives, Student Body President Julia Hildreth '05 said.
The Assembly did, however, address alumni relations at the Tuesday meeting, when members confirmed Brian Martin '06 to chair its alumni affairs committee.
The position, held by Ralph Davies '05 until last week, will set Martin up for a potential run for student body president this spring.
In an interview with The Dartmouth, Martin said he was "pretty stoked" at landing the job, because "there's a lot of great things already cooking there."
Martin attributed the committee's progress to Davies' campaigning on a slate of alumni issues last spring.
"Alumni affairs was Ralph Davies," Martin said. "Ralph cast a big shadow."
Although Martin lauded Davies successes as the committee's chair, Davies was skeptical about his successor's credentials.
"[Martin was] not my first choice," Davies said during the Assembly's confirmation debates.
Hildreth, who nominated Martin for the chair, defended her decision during the Assembly's confirmation hearing and in a later interview with The Dartmouth, calling him the most qualified of those who applied for the position.
"He [Martin] has proven throughout the past three years that he's extremely dedicated to SA and has a pretty unique ability to get things done quickly," Hildreth said of the new chair, who has sat on nearly all of the Assembly's committees.
Although alumni affairs was not one of those committees, Hildreth expressed confidence in Martin's experience and said he has played integral roles in various projects since his freshman year.
"I know how it works," Martin said of the Assembly. "I know how to get stuff done."
Martin also said he has "more SA experience than anyone in SA not chairing a committee."
Other members of the alumni affairs committee, however, also spoke out against Martin's nomination in confirmation debate.
They cited concerns over his inexperience with the committee's business despite Martin's general Assembly experience.
"I'm kind of confused about why he was chosen for this committee," Jim Baehr '05 said.
Matt Siegried '08 echoed the sentiment.
"I'm kind of surprised by this pick," Siegfried said.
Martin's past experience includes work on several other Assembly committees.
He is currently spearheading the Assembly's efforts to make a recommendation on the Social Event Management Procedures currently being reviewed by an independent committee.
Martin said the student organizations committee recommendations on the SEMP should be finalized at next week's Assembly meeting.
He said one "enormous, glaring problem" with the independent SEMP review committee is that administrators selected three of the six student members, and in doing so, "went out of their way to find students who have no experience" with the College's alcohol policy.
As for his political future, Martin said he will likely run for the Assembly's presidency later this year.
"A lot of people tell me I should run," Martin said. "I'm definitely thinking that it [a presidential bid] is a likelihood."
