Almore selected for U-Council

The USG announced the appointment of Anna Almore '08 as the new U-Council member at a Senate meeting on Sunday.

Almore was chosen from 60 applicants to fill the position formerly held by Dylan Stamer '06. Stamer was recently removed from the U-Council for nonattendance at meetings.

U-Council Chair Rebecca Brown '06 said the removal of Stamer was the first time the attendance review provision of the USG Constitution had been invoked since the process was reformed last year.

Stamer said he missed the first meeting because he was visiting his sick grandmother in Florida and the second because the meeting date was changed at the last minute.

"I thought those two excuses were pretty valid," he said. "They could have talked to me personally."

Brown said that Stamer was "given a chance to explain his nonattendance or why he should be retained," and USG members voted to remove him anyway.

The USG Constitution stipulates that "any member of the Senate who misses two consecutive or four or more [meetings] during a given elected term may be called up for attendance review by any member of the Senate."

The U-Council solicited applications for the vacancy in an email to the undergraduate student body before Fall Break. Brown, U-Council Executive Committee members Elizabeth Gough '07 and USG President Leslie Bernard-Joseph '06 evaluated the applications and conducted interviews before appointing Almore to the position.

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"I got an email from Leslie that said 'keep your Sundays clear,' " said Almore. "That's how I sort of knew."

USG members voted in executive session to confirm the U-Council's appointment.

"I'm very excited to be a part of U-Council," Almore said. "I think USG is one of the most influential organizations on campus, and I'm just very excited and happy to be a part of it and its decision-making process."

Almore will have to defend her seat in the spring, when all 10 U-Council seats are up for election.

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Stamer said he was disappointed by his removal from the U-Council, but that he "would definitely like to be involved in future USG activities," adding that he "lauds them for their adherence to the strict guidelines set forth in the Constitution."

Reflecting on his tenure as a U-Councilor, Stamer highlighted his opposition to the administration's "grade deflation" policy.

"I think that the idea of students trying to make a difference is very good," Stamer said. "I don't think my limited time on the U-Council gave me the time to see all the benefits that could be accomplished."