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Associated Students of Oregon State University (ASOSU) Records, 1917-2006

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Associated Students of Oregon State University
Title
Associated Students of Oregon State University (ASOSU) Records
Dates
1917-2006 (inclusive)
1966-2000 (bulk)
Quantity
29 cubic feet, (33 boxes, including 6 oversize boxes)
10 microfilm reels
Collection Number
RG 011
Summary
The Associated Students of OSU Records document the administration of student government and its interaction with other campus organizations, offices, and bodies primarily for the 1960s through the 1990s.
Repository
Oregon State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives Research Center
Special Collections and Archives Research Center
121 The Valley Library
Oregon State University
Corvallis OR
97331-4501
Telephone: 5417372075
Fax: 5417378674
scarc@oregonstate.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Historical Note

The origins of student government at OSU are rooted in an 1897 campaign to fund the football team through the establishment of incidental fees. Although the College Board of Regents rejected this initial move toward the systematic funding of student activities, a student conference three years later set forth a proposed constitution and a set of bylaws for the establishment of a student governmental body that would have the power to institute and regulate student body fees. This proposal was approved by a vote of the student body and faculty in 1900 and resulted in the formation of the college’s first student government, at that time called the Student Assembly.

Structurally, the Assembly consisted of all enrolled students, but was governed by two bodies: the Executive Committee and the Board of Control. The Executive Committee was comprised of a president elected from the senior class, three vice presidents from each of the senior, junior, and senior classes, and a secretary. The Board of Control was made up of the Executive Committee, three faculty members chosen by the college President, and an alumnus appointed by the Alumni Association.

With its basic role of funding and managing student media, debate contests, athletics, and other campus activities, the assembly established a student body fee, which at first voluntary, became mandatory of all enrolled students by 1909. Final approval of student activity budgets and managerial appointments such as the campus newspaper and yearbook editorships were subject to the Board of Control and a General Manager who oversaw many aspects of the board. During the 1920s, the college dissolved the Board of Control and assigned management of student activities to new committees, such as the Student Affairs Committee and the Committee on Student Interests, established in large part to de-centralize authority over student affairs.

In 1948, the structure of the Associated Students of Oregon State (as it was known by this time) underwent a fundamental change with the introduction of a senate body vested with the power to introduce legislation, approve the ASOSC budget, make changes to the constitution and statutes, and recall any elected or appointed member of student government. The creation of the senate represented a major shift in policy for the Associated Students with decision-making power over student activities now residing with students elected by their peers rather than a board or committee. The constitution set the voting membership of the senate at one senator for each 500 students enrolled in the 11 schools that comprised the college and each school was guaranteed to be represented by at least one senator. The first senate consisted of 28 members. Although the constitution defines the president and other members of the executive branch as part of the senate, they did not have the power to vote for or introduce legislation.

In 1966, a judicial branch consisting of the Student Traffic Court and the ASOSU Justice Commission was added to student government. Vested with the power to review the constitutionality of all legislation introduced by the senate, the commission also served as the body for hearing grievances from ASOSU members about possible student election violations and legislation passed by the senate potentially deemed incompatible with the ASOSU constitution and statutes. Sometime in the 1980s, the commission was renamed the ASOSU Judicial Board, with essentially the same function.

To assist student government in working with student organizations, long-term strategizing, legal research, and other special projects with a perspective outside the senate and executive branch, ASOSU created the position of Student Advocate in 1986.

In 1994, ASOSU adopted a bicameral senate structure that gave graduate students voting status in a senate body of their own equal to their undergraduate counterparts. Membership in the Graduate Senate was set at one representative per 100 graduate students enrolled at OSU.

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Content Description

The Associated Student of OSU Records document student government at Oregon State University and include records of the ASOSU Executive Branch, the ASOSU Senate, and the Graduate Student Senate. The ASOSU Records address the full range of issues that impact OSU students including fees and tuition, student activities, academic programs, athletics and intramurals, diversity and discrimination, campus security, and student housing.

Records of the Oregon Student Lobby, and its successor organization the Oregon Student Association, which advocates for all post-secondary students in Oregon through educational outreach to students and lobbying of the state legislature are also included.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

Associated Students of Oregon State University (ASOSU) Records (RG 11), Oregon State University Archives, Corvallis, Oregon.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The ASOSU Records consist of five subgroups: 1. ASOSU Executive Branch; 2. ASOSU Senate; 3. Graduate Student Senate; 4. Oregon Student Lobby; and 5. Oregon Student Association.

Acquisition Information

Records were transferred from ASOSU, the Memorial Union, Student Involvement, the Student Activities Center and other offices in many accessions from the mid-1960s through 2006.

Future Additions

Additions to the collection are expected.

Related Materials

The Student Assembly Records (RG 43) include minutes (1903-1923) and constitutions (1906-1920) of the initial student government at Oregon Agricultural College.

Documentation pertaining to ASOSU is also represented elsewhere in the holdings of the OSU Archives. Interaction between student government and administrative offices and academic departments on campus can be found in records of the following offices: President’s Office (RG 13), Student Affairs (RG 102), Library (RG 9), College of Engineering (RG 62), School of Education (RG 184), and the Department of Design and Human Environment (RG 28).

Images of ASOSU officers and events organized by student government can be found in several photographic collections: Associated Students of OSU (P 154), Harriet’s Collection, and Gwil Evans (P 82).

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Campus police--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Campus-based child care--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Collective bargaining--College employees--Oregon.
  • College costs--Oregon.
  • College environment--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • College sports--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • College stores--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • College students--Oregon.
  • College student government--Oregon.
  • College students with disabilities--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Minority college students--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Rape--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Rental housing--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Student activities--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Student aid--Oregon.
  • Student housing--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Student movements--Oregon.
  • Students, Foreign--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Total quality management in higher education--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Universities and colleges--Employees--Labor unions--Oregon.
  • Universities and colleges--Faculty--Rating of--Oregon.
  • Universities and colleges--Security measures--Oregon--Corvallis.
  • Women--Education (Higher)--Oregon--Corvallis.

Corporate Names

  • OSU Bookstore, Inc.
  • Oregon State College--Students.
  • Oregon State System of Higher Education.
  • Oregon State University--Graduate students.
  • Oregon State University--Parking.
  • Oregon State University--Students.
  • Oregon State University--Tuition.
  • Oregon State University. Libraries.
  • Oregon State University. Library.
  • Oregon State University. Memorial Union.
  • Oregon State University. Experimental College.
  • Oregon. Legislative Assembly.

Geographical Names

  • Corvallis (Or.)

Form or Genre Terms

  • Architectural drawings.
  • Maps.
  • Photographic prints.
  • Scrapbooks.
  • Surveys (documents).
  • Videotapes.

Other Creators

  • Corporate Names

    • Associated Students of Oregon State College. (creator)
    • Associated Students of Oregon State University. Senate. (creator)
    • Oregon State University. Graduate Student Senate. (creator)
    • Oregon Student Association. (creator)
    • Oregon Student Lobby. (creator)

Finding aid prepared by Karl McCreary.
2006

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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