Game Design Council

Minutes: Thursday 24 March 2016CP&R – DH1, Devonshire House

12:30 to 13:30

Agenda• Equipment Purchase authority• Student Government

– Executive, Legislative, Judicial.• Student Elections

– Brief report.• Student Ideas

– Suggested changes for 2016-17– Starting at/with Handover Council dates– Enacts Student Government in its’ new form.

• To Do List– What needs to be done before Freshers’ Week

In Attendance• DVP Game Design – Reece Fitzgerald• Student Elections Officer – Dominic Kalantary• Student Ideas Officer – Gabrielle Knight• VP Activities – Katie O’Connor• Staff Support – Gary McLachlan

Equipment Purchase• GoPro Hero4 - £159.99• Head Strap - £19.99• Remote Control - £64.99– GoPro Hero 4 is capable of live streaming via

periscope, which is why this model has been chosen.

– Shadow Council will be live streamed as a permanent record.

– Other Councils may choose either periscope or traditional minutes/live tweeting.

– Requires Council authority to recommend the purchase.

– There is an existing Idea passed in favour.

Student Government• Executive, Legislative, Judicial. (Separation of

Powers.)– For the most part, the collective student body is to be

regarded as sovereign legislator.• Mini Councils are also part of the Legislature.• Mini Councils can produce ‘policy’ based on their

manifesto pledges, or when necessary from Ideas.• Executive – all Sabbs and DVPs.

• Carry out Manifesto pledges.• Fulfil the will of the Legislature using Student Ideas.

• Judicial – Shadow Council, Elections Officer for Election Rule interpretation, Ideas Officer for Ideas Rule interpretation.

• Hold Executive to account for decisions.• Shadow Council can veto the Executive by qualified

majority.

Student Government• Current Planning

– Bill of Student Rights – to express the rights and responsibilities of membership.

– Current powers / rights left intact as they stand in law, but described better and in shorter (and clearer) form.

– Will incorporate #Right2Debate into Fast Ideas and declared Rights to put an end to the myths around Safe Space and No Platform.

– Grants the sovereign rights of legislature to the collective student body (clarifying their existing power.)

– Proposed (project initiation stage) changes to the elections using 10 years of research to develop a new digital alternative – this one has to be signed off legally first, since the requirements of the 1994 Education Act have to be met first.

– Game Design Council will be involved at design/first review stage (if it gets that far)

Student Elections• Student Elections

– Lower number of candidates.– Lower turn-out overall for the equivalent posts – some

posts increased turn-out due to perceived importance of roles.

• National Picture– Falling turnouts (1% year on year for 2 years.)– Falling participation (fewer candidates in every election

for 3 years.)• Why?

– Election systems were primarily designed a decade ago, using the pre-existing paper ballots as a template.

– This is not what people expect in digital terms any more – these election systems are causing harm and confusion in terms of engagement.

– This is why we’re reviewing the system itself.

Student Ideas• Suggested changes for 2016-17

– Commencement date 11 days before Handover – so that all Ideas closing after Handover or not going to Handover are graded and passed/failed using the system that:

• First Class – auto-pass (as now)– Cannot be vetoed by Exec or Shadow Council

• Upper Second – auto-pass (as now)– Can be vetoed by Exec / Shadow Council

• Lower Second – conditional pass (new)– Can be vetoed by Exec / Shadow Council

• Third Class – conditional fail (new)– Needs an individual Change Agent

• Fail – auto-fail (as now)

Student Ideas• Changes:

– Lower Second – conditional pass (new)• Can be vetoed by Exec / Shadow Council• Basically is the same method of passage as that used

in Parliament for Statutory Instruments…• 21 day period of notification, where the veto can be

exercised to strike the Idea down• Staff will carry out project planning start-up during

these 21 days – of the Idea passes then action will be taken immediately; if it fails then little time will have been lost.

– Third Class – conditional fail (new)• Needs an individual Change Agent• 21 day period of notification, if no Change Agent

steps forward in that time then the Idea fails.

Student Ideas• Speed and Consistency

– This gives us speed and consistency in the way we treat all Ideas.

– It still allows Council to veto.– The use of this veto carries a requirement to give clear

reasons – that provides the clarity which is currently missing from (what looks like) arbitrary pass/fail within Council.

– It makes pass/fail automatic under all circumstances.• Enacts the sovereign principle

– Student Ideas come from individual students and are collectively voted on by students.

– Therefore, a passing score has as much authority behind it as any motion through Council, and arguably is better advertised and informed and should not be failed without the exercise of a veto carrying an explicit reason for failure.

Student Ideas• New Category: Fast Ideas

– Fast Ideas incorporate elements of the #Right2Debate agenda in being a more ‘petition-like’ mechanism for cases where students want/need a faster response than the standard 10 day voting period.

– Voting will be open for 48 hours– To pass, the Idea must be 25 votes positive against any

negative votes• Standard Disclaimers apply…

– The Idea cannot pass by fewer than 25 positive over negative votes

– The Idea cannot pass if it is forbidden by law– The Idea will not pass if it is a boycott or ban which does

not also pass as a Large Idea (i.e. over 450 or 900 voters)

– The Idea cannot spend over £1,000 if it does not pass as a Large Idea on the upper limit (900 voters)

Student Ideas• Elected Manifesto promise

– The #Right2Debate agenda is the basis of a Manifesto for a Liberation Councillor.

– It is easier to enact through Student Ideas than to create another bureaucratic process managed by staff in an unclear way.

– Specifically, there are problems of ‘mission creep’ in the methods outlined in the #Right2Debate.

– There are also problems with language in the #Right2Debate platform, which throws no additional clarity onto the grind between freedom of speech and safe spaces.

– The Student Bill of Rights will make the division absolutely clear.

– Our commitment to safe spaces is on a voluntary basis only – a forced safe space is not safe for any participant as a matter of principle since it involves coercion not consent.

Student Ideas• Project Management

– In a change from the past two years, project management will be undertaken by staff.

– Staff will pass specific actions to Executive students – when leadership is required to ‘smooth’ problems.

– This is required at this point to manage the workload – it was not foreseen when Ideas was set up that we could possibly get more than double the previous method of engagement.

– The previous method of engagement (open meetings) generated about 6 Idea-like actions per year.

– We do more than that on some days, and every week this year since September.

– The Sabbs cannot cope – there is an existing workload that has to be done, and Manifesto pledges that take priority.

To Do List• Project Management

– Ready to deliver properly an efficient, clear Student Ideas system.

• Equipment– Ready to deliver transparent meetings for Shadow

Council and the legislative Councils.• Student Elections

– Ready to deliver any changes for the new year, including the thoughts and opinions of current elected officers and groups.

• Policy– Any changes to Bylaws in place and approved.

• Games!– Introduction material and events for new students

during Fresher’s Week

Votes cast in session• Project Management/Ideas grades

– Unanimous vote to accept the changes to Student Ideas which mean staff project manage, Sabbs will lead when required, and the pass/fail is automatic with Council to have a veto to strike down an Idea (with clear reasons given.)

• Equipment– Unanimous vote to accept the equipment purchase, in order to make

Council transparent and also to carry out the Student Idea passed earlier in the year to film Council.

• Student Elections– Information only at this stage.

• Policy– Information only at this stage.

• Games– To start thinking about ways of introducing new students to Student

Ideas, Student Elections and They Represent You