The Observer, September 29, 2006
Volume XXXIX, Issue 5
Policy prevents Democratic rally
The Case Democrats encountered a big disappointment recently when Case's administration forced the cancellation of their 200 person fundraising rally for the Strickland/Fisher campaign in Thwing Ballroom set for Sept. 21.
Lee Fisher, the candidate for Lt. Governor, was expected to attend. Appearances by other area Democrats like County Commissioner Tim Hagan, Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones, Congressman Dennis Kucinich, and Mayor Frank Jackson, as well as other campaign representatives were also possible.
Case Democrats had been planning the event since before the school year started
Dan Myers, a member of Case Democrats, spoke with Adrienne Dziak, the Director of Government Relations, less than a week before the scheduled event in order to see if it was necessary to do anything before the event and to alert her that prominent figures were coming to campus.
"When I told her we were doing this, she told me 'no,'" Myers said. "She said that we could not have an event on school property that was a campaign event, due to the school's non-profit status."
Myers offered to drop the fundraising aspect of the event, and Dziak still said it was not permitted. She also said that no literature could be handed out on campus.
"I knew she was mistaken," Myers said. "She told me to talk to the university's attorney office, which is when I spoke to Glenn Nicholls in Student Affairs. He thought that this policy sounded odd, and said he would work on it to see what the school could do, and what it couldn't do, as well as what we as students could do. He was a great help."
Myers had meetings with the VP of Student Affairs, Director of Government Relations, and people who are experts in non-profit law and practice.
"We were not going to accept 'no' for an answer," Myers said.
Myers also spoke to a Law School professor, who helped by speaking to a former head of the Exempt Organizations division of the IRS.
He said that if it was a student group running the event and there was no discrimination by the school against any one party or candidate, then there was no legal concern for the school's non-profit status.
"The Observer, if it wanted to, could have only one-sided political coverage, and could endorse candidates of only one party," Myers said, "but the school would not be able to take away its facility in Thwing because of that."
Some of the Case Democrats wrote letters to the administration and the Plain Dealer.
As a result of all the attention, USG passed a resolution at its general body meeting on Sept. 19 calling for the school to create a fair policy for candidates to talk to students. The school is currently making a policy that should be completed this week.
"This policy is supposed to spell out what specifically the school is allowing student groups to do with candidates on campus," Myers said.
Lee Fisher informed the Case Democrats that he would have to cancel his plans to attend the event because of another conflict, but he expressed interest in coming to speak at Case at another time. He is a Law School and Non-profit Management program alumnus and a former SAGES instructor.
"There is only so much time left in the campaign season and in eight days Ohioans, especially college students, will begin to vote by absentee ballot," said Myers. "We are currently working with many different groups to make sure that Ohioans, and especially Case students, cast a vote for change not only in Ohio, but around the nation."
