Pembroke
JCR
Meetings
When you arrive at Pembroke as an undergraduate you are automatically a member of the JCR. This means that you can benefit from the JCR’s social, charitable and sporting events, pastoral support, art fund, travel grants and much more! To allow all this great stuff to happen, students pay a small levy every term, which sometimes changes according to the amount the JCR spends. To opt out of this, contact the Treasurers.
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The running of the JCR is prescribed by the Constitution, a ‘living document’ which outlines the obligations of committee members and how meetings should be conducted. Our meetings usually happen at 20:30 every second Sunday and are led by the Vice-President. These meetings can include updates on college policies, current projects and info from committee members. The final order-of-business are Motions (see below). These proposals can be submitted by any member of the JCR and are first lobbied, then discussed, opened to questions and finally voted on. Food and drink is always provided for after!
Motions
Any JCR member is eligible to submit a motion. These are proposals of changes, reforms or ideas for new projects and can come under one of two headings: ‘Private’ or ‘Constitutional’.
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A ‘Private’ motion is usually the proposal of a project or an event, sometimes requiring funds that the proposer wishes the JCR to cover. Make sure that you include a spending cap (the spending limit) and also a seconder (another member of the Pembroke JCR who also supports the proposal).
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The deadline for Private Motions is 19:30 the Friday before the meeting.
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A ‘Constitutional’ motion is a proposed change to the Constitution. Again, it needs a seconder. Constitutional motions require two readings; one agreeing for it to be discussed at a meeting, and one for the actual discussion to take place.
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The deadline for Constitutional Motions is 19:30 the Wednesday before the meeting.
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All motions (both private and constitutional) are to be emailed to the Secretary and are phrased as follows:
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This JCR notes … (a problem/proposal)
This JCR believes … (why this is bad/needs changing/is a great idea!/noting existing practice)
This JCR resolves … (your solution/constitutional amendment/fabulous idea/event…)
+ spending cap if necessary
Proposed by…(you)
Seconded by… (a friend)
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If you've submitted a motion you (and/or you seconder) need to be at the meeting in order to discuss and explain it!
Charity Ballots
We hold a charity ballot in the second JCR meeting of every term. The deadline for nominations is the same as submission of Constitutional motions: 19:30 on the Wednesday before the meeting. All nominations need a proposer and seconder, and are emailed to the Secretary. Proof of the organisation's charitable status is required - this can easily be done by including the Registered Charity Number.
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The nominations are then read out in the meeting. There is a vote after each nomination in order to enter into the ballot. Members then vote online (anonymously) for their preferred charity.
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The Treasurers allocate part of members’ levies each term according to the percentage of votes.
Get involved!
The easiest way to get involved in the JCR is to simply turn up to a meeting!
These are held from 20:30 on the Sunday of odd weeks in Michaelmas and Hilary, and then every week in Trinity term as we elect new members to the committee.
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During meetings, we discuss the motions put forward by JCR members which is how we amend the Constitution and propose projects that need funding. By turning up you get the ability to vote directly on issues that affect you as well as asking questions which might refine the original proposal. You also get to hear from committee members about how the wider college is running.
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Other ways to get involved include applying for SU Rep (a JCR member who sits on the university-wide Student Union), contacting committee members directly to help with various projects - or even husting to be on the committee yourself next year!