The SGA Student Judiciary ruled in an opinion on Sept. 4 that John Michael Chandash, SGA vice president for student affairs, violated a provision of the organization’s bylaws during the block seating application process.
The opinion, authored by SGA Chief Justice Catherine Martin, was a ruling on an Aug. 29 appeal from Chi Omega regarding its block seating placement. At least five other student organizations also appealed their block seating placements, though appeals are not publicized as opinions are.
According to an amendment to the SGA’s Code of Laws passed last year, the vice president for student affairs is required to create a “ranked map” of all block seating locations based on desirability in coordination with the block seating board of governors. The board and the vice president for student affairs must present the ranked map to student organizations at required informational meetings.
Martin wrote that, in “violation” of the code, ranked maps were not presented at any of three informational meetings held in April and June.
Chi Omega contended that because Chandash did not present the ranked map, the organization’s fifth-place ranking was determined only after the fifth-place section in the stadium’s block seating had been determined on the map, Martin said.
Martin wrote that the court agreed with the organization that the fifth-place spot on the block seating map, which Chi Omega occupied, was “sub optimally positioned,” especially in comparison to lower ranked spots. She specified that one such spot, the ninth-place location, was “anomalously ranked,” with the Student Organization Seating Council citing “tradition” as the grounds for the ranking.
“This Court rejects tradition as a sufficient justification and instead holds that placement determinations must conform strictly to the procedures mandated by the Constitution, Code of Laws, and the rubrics authorized under Chapter 1302.3.1 and effort pursuant to a standardized rubric,” Martin wrote.
The Student Judiciary ordered that Chi Omega and the Honors College swap block seating locations. The court also ordered the vice president for student affairs and the seating council to ensure that rankings and seating allocations follow rules regarding the “proper preparation, approval, and dissemination of ranked seating maps” in the future.
Chi Omega and the Honors College Assembly, which applies for block seating for the Honors College, did not respond to multiple interview requests. Martin declined to comment, saying it would not be appropriate to do so because the Student Judiciary’s deliberations are confidential.
The original block seating map for the fall 2025 season placed Chi Omega in rows 13-16 of S3 and the Honors College in rows 10-17 of S7. Red boxes have been drawn around the two organizations’ locations. (Source: SGA website)When asked via email why Chi Omega was placed in a worse block than the Honors College, Chandash said that the Student Judiciary noted Chi Omega was “sub optimally positioned,” not in a “worse” block.
“I failed to provide the background context of the proposed ranked block seating map,” Chandash added in response to the question. “I take full responsibility for that.
“Without the context that I failed to provide, sub optimal is subjective, and the committee thought based on their ranking, a second-row spot with more seats across would be preferred,” he added. He said that instead, the Student Judiciary helped him understand that the organization preferred a front-row block with fewer seats.
The original Honors College block, which Chi Omega will move to, is in the front row.
Chandash did not respond to follow-up questions concerning the “context” and “committee” he was referring to, why “tradition” was considered for block seating map rankings, and why he didn’t present a ranked map at informational meetings.
The issue of ranked maps was not the only one raised by Chi Omega in its appeal. The organization also argued that the block seating application’s consideration of GivePulse hours unfairly burdened the organization. GivePulse runs a platform, BamaPulse, that tracks organizations’ service hours, which account for 11% of the block seating application.
The court disagreed with Chi Omega’s argument about GivePulse hours, saying it could not overrule policy decisions by the Senate.
Chi Omega and the Master of Business Administration Association, each individually appealed on the basis that an outdated version of the Code of Laws was uploaded to the SGA website, one which had different block seating procedures.
The court rejected the argument that their current placements were invalid, saying that the code was binding regardless of if the website contained the most recent version.
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