Tucker 213, 7:06 p.m.: College of William and Mary Student Assembly Vice President Zach Pilchen ’09 resigned at tonight’s SA senate meeting after confessing yesterday to using almost $140 of SA funds for personal purchases, including Wawa, movies and cigarettes.
“I am resigning my position as vice president of the SA effective immediately,” he told a packed room of senators, executive branch members and students.
Pilchen then turned the meeting over to Senate Chairman Walter McClean ’09 and left the room.
“I really respect him for deciding to resign,” SA President Valerie Hopkins ’09 told the senate.
Hopkins then announced she would create a committee to determine who will be her appointment for the now-vacant vice presidential position. According to the SA constitution, Hopkins has 14 academic days to appoint a new vice president. The choice must be approved by a three-fourths majority of the senate.
Sen. Matt Beato ’09 then announced to the senate that he is not interested in the position.
Hopkins also ordered a cessation of all executive SA spending until further notice1.
Pilchen came forward yesterday after Hopkins and several other senators and members of the executive branch found a discrepancy in the SA’s off-campus accounts, to which Pilchen inadvertantly still had access. Normally access is restricted to the current SA president and secretary of finance.
UPDATE, 7:35 p.m.: McClean introduced for consideration a bill ordering the senate finance committee to investigate the SA’s off-campus account, from which Pilchen withdrew funds. The bill calls for the investigation to conclude within three weeks after passage. It also will seek out ways to secure the account and safeguard against future abuse.
Beato moved to approve the bill immediately as a show of faith from the SA. Sen. Caroline Mullis ’09 seconded the motion and opened the bill to public discussion.
One student in attendance recommended including a non-SA member in the investigation committee.
Update, 7:42 p.m.: Sen. Steven Nelson ’10, the news editor of conservative campus newspaper The Virginia Informer, was the only senator to object to Pilchen’s resignation at the meeting. He said that he feels there is “no breach of public trust” and that there is no reason the SA needs to apologize to the student body for Pilchen’s actions.
Mullis motioned to pass the bill by unanimous consent. It passed; Nelson did not vote against it.
Check back with FlatHatNews.com for more updates on this developing story.
1 This sentence has been corrected. Hopkins placed a moratorium on executive spending only, which was not reflected in the original sentence.
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41 Comments
Good…
Now it’s Val’s turn.
Hopkins ‘respects’ Pilchen for resigning? How can Hopkins ‘respect’ him for anything? He STOLE our money: he should resign in disgrace, not on ‘respect’able terms.
Also, don’t you think that if the president of an organization knew someone was stealing from them and they didn’t seek to correct that problem, then they should be held liable? C’mon people, if Hopkins’s can’t keep track of her VP- she certainly can’t keep track of student affairs and concerns! Her responsibility level is non-existent!
One last time: Hopkins needs to go. Now.
you seem way too angry….
I am disgusted and ashamed. Never should there be respect for someone who abuses a position of authority.
Seriously. ONLY $140!!!??? Give me a break. Zach could just pay that out of pocket NO sweat. I like that people think this is actually a big deal – like the SA is doing something with OUR money anyways. LOLOLOL. This must be a joke. Zach you rule. You’re a better man than all the rest of us for not stealing hundreds and hundreds more. At the strip club, for instance.
I believe the comment about respect was that we respect Pilchen for taking responsibility, for dealing with the natural consequences of his actions, and for resigning rather than putting the SA in the trenches for weeks. Of course we do not respect him for stealing from the Student Body.
Let’s keep our heads, folks.
I just vomited a little. I my mouth. That’s how pissed I am right now.
Zach’s a good guy but it’s a shame it came to this. Something hasn’t sat right ever since he proudly announced that he’d been creating fake Facebook profiles to his advantage a year or so ago.
Personally, I don’t care if some of our money goes to the SA to thank and support them for the hard work they do, but I suppose it’s his decision and the community’s.
Thank you Flat Hat for selectively omitting the primary part of my statement- which was that the Flat Hat reported this story in a heavily biased manner and that I do not consider this to be theft, as I am sure Zach had every intention of repaying for the money used.
Yeah, we heard you Steve, thanks for expressing your opinion…now, please stop posting. thanks
I’m not going to defend Zach’s actions, but let’s try to keep some perspective here.
There are many things in the world that are worth getting worked up over. This isn’t one of them — not even remotely.
I agree. First and foremost, it’s admirable he came forward and admitted, since $140 could have easily been gone by unnoticed. Secondly, though this is by no means “dismissable”, there are much worse things he could have done. Zach and Val have been very good for our school and I still respect and appreciate both of them!
He stole, bottom line. He used the card for purposes he shouldn’t have. Hey Nelson, that was never HIS money to use so there is no argument. Bottom line, I’ll be upset if the Honor Council doesn’t get involved in this.
Do not belittle the action based on the amount. Just because some of you come from middle class families does not mean $140 is a small amount of money.
And of course Zach came forward. He was probably told by Val or Beato that this was going to happen and knew that he was going to get smoked for it. His father probably told him to come forward with it as to help his case.
I am surprised some of you are shocked at Zach’s actions. This is the same person who allegedly is/was a drug dealer, marijuana smoker, and vandalizer. I do not know if this is true or not, but these are just the rumors I heard.
In my humble opinion, it sounds like Zach is pretty damn corrupt and used the power he had to benefit himself under the veil of helping students. And if ANYONE were to be paid in the SA, it should be Matt Beato. Now that kid works- not Zach or Valerie.
the $140 could have gone unnoticed… but it didn’t, and he didn’t come forward until he was called out on it.
hahahahhahaahahahahah william and gary. ethics anyone?
i hope he didnt spend it all in one place…Hows does it feel to make an ass out of yourself and your school? better luck next time
can we say honor court violation?
yeah, this is a serious violation of the honor code. is he going to face the honor council or what?
This article should have been named “W&M Students Learn a Political Lesson”. Namely, that if you give money to a politician they’ll spend it foolishly.
Said the man
Who feel him a fool
For he be the wiseman
For the man
Who don’t think he’s a fool he
Control his destiny
But he’s too cool for himself
Ha! Come on, Flat Hat: must you persist in your juvenile convention of constantly labeling the Informer “conservative campus newspaper”? It’s true, but unwarranted. You wouldn’t say… “Zach Pilchen, a Jew,” or “former Senator Orlando Watson, who is black,” under most circumstances.
If you want to pretend you’re a professional organization, at least act like it. Be the better paper if you want to be worthy of such a designation.
But what do I know? I’m just freelance.
Really? A news story of this importance, and all Alex Kyrios cares about is the COMPLETELY ACCURATE representation of the Virginia Misleader?
i agree that there isn’t much to get worked up over. it’s a shame that zach used the money for sure, and i agree with his decision to resign, but look at everything he and val have done for the school in retrospect. let’s not make this harder for him by harassing him or getting him into more trouble!
Valerie didn’t report the incident before, and obviously knew Zach had taken at least some of the money out. But she only decided to bring this information forward later and created an investigation that led to his resignation?
Sounds to me like Pilchen made her mad and she knew just how to get him back.
Yes, it’s a bad thing. Yes, Zach should have resigned. The HC will probably get involved.
But are people seriously worked up over this? This is trite by any standards. Just chill out, and try to find some useful cause to boil your blood.
Hopefully Zach gets kicked out of school and goes to jail!!
Some students watch the hills and gossip girls for drama but william and mary students read the flat hat and post absurd speculations about a hopkins-pilchen conspiracy. If Val had known the card would have been switched to her name way before so that the behavior would be stopped
This is the silliest “scandal” I’ve ever seen reported by the Flat Hat about the Student Assembly.
Being SA President is a full time job (40+ hours per week) and is full of pressure few people can truly understand. What do we reward their service with? Nothing. Unlike the majority of our peer institutions and universities across the country, W&M doesn’t pay a cent to these students who work full time on our behalf. We should.
This is clearly an isolated event that doesn’t need to be investigated – it amounts to flimsy accounting of 0.02% of SA’s total budget. W&M’s SA budget is over half a million per year. It’s on the same scale as demanding a resignation from an SA member who uses the office stamps to mail graduate school applications, or using the SA office equipment instead of paying for it in the library.
Under Zach’s watch, students finally made headway in confronting the anti-student policies of the Williamsburg City Council. A record number of students registered to vote and voted in ’08. Students are on track to elect student-friendly representatives to the council in 2010 because of the foundation laid by Zach.
Rather than wasting students’ valuable time on a fruitless investigation, the senate should abandon its Us vs. Them / Senate vs. Exec mentality and work to provide the executive with an autonomous, discretionary budget that encompasses both the president and vice president.
Cut out the sanctimonious posturing and get real.
Luther Lowe, ’06
Chairman Emeritus (‘05-‘06)
W&M Student Assembly Senate
Stealing is a serious matter. Last year our Honor Council expelled Will McClain for embezzlement from a student organization. Like Zach, Will apologized and reimbursed the money immediately upon public reporting of the crime. These cases are strikingly similar and should not be handled differently. The Honor Council has a responsibility to hear this case.
And Luther, yes, being a student representative is time consuming and can be a huge undertaking with not much personal reward. But, it is a voluntary decision that we make when we run for office. We do it to represent our peers because we believe in the betterment of our community
I feel like the Honor Council’s debate will have to focus on whether “borrowing without asking with the intent to pay back” is considered stealing.
I’m sorry to say it looks grim for the Pilch.
Luthor, I think a lot of students/alums are so disheartened by this for the very reason that Zach and the SA in general had been making such headway. I personally supported Zach’s candidacy, and I was pleased with the amount of change he was able to bring about. To lose a valuable student leader for such a stupid infraction is hugely disappointing. It’s a shame that he made such a poor choice and that the good he may have done will probably be trumped by this incident. I think what he did was inexcusable, and it’s made even worse because Zach was seen as a leader who students could trust to represent our best interests.
Dear God, does anyone actually think this “scandal” deserves to be treated with such seriousness and solemnity? Get. over. yourselves.
And to Alex kyrios:
Qualifying the Informer as a “conservative campus newspaper” merely explains what the Informer is and what opinions it espouses, thereby clarifying it for people who might not
know what the Informer is. It is in no way the same thing as saying “Zach Pilchen, a Jew,” or “former Senator Orlando Watson, who is black”. Your comparison is idiotic. Nice job.
Luther, I don’t you know you, but you sound like a tool bag.
Kate, stealing money is a legit concern. It is serious and you need to get over YOURSELF- you think you’re hott shit probably. Well, you’re not. Get back to the kitchen.
Zach Pilchen was a good president last year and probably would have been a good VP this year. But unfortunately his actions undermine at least in part all he has accomplished.
The real shame of it is that up until now he seemed to be all about keeping everyone accountable, like last year when he derailed the Scoefield campaign at another school for plagiarizing their platform.
I agree that, in the scope of the SA budget, this was a relatively small abuse. However, this sort of behavior is unbecoming of a W&M student and must be dealt with by the Honor Council. They are the ones who should decide if it was an innocent mistake or malicious thievery – that’s why they exist. it’s time to put judicial independence to work.
$140 is a lot of money to somebody who works for their money. After rent, food, elec, etc; $140 to spend on movies, cigarettes, and bee…Wa Wa is a lot! I don’t believe he ever intended to pay it back. If I accidently used a school credit card, I would have been appologizing to the student council and paying it back the next day. Not conspire with the treasurer, wait for 4 months until I got caught, and then pay up. He should have to face the honor council.
138.51$ now thats change i can believe in…
i support zach and think he has been a great part of the student assembly
so I hear the SA is holding an open search for a new SA vice-president? I nominate zach pilchen. I mean, he’s got more executive experience than obama, biden and mccain combined!
If this is not a big deal then we should all get $140. It was not his money to take and he should have to face the consequences; resignation is an easy way out.
I’m disappointed in Zach. I don’t know him personally but he always seemed like a great guy who was very responsible. But this was fraud, it was unethical, he deserves a severe punishment (if not expulsion) from the Honor Council. We are known for how committed we are to the honor code. Time to live up to it.