Riding the gala high

Riding the Gala high

Observant to a fault, witchy Romane Thomas listened in on last night’s meeting of the General Studies Student Council (GSSC), where topics of discussion ranged from self-congratulation to teaching awards.

“You killed it, you killed it, you killed it!”

President Elizabeth Heyman congratulated the Campus Life pole and its Social Chair on their organization of the most successful Gala yet. VP of Campus Life Dennis Zhao stated that he could not “reiterate enough the amazing job that you did.” He pointed out that he had received “amazing feedback from students and alumni” who said that this was the best Gala they had been to in years. Zhao also used his time to remind the council that GS Faculty Appreciation Day was coming up on April 15. In order to survive finals, Campus Life is organizing two weeks of international style Snack Attacks starting in May.

Elections and Endorsements

President Heyman reminded the council that “elections are happening, campaigning is happening.” She stated that a large number of people were campaigning which was a testament both to the great advertisement of the elections and to the “fact that we did a great job this year.” She also warned the council that members were prohibited from endorsing candidates in their capacity as council members. Although there was some debate about what council members were allowed to do as student and private individuals, VP of policy Michael Neier added that “according to the by-laws there can be no public endorsement from people on council.”

Free New York Times Subscription

VP of Finance Dalitso Nkhoma announced that “the New York Times deal came through!” She explained that, starting today, if you are affiliated with GS as a student (part-time or full-time) or as a spouse, you can receive a free subscription from the New York Times. The link to subscribe is available on this week’s OWL and on the GSSC Facebook page. The council also approved a co-sponsorship request from GS Alliance for their event “Queering in Academia,” featuring Dean Peter Awn and a short talk about “sock buying 101”, which will take place on Thursday. The other request was from KIGS who are organizing an event with a North Korean defector tonight at Northwest Corner Building 501.

Teaching Awards

VP of Policy Michael Neier announced the recipients of teaching awards for this year. Professor Moody Adams is the winner of the Excellence in Teaching Award, Chris Mulligan the winner of the Excellency in Teaching Assistance Award, and Dean RJ Jenkins the winner of the Faculty Excellence Award.

DDOF Event!

GSSC Senator gave the council more information about Columbia’s Daily Dose of Fitness event which will take place on April 22 in the afternoon. Celentano explained that the event had been modified from its original form. At the beginning of the day, DDOF will post its workout. It can be completed anywhere and the first 200 people to finish it will receive “branded swag.”

We’re Soaring, Flying via Public Domain