so many things to look forward to, such as tree-lighting season!

Now that we’re two months deep into the semester, and with Thanksgiving coming up next week, many of us are sleep-deprived, swamped in work, and losing steam. Luckily, for the officers and the attendees (including yours truly), last night’s General Studies Student Council meeting was short and sweet. Bwog’s GSSC Bureau Chief, Alex Tang, brings us updates for upcoming initiatives, events, and food giveaways.

To start off the meeting, GSSC’s Students with Disabilities Representative, Jonathan Criswell, introduced the council to the new Students with Disabilities Survey. The survey will be sent out to the GSSC community, and is aimed at pinpointing any “financial issues, issues of accessibility, issues of morale and discrimination, and any potential issues” that affect GSSC’s population of students with disabilities. The council briefly reviewed the survey, and certain members suggested semantic changes in the language of the survey. After further review, the survey will be sent out to the GS student body, and all respondents will be entered into a raffle for a $50 gift card.

Under the guidance of Julia Hewitt, the Family and Working Students Representative, GSSC is also working on a survey for students with families. This shorter survey (also with a $50 gift card raffle) is aimed at granting GSSC a better understanding of the demographics and circumstances of the population.

Finally, the council approved funding for the First Year Dinner, which will happen on Friday, December 1 from 6-8pm at Amity Hall. The event is intended for first-year students to reconnect after their first semester at Columbia. GSSC will work with Amity Hall to make the dinner open to all students 18 and over.

Below are some of GSSC’s upcoming events and initiatives:

  • Planned events:
    The International Students Reception is happening this Thursday at 1pm in the Satow Room (Lerner Hall), and will feature international food from five different caterers (featuring cuisines such as Caribbean, Ethiopian, and Italian). The event is open to all students who are interested in meeting international students and hearing about their experiences.
  • In cooperation with other student groups on campus, GSSC is organizing the Native American Heritage Month Postcard Writing Event for Monday, November 27 from 5-7pm in Lerner’s Broadway Room. Come by to write and decorate postcards for at-risk youth living in reservation systems across the country.
  • GS’s pre-Thanksgiving BBQ is planned for next Monday, right before Thanksgiving break. Check GSSC’s Facebook page for more information.

Planned initiatives:

  • In an effort to reform Columbia Election Board rules, the four student council groups on campus are going through election rules from peer institutions. A report will be released soon, which will detail rules that Columbia could adopt.
  • GSSC, CCSC, ESC, and SGB (that’s a lot of letters!) are working to put together a database of all official and unofficial student groups and activities on campus. The team is currently asking different departments about events that might otherwise only be known to majors or people affiliated with the department.
  • Do you know any cool things that students, faculty, or admin are doing around campus? Send in some stories to OWL, GSSC’s monthly newsletter

trees via columbia.edu