SGA meets at 8 pm every Monday in Diana 2! These meetings are open to all Barnard students, but we all know you’re too busy stealing coffee mugs from Peet’s, so Bureau Chief Leena Chen has it covered for you.

Seriously, though. If you stole or “accidentally borrowed” a reusable handmade Clay Collective mug from Peet’s Coffee in Milstein, please return it as soon as possible—there will be no consequences or questions asked. Remember, you’re stealing from Mother Earth, not from campus administration.

This meeting focused on resources for first-generation and low-income students on campus. The special guest speaker at this meeting was Associate Dean for Student Success Jemima Gedeon, who advises first-generation and/or low-income (FGLI) students and facilitates both the First-Generation Advisory Board and the Peer Academic Leader program. Dean Gedeon has worked at Barnard for nearly a year now, and her own experiences as an FGLI student inform her role as a Dean and as an educator. Two members of the First Gen Advisory Board also attended the meeting: Megan Rivera (BC ‘21) and Tamima Sultana (BC ‘22). Both made clear that they are interested in hearing from other students about FGLI issues.

Dean Gedeon meets with many departments, offices, faculty, staff, and students to initiate and facilitate collaborations which support the FGLI community. For example, the First Gen Advisory Board is currently addressing textbook affordability in collaboration with Operations, the Library system, and FLIP. Dean Gedeon and the First Gen Advisory Board members unfortunately could not reveal any details about their plans just yet, but stay tuned for more!

Going forward, keep an eye out for the first annual First-Gen Awareness Week from April 15th through 19th. The events will be run by Dean Gedeon, the First Gen Advisory Board, and the many other offices and departments across campus.

Coffee Mug via Wikimedia Commons