Yeehaw, y’all! Welcome to this week’s weekly roundup for student council, where Bureau Chiefs Adam Kluge (CCSC), Lori Luo (ESC), Eliza Staples (SGA), and Olivia Mitchell (GSSC) give you the cheat sheet on everything student council! 

This week in CCSC:

  • CCSC Bureau Chief Adam Kluge returned this week after battling a nasty respiratory flu, in order to attend the third CCSC meeting of the semester
  • Gender and Sexuality representative Kwolanne Felix spoke about continuing work on a Period Project with HeforShe, which will be focused on acquiring menstrual products for those in the greater Columbia and New York City area who are suffering from housing insecurity and other menstrual hygiene-related hardships. Keep an eye out for a fundraiser pertaining to this ongoing work (there will be comfort food)!
  • The Class of 2023 had a successful Galentine’s Day event last week, which included a copious amount of Shake Shack as well as a movie screening. Additionally, Literature Humanities books have arrived as part of the Class of 2023’s ongoing subsidized text project. The Class of 2023 is also in the process of finalizing planning for their upcoming Open Mic event at the end of this month—more to come on this programming!
  • CCSC President Patricia Granda-Malaver (CC ’20) announced further work on the ongoing proposal to expand the subsidized MetroCard program throughout Columbia as a more institutionalized effort.
  • CCSC recently met with the Women of Color Pre-Law Society in order for CCSC representatives Colby King and Heven Haile to solidify their upcoming presentation on diversity with said group.
  • CCSC recently spoke to student government representatives from Barnard related to the recent controversial news pertaining to the ways in which students in quarantine at Barnard, due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, have been treated by administration (and other students).
  • University Senator Ramsay Eyre also gave updates on the upcoming Campus Hunger Awareness Week, an annual event sponsored by the Columbia Food Pantry, which serves to highlight food insecurities within the general campus community.
  • CCSC representatives then voted in response to their role in nominating undergraduate students to the university-wide boards of the Committee on Art Properties and the Presidential Advisory Committee on Sexual Assault (PACSA). These representatives must not be University senators.

This week in ESC: 

  • The Vice President of Student Life Joseph Greenwell came in to discuss the wellbeing survey that is out now. Information from the survey goes to informing resource allocation and the creation of new initiatives. It only takes around 20 minutes to take, and there are weekly raffles for prizes (such as Hamilton tickets) for students who have taken the survey. ESC encourages everyone to take it! 
  • In response to recent incidents on campus and building on their previous discussions, ESC decided to release a statement condemning bias and hate on campus. 
  • Due to the success of SEAS Gala last Friday, ESC has decided to make it an event that’s hosted annually.
  • The junior class council is seeking to fill a vacancy created by Arya Zhao. If interested, keep an eye out for more information in the weekly newsletter.  

This week in SGA:

  • SGA heard from Dr. DeShaunta Johnson of the Ombuds office. For confidential advice on conflict resolution for issue, Dr. Johnson is the person for you.
  • Additionally, Provost Linda A. Bell discussed curriculum evaluation, particularly for diversifying the curricula of First Year Experience classes, as well as unpacking the process by which professors receive and maintain tenure. 

This week in GSSC:

  • President Christopher Thompson GS ’20 announced the beginning of the elections process with the creation of the independent committee Election Commission Appointment Committee, made up of Thompson as the Chair, Senior Class President Matt Linsky GS ’20, and four graduating seniors, whose job is to interview and nominate 2-3 GS students for the position of General Studies Elections Commission Chair, which is the head of the independent committee the General Studies Elections Commission, who will then appoint 2-3 GS students to make up the rest of the General Studies Elections Commission.
  • GSSC met with Michael Higgins GS ’21, the Co-Founder and Chair of the Food Pantry at Columbia, who announced the opening of a third food pantry location on the Medical Campus. The new location will open sometime in March, and hours will be announced after its opening. Higgins then went on to talk about the upcoming Campus Hunger Education Week (CHEW), which will take place from February 23rd to February 29th, and will include events to spur the discussion on food insecurity on campus. CHEW will also be hosting a Mardi Gras event on Tuesday, February 25th, from 7 PM – 9 PM in the West Auditorium, which will be a fun event for Columbia students to celebrate Mardi Gras!
  • Campus Life discussed multiple upcoming events, including the continuation of their financial literacy series, which will take place on Thursday, February 27th, from 4 PM – 5 PM in 308A Lewisohn Hall, and the General Studies Gala, which will be on April 18th at Guastavino’s with the theme of Masquerade.
  • GSSC then discussed the allocation of funds for the senior class cruise and ended up passing a motion increasing the number of the tickets purchased from 35o to 500, selling 450 tickets at full price and 50 at a partially subsidized price of $15. The vote was a very tight 12-11, being broken by President Thompson.
  • The University Senator, Jonathan Criswell GS’20, ended the night by putting out a call for an undergraduate student with experience and knowledge on gender-based violence to join the Presidential Advisory Committee on Sexual Assault, which is made up of 1 University Senator, 1 undergraduate student, and 1 graduate student, who serve 2 year terms and meet 2-3 times a year. The committee is looking to have 2-3 candidates by the 24th and to have selected the candidate by the 28th.

That’s this week’s student council roundup! Tune in next week for new highlights and information!

Header via Bwog staff