This week, ESC welcomed its new members and discussed transitions, time zones, events, and chips. Staff Writer Leora Schloss, self described “clueless CC student,” reports (and tries to understand engineers). 

Goodbyes and Introductions

This week’s meeting was the first of the 2020-2021 council, though not in full, as a few positions are yet to be elected. Alina Ying, outgoing Student Body President, began the meeting, before signing off. Several members thanked Ying for her contributions to ESC and the SEAS student body. Incoming Student Body President Estevan Mesa led the remainder of the meeting. 

ESC members old and new introduced themselves with a quick ice breaker. Though this probably isn’t newsworthy engineering business, I personally learned that ESC likes Trader Joe’s, chocolate, and very specific types of chips (Hint of Lime, jalapeño chips, and Parmesan Cheez-Its). This was followed by a discussion of ESC committee structures, meeting expectations and times, and internal communications.

Ongoing Initiatives

Before signing off, Ying recapped several initiatives and events that occurred over the summer. She discussed the success ESC had in partnering with Bwog to run the 2020 Wikithon event and noted that several alumni attended and continue to update WikiCU.

More recently, VP Finance Sophia Sagandyk successfully led an initiative to partner with CSA Farmshare. The program, which began several weeks ago, subsidizes fresh produce for SEAS students living in or near Morningside Heights. 

Time Zones

One concern that came up repeatedly throughout the meeting is the challenge posed by time zones as SEAS (and other CU) students are learning from around the globe. 

Over the summer, Academic Affairs Representative James Wang led and conducted a survey of SEAS students to assess the various challenges facing students in their at home learning environments. Time zone considerations were among the top issues found, along with excessive screen time and academic honesty. Dean Morrison reached out to ESC to learn more about the results of this survey, Ying reported.

Several ESC members stressed the importance of students in different time zones having guaranteed access to recordings of classes they cannot attend in person and are working on eliminating the in person participation requirements that some classes still have. Particularly as midterms season approaches, Mesa noted that this access is crucial for students. 

ESC is also considering new times for its general body meetings so that as many members as possible can attend at a reasonable time.

Events

VP Student Life Katherine Liu is working with members of other student councils to enable virtual versions of campus traditions such as Homecoming and Tree Lighting. She and other ESC members are also working to host SEAS specific online events including e-sports tournaments, trivia nights, and info sessions with the CCE.

The Engineering Bat Signal via Bwog Archives