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Davis

Davis, California

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

This Week in Senate

HANNAH LEE / AGGIE
HANNAH LEE / AGGIE

 

ASUCD Senate holds first meeting of the school year

On Oct. 1, ASUCD Vice President Gareth Smythe called to order the first senate meeting of the year at 6:14 p.m in Memorial Union’s Mee Room. All senators were present at roll call with the exception of Miguel Guerrero and Gabriel Johnson, who both arrived late.

The meeting opened with a series of appointments and confirmations.

It began with Smythe swearing in new ASUCD senator Brendan Chang, who took the seat of former senator Anabiah Syed, who resigned her position the day before.

Senator Alex Lee was re-elected as the senate pro-tempore by a 6-3-3 vote. Lee promised to increase his staff in order to further develop his platforms. Specifically, he mentioned updating the Senate Handbook and implementing a guidebook about managing units under ASUCD.

Senate confirmed the seats for two commissions. Ivon Garcia was confirmed as the chair of the Gender and Sexuality Commission. Danielle Soba, Francisco Gomez, Helia Aryan, Christian Nesbitt, Gaby Preciado and Melissa Zamora were confirmed as members of the Ethnic and Cultural Affairs Commission.

The meeting then moved into committee appointments for the senators, followed by two presentations.

One was made by Deputy University Librarian and Chief of Staff William Garrity. Garrity asked the senate for the creation of a formal sub-committee to help voice student opinions concerning the library. He hopes this committee will enhance the current assessments being made by the university to renovate libraries on campus.

Garrity has had extensive experience with upgrading several university libraries in the country, including ones at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Chicago.

Afterwards, third-year sociology major Eddie Holzman spoke on behalf of the HeForShe campaign to propose a campus-wide discussion on gender equality. Holzman specifically suggested implementing an informative YouTube channel concerning relevant gender issues, and using Youtube to spread awareness of water conservation.

The table then introduced two new pieces of legislation. First, a bill which would benefit the Student Alumni Association by adding an optional payment system that would charge for membership fees every quarter. Additionally, the senate introduced a bill to make initiative ballot measures more accessible.

In response to ASUCD’s efforts to merge units, the senate also passed an updated version of Senate Bill #80. The new bill would formally combine the Campus Center for the Environment and Project Compost by renaming it as the Ecohub.

The meeting ended with a series of public announcements. Smythe announced the arrival of Passion Planners and Watson announced the start of ASUCD’s 100th campaign. It was adjourned at 9:30 p.m.

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