UPDATED: 1/30 10:55 p.m.
Jake Rong ’21 stepped down from his position as the Senator to the Class of 2021 at the Senate meeting. “I hope to stay involved in the Union and the projects that many of you have started to see come to fruition,” he said. According to Rong, he “has not made up his mind” about whether he will run for the Allocations Board.
Trevor Filseth ’20 said that he saw IfNotNow tabling at the club fair earlier that day and asked if that was allowed since they were unchartered. When they applied to be chartered, the club was initially voted to be chartered, but The Hoot found that the Senate miscounted the votes and the club had not received a two-thirds majority vote, according to an earlier article. The Senate informed IfNotNow that they had not reached the required vote amounts and the club withdrew itself from consideration. Chapman said that the Union wants to “draw a line” between club support and Joseph Coles’ ’22 jurisdiction as the Union’s Club Support Chair.
Senators stated their goals for the upcoming semester at the Senate meeting on Sunday, including making the BranVan more efficient, improving Senate attendance and functioning efficiently within committees.
“The attendance policy for committee meetings is the same as the attendance policy for senate meetings,” said Vice President Kendal Chapman ’22.
“Senators… may miss up to… two committee meetings (per committee) per semester,” reads the policy. “If a Senator misses three Senate or committee meetings in a semester, they will be removed from the Senate.”
Senator for the Foster Mods Quad Trevor Filseth ’20 said that there has been talk of implementing communal damage charges and that the Department of Community Living (DCL) has proposed the solution of taking a little money from all residents and making a fund from it. Filseth said that the policy would be similar to how they charge everyone for stolen food throughout the semester.
The university paid $4,900 for the commuter rail subsidy and 154 people have used it. The Lyft subsidy will be reinstated and once a month, students will receive 50 percent off Lyft rides from 10 p.m. to 3 p.m. to or from Brandeis. There will be $10,000 going into the subsidy.
Senator for Rosenthal and Skyline Quads Leah Fernandez ’22 said that she would like to see the condom dispenser funded by the Community Emergency and Enhancement Fund (CEEF). She said that she would like to work on finalizing the project as soon as possible, preferably by the end of February. Fernadez also said that the Plan B vending machines haven’t been filled in months. She said that she is working with Assistant Dean of Student Affairs Tim Touchette to address alleged racism in campus safety.
Priyata Bhatta ’22, Senator for East Quad, would like to get bathroom locks in East Quad changed this semester. She will also be working on a prayer room beautification project.
Class of 2022 Senator Joseph Coles ’22 said that he wants to make the Club Support Committee as efficient as it can be. Class of 2023 Senator Skye Liu ’23 said that Lunar New Year is observed by many students on campus and she would like to help them be excused from classes so that the students, many of whom may be international students, can have time to call or see their families and friends.
The annual Union retreat will take place on Feb. 2.
Correction: A previous version of this article falsely stated that the Health and Safety Committee put up alcohol consumption posters around campus. The posters have not been posted.
