Posted By Garrett Adams on Sep 24, 2019 | 1 comment

By Garrett Adams, Staff Writer

This week’s Senate’s agenda included club recognition, budget requests, a conversation about two potential Constitutional amendments, and a request from Dean Julie Ramsey.

President Patrick McKenna ’20 began the meeting by relaying a message from Dean Ramsey: she is accepting nominations for students who would be interested in serving as a student representative on a search committee to fill the position of Vice President of Enrollment Services.

McKenna also shared that the winner of the Dr. Ralph Cavaliere Endowed Teaching Award was decided after receiving over two hundred vote submissions. The winner will be announced on Fall Honors Day on Nov. 1 at 4 p.m. in the Christ Chapel.

Senate Advisor Jonathan Allen discussed the email sent to all sophomores, juniors, and seniors regarding the upcoming leadership summit, co-sponsored by The Garthwait Leadership Center, The Center for Career Engagement, and the Office of Student Activities and Greek Life (OSAGL).

The summit is offered to 50 student leaders across campus from any and every background. The students would meet and discuss various problems and solutions to their respective problems and campus wide issues. First-year students are excluded from this due to the Emerging Leaders Retreat happening next semester.

Next, the Brown Nipple Collective started the budget requests by asking for an annual budget for their events this semester.

Many of the club’s events involve feeling more comfortable about one’s body and their representative said, “It’s another way to embrace yourself, which is what Gettysburg is all about.”

The request was allotted in full.

The Biosphere club then came forward and requested their semester budget. They mentioned a few of their events ranging from cactus-planting to Talk Nerdy to Me. The club ensures that all of their events are STEM-related, and their request was allotted in full as well.

Senate moved on to club recognition next. The first club seeking recognition was “Talk, Listen, Change,” headed by Tristan Chen ’20. In the previous academic year, Chen’s organization was named The Half that Has Never Been Told, but is now seeking re-recognition from Senate and takes on a slightly different agenda.

“The Half that Has Never Been Told […] initially focused on the history of America and I decided to change the direction of the club […] I want to focus on current events, news articles, and what we can do to create change,” Chen explained.

The floor was then opened for questions and discussion. Many students were concerned by the similarities between “Talk, Listen, Change” and “Let’s Talk About It,” a club that has been active on campus without Senate recognition for a year.

When asked if his club would take strong positions in terms of political leaning Chen said, “I don’t like to lean left or right, I just care about facts and the truth.”

McKenna tabled the motion for recognition until next week.

“When we’re approving clubs, it’s an acknowledgment that their paperwork is in with Courtney, the OSAGL office and they have a Constitution,” McKenna said of requirements for club recognition.

The Apple Cider Society came forward and discussed the intentions of their club. David DeBole ’20 plans for the group to gather, drink apple cider, and provide “a forum for students to share anything they consider beautiful… philosophy… poetry… and life in general.”

Senate discussed amendments to the Constitution, including splitting the Safety and Sustainability Committee into two parts and holding office hours with affinity group leaders instead of reporting to committees. The Safety and Sustainability Committee amendment was tabled, and the idea to hold affinity group office hours resonated well with the group.

Senate will meet again next Monday.