By Sophie Lange, Staff Writer
On Monday, the Student Senate held their weekly meeting, featuring three budget requests and two policy changes. They also held a technocratic debate and election for the positions of treasurer, secretary and parliamentarian.
Officer Reports
Vice President Geoffrey Meadville ’25 said the technocratic elections would occur at the meeting, and he expressed gratitude to the Senate Select Committee on Elections and Onboarding (EOC) for their reliability. He again discussed the need for members of the Senate who were not on the Executive Board to participate in CUB tabling at least once before the end of the semester.
Treasurer Hannah Repole ’25 gave the budget update. The remaining budget for the spring semester was $6,600.98, with an additional $18,699.53 in the rollover fund from last semester.
Secretary Nick Silvis ’23 said that students who wish to advertise their events around campus need to reach out to him.
Advisor of Student Senate and Director of the Office of Student Activities and Greek Life (OSAGL) Jon Allen reminded students about the new posting policies and that only three weeks remained to plan events.
Committee Reports
The College Life Advisory Committee (CLAC) and the Wellness and Safety Committee said they will be hosting a “Cook Out with the Cops” on April 27.
The Senate Opinions Committee gave an update on the cheerleading opinion passed last week. They will be having another meeting with the Athletics Department on April 18.
Student Concerns
Senator Clayton Brosend ’24 raised a concern about the rising seniors’ lottery numbers being randomized compared to the rising juniors who receive Sophomore Success credits to improve their lottery numbers and the rising sophomores who receive FYRE credits to improve their lottery numbers. President Miranda Zamora ’23 expressed that she would bring this concern to the Office of Residential Education (ResEd).
Budget Requests
The Muslim Student Association made the first budget request. They asked for an additional $70 for transportation for the celebration of Eid. Originally, the cost of transportation was only $300, but due to unforeseen complications, they were informed it would cost $370 instead. The request was granted in full.
Next, the Public Policy Student Council requested $348.32 for their annual Public Policy Panera Pastry Picnic. This amount would cover the cost and delivery fees of the food from Panera. The request was granted in full.
Finally, the Caribbean Club requested $1,050 for their Afro-Chella event during Spring Fest to cover the payment for bringing in a DJ for five hours. The Senate approved the BMC recommended amount of $800 to cover two to three hours.
Old Business
The Senate passed legislation to make Academic & Career Affairs, currently a standing committee, an ad hoc committee. This policy was previously tabled.
New Business
A committee proposed legislation that would create two separate accounts for the budget. One account would cover anchor events, described as events with an expected attendance of more than 200 people and occur two or more years consecutively. The other account would cover events that do not qualify for anchor event status. This proposal was sent back to the committee.
Treasurer Debate
Three candidates ran for treasurer: Dominic DiLuzio ’26, Jack Murphy ’24 and Alfredo Roman Jordan ’26.
Gettysburgian Editor-in-Chief Katie Oglesby ’23 began the debate by asking each candidate for their opening statements.
Murphy spoke first. In his statement, he discussed the need for all senators to be aware of previous history to have the most informed approach to budget requests.
“I think we have to understand that each budget is important, no matter how big or how small it is, and we need to make sure that everyone knows the importance of every dollar,” Murphy said.
Murphy also wanted to increase communication between clubs and the executive board because “every student’s voice matters.”
Roman Jordan then discussed the importance of having good social skills as a treasurer because a large part of the position is facilitating communication between clubs and Senate.
He expressed that he wants to “empower [senators] to make the best decisions possible. I don’t want to [pressure] them to make a specific decision.”
Roman Jordan also emphasized the importance of ensuring that all senators understand budget requests and that all clubs understand why their requests were accepted or denied. To do this, he proposed using “fun data visualizations so that people can really dive into the numbers and see exactly how the budget is really doing.”
DiLuzio was the final speaker. He acknowledged that, as treasurer, he would be deprived of voting power, but he also expressed that he wants to ensure that senators are able to make the best decisions possible.
“I won’t be making any decisions, but what I can do and what I will do as treasurer, will empower each of [the senators] to make the most informed decision that [they] can via effective communication and transparency,” DiLuzio said.
He also expressed the need to treat clubs equitably, not equally: “Different clubs of different sizes will receive equitable amounts of money to ensure that each student is represented evenly in the amount of funding we give.”
Oglesby followed this by asking about candidates’ goals for the position of treasurer.
Diluzio emphasized communication and transparency once more. He also pushed back on the idea of the Budget Management Committee (BMC) having more oversight over the budget than the Senate itself. He explained that he wants the entire Senate to understand the budget, such as how much has been spent and why. He also explained that he wants the Senate’s voting members to decide how the budget should work.
Roman Jordan echoed Diluzio’s sentiment, again expressing a desire to empower the Senate’s voting members to make budgetary decisions. He also discussed wanting information to be communicated in a more transparent fashion and the importance of working with club leaders. He explained that he wants to make as many high-quality events happen as possible, and he feels that communication with club leaders is a key part of that.
Murphy explained that the treasurer is one of the faces of Gettysburg College. He emphasized the importance of listening to the budgetary concerns of students and staff. He also spoke of the treasurer’s position as an advocate for students and clubs.
Oglesby then inquired about what each candidate would bring to the role that would improve Senate.
Roman Jordan detailed his experience in accounting and data science, which he plans to use for data visualization. He also described himself as a people person with a desire to bring more people’s opinions to the Senate. Roman Jordan is also an international student, and he said he wants to help ensure that other international students understand the purpose of Senate.
Murphy also described himself as a people person, expressing that he believes he has the patience necessary for the role. He echoed the idea of helping international students understand the purpose of the Senate. He finished his statement with a discussion about creating an environment of happiness throughout campus.
DiLuzio explained that as a first-year student, he understood the confusion that new senators felt towards the budget. He wants to help ease that confusion through stronger new member education. DiLuzio also expressed that, as a committee chair, he knows how to get things done and create positive outcomes.
Finally, Oglesby asked them what their philosophy would be regarding budget management.
Murphy explained that his philosophy would be “education.” He felt that education would allow members of the Senate to be better equipped to understand budgetary needs.
Roman Jordan explained that his philosophy would be “connection” because he has made meaningful connections with the Senators and believes that connections are a vital part of being a good treasurer.
DiLuzio explained that his philosophy would be “transparency,” as he feels Senate should inform club representatives about why they are or are not getting money and how they will receive that money. He also believes that students deserve to know where their tuition dollars are going, and voting members, in particular, should have better access to budget information.
Oglesby then opened the floor for questions.
Senator EJ Gill ’23 asked candidates to give an example of something that Repole has done that they would emulate and something they would do differently.
Roman Jordan explained that he would emulate Repole’s adaptability and ability to change failures into successes. He did not mention anything he would change.
Murphy said he would embody how Repole handled criticism and how she adapted to others’ needs by opening BMC meetings to Zoom. He said that something new he would initiate would be going to first-year orientation to speak with clubs and educate them on various topics, such as how to submit budget and 25Live requests.
DiLuzio expressed that he would emulate Repole’s friendly demeanor and her ability to interface between Senators and club representatives. He would change the structure of budget transfers from BMC to the floor to make it more efficient.
Senator Ella Prieto ’26 asked how they would run BMC and what their qualifications were.
Roman Jordan said he had experience with teamwork and coordination, and he believed himself to be a natural leader. He explained that he would take a hands-off approach in BMC, yet he would still take charge for conflict management.
Murphy said he believed the treasurer should be more of an advisor, guiding voting members in their decisions. He explained that he would handle problems through mediation.
Diluzio explained that his position as the chair of the Wellness and Safety Committee, as well as his experience in Model UN during high school, helped him learn how to structure debates effectively with time for information and collaboration.
Roman Jordan won the election with a total of twelve votes. Diluzio received nine votes, and Murphy received four votes.
Secretary Forum
Grace Nelson ’26 ran unopposed for the position of secretary.
As with the previous debate, Oglesby asked for her statement of purpose.
Nelson explained that she started her first year with no roommate and had difficulty making connections on campus. After the first semester, she joined Senate to get involved and meet people. She said she believes her purpose is to serve Senators, the board, students and clubs.
“Finding my sense of self-fulfillment here on Senate, I know that other students get the same fulfillment out of other clubs, and we fund those clubs,” Nelson said.
Oglesby asked about her goals as secretary.
Nelson’s overall goal was an increase communication. She explained that she wanted to work on outreach with students and gave several ideas for how she would accomplish this, such as an increase in social media usage to connect with students. She also expressed a desire to better communicate the schedule and minutes with Senators, as well as initiating better communication with committee chairs.
When Oglesby asked what she would bring to the role, Nelson answered that she would bring her close relationships with the Senators, an enthusiasm to form new bonds with newly-elected senators and a willingness to have transparency.
Nelson received a unanimous vote of confidence and was elected to the position.
Parliamentarian Forum
Michael Woods ’25 ran unopposed for parliamentarian.
In his statement of purpose, Woods explained that he has two goals: education and participation. In terms of education, he wants to ensure all members are aware of their duties and the ways the constitution can help them do their job. In terms of participation, he plans to involve senators and club representatives in the Rules and Administration Committee (RAC).
Woods gave an example of something he might do to increase participation. He said that he wanted to host an event that would inform club representatives and the student body of how the Constitution can be used.
“During the session, I would allow all members of the campus community to give suggestions or recommendations as to how they feel that the constitution can be even further improved,” Woods said.
Oglesby then asked him what experience he brings to the Senate.
Woods explained that serving as chair of the Senate Opinions Committee taught him many valuable skills, including organization and collaboration with numerous departments and offices on campus. He also discussed how the Opinions Committee has taken on many new initiatives under his leadership. Woods said that he has a good understanding of the committees, as he attended many of them before becoming a chair.
Woods was elected to the position through a unanimous vote of confidence.
Senate will meet again on April 17.
This article was edited at 3:45 p.m. on April 16, 2023. An earlier version of this article falsely stated that the legislation to create two separate accounts for the budget was passed. This legislation was in fact sent back to the committee. (- L. Franchetti)
