SGA Genboard Meeting Roundup 10/9

Luke Young

he/him

Managing Editor

10/15/23

The Student Government Association opened their meeting on Oct. 10th with reports from the E-board on their work over the last week. USSB representatives visited Keene to discuss various things they are looking to implement on campus. The first of these suggestions was an addition of cameras around campus to better protect against vandalism and to avoid dispersing repair costs between innocent people who did not participate. They also discussed Title 9 policies in regard to implementation on campus to ensure that male and female students and employees in educational settings are treated equally and fairly. Finally, the USSB reps announced that they would be in communication with Keene’s Student Body President to discuss how meetings are run on their end.

Also discussed is the Ski Package, announced as becoming available by the end of this month or a bit into next month. The board of trustees will be visiting on Oct. 19th and 20th, with the 20th serving as the student session from 8 – 9:30 a.m. As presented by Speaker Will Loughlin, the honorary degree committee is requesting two students to serve on the committee, to which members of SGA expressed interest.

The Asian Student Union presented its implementation as a club. The purpose of ASU is to support Asian students at Plymouth State and act as an educational resource surrounding Asian cultures. It was implemented to create a safe space and help stop the rise in the trend of Asian hate in the past few years. Their meetings will be held in the IDEA center on Mondays from 6 to 7:30 p.m. The club has nine members already, including the E-board. They look to hold programs relating to Asian holidays geared toward breaking down stereotypes. Sam Chiu will be serving as president and Jules Provincer will serve as vice president. All members approved the club, except Emily Coutermarsh who abstained.

Amendment 2324.2, Clarification of Public Votes, was introduced for the third week in a row and was summarized by Will Loughlin once again. Devonte Gilmore proposed an amendment to the resolution, which would require the treasurer to document and report finances to SGA and give the report to the secretary to post on The PAW. The amendment would also allow CEA requests and public deliberations to be open to the public, while for elections, observers would be asked to step out of the room. The amendment to the amendment passed 13 to 1, with 5 members abstaining. The final vote to approve the amendment was voted into existence 15 to 2, with 1 member abstaining.

The internal election of a new parliamentarian was brought up next, with candidate Jayden Candee running. Candee has volunteered at the Bridge House Community dinners and has worked in managerial positions such as a ropes counselor at a summer camp and served as a coach for soccer players ages 4-18. He is prepared to have hard conversations about dress code and attendance, and he cited his favorite quote as “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, Nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” by Dr. Seuss. 

Constituent concerns were brought forward by members of SGA, and they were reminded to get feedback from peers in order to represent the best. The first concern was about accessibility on campus, specifically in Rounds Hall, as the accessible bathroom is on the second floor. Will Hicking requested that the HUB be open to members of WPCR during subsequent Pirate Parties, which was met by the revelation that WPCR members already are supposed to have access and that USSB representative Jonah Rosenberg is supposed to have 24/7 access to WPCR facilities. A complaint about parking in regards to Pirate Party revolving around tickets being issued to students who were unable to park in their designated lots as they were filled by non-PSU students. The recommendation of the board was to speak to the police, as they are reasonable and may overlook it because of the circumstances. Relating to Pirate Party, it was reported that no PSU students were arrested or hospitalized, but thirteen outsiders were hospitalized or arrested during the course of the day. The biggest problem this year was the amount of people channeled onto campus.

The last suggestion of the night was to fix the stairs leading to the library and Belknap, because of the metal protrusions present on both their stairs.