SGA held its final meeting of the semester this week. President Pro Tempore Connor Landers filled in for Vice President Nathan Farnor, who was unable to attend.
As it was the last meeting of the semester, there was no new business, and the final two pieces of legislation, SSR-16-007 and SSR-16-008, were up for debate.
SSR-16-007 was a resolution concerned with conducting research into wearable safety devices students could rent out. Although some concerns were raised over how much the devices would cost, what would happen if they were lost and avoiding a reliance on Wi-Fi, the resolution ultimately passed.
SSR-16-008 sparked considerable debate in the senate. The legislation aimed to fix issues with the Office of International Affairs, including a lack of resources.
Many international students have raised concerns about feeling separated from traditional students, and not being able to get the help they need.
While every senator seemed to agree that the legislation was good, they did discuss issues with wording and attempted to reconcile confusion over what, exactly, the resolution was trying to do.
After two failed motions to table the legislation and two failed objections, the resolution was voted on, but did not pass. However, the senate did seem to be in agreement that they would like to see the resolution again after amendments were made to address the issues that were brought up in discussion.
While the meeting did not flow completely smoothly, President Pooja Shah did commend the senators on their efforts.
“I know that got really heated and there’s a lot of differences in opinions in this room, but that’s why you all are here,” she said during her closing remarks. “So thank you for voicing those opinions. That allows us to make the most informed decisions. I just ask that you all take a look around and look at all the diversity we have in this room… every person in here is bringing something new to the table, so I ask that you all just keep that in mind going forward, in here and in life.”
