The 28th General Assembly of the Student Government Association held its final meeting last night, ushering in the senators and executive board members for the next academic year.
During old business, two bills were approved to alter the way seats are distributed in the Senate. Previously, the College of Arts and Sciences had four senate seats; now, six senators will represent SLU’s largest college.
Also, Notre Dame and O’Brien halls will retain one combined senate seat. An amendment to remove the Laclede Houses seat was revoked.
Arts and Sciences Senator Paul Woody supported the bills: “These bills are to better represent our students. It’s a no-brainer, let’s go ahead and make the Senate better.”
New business brought the approval of the members of the 2001-2002 Great Issues Committee and the SLUnion Planning Committee.
The new members of the Great Issues Committee are Chairperson Tricia Fechter, Michelle Cerutti, Pat Contreras, Jamie Dahm, Erin Dunn, Vincent Giacabazi, Melissa Jackson, Nick Pistor, Katharina Punjaitan, Kendall Purcell and Kevin Sobczyk. Ex-officio members include Nick Barnes, Tom Devine, John Eckert and two freshmen to be named in the fall.
The student members of the SLUnion Planning Committee are Lubna Alam, Troy Brinson, Michael Cappel, Deanna Durrett, John Ginsburg, Michael Rozier and alternate Tricia Fechter.
A resolution will request that Residence Life make information more available to the student body. The resolution is in response to some Residence Life decisions made in the past two years that were made with little notice to students. Notable decisions include last spring’s attempt to ban commuter students from re-entering the Res Life system and this semester’s decision to evict fifth-year students from on-campus housing.
The resolution asks Residence Life to announce policy changes at least two semesters prior to their implementation, or to present the new policy to the SGA for consideration.
Brad Bakker, first-year senator, said the that resolution is good because Residence Life has proven itself to be incompetent and even “messes with students’ lives.”
Other senators echoed Bakker comments. “I have never seen an organization that deals with so much money make so many mistakes,” Woody said.
The final resolution of the evening, authored by SGA President Jay Perry and co-sponsored by almost the entire Senate, offers formal congratulations to the local bar and restaurant Humphrey’s on its 25th anniversary.
Perry said that this legislation does not in any way endorse drinking. Humphrey’s is a Mecca to St. Louis and put the city on the map, according to Perry.
“It’s been Cheer’s to SLU students since ’76,” Perry said. He also pointed out that Humphrey’s has recently been the inspiration for the major motion picture, One Night at McCool’s.
Executive Vice President Lauren Gretz supported the legislation. “This body definitely owes something to Humphrey’s,” she said. “I think this is a resolution the student body would stand behind.”
The resolution passed with little dissent from the smiling senators.
The highlight of the meeting was a presentation of awards at the end of the session. The Senators’ Awards given to and voted by the members of SGA filled the room with laughter. Financial Vice President Dane Salazar took home the most awards with Most Respected, Best Dressed and Most Intelligent. Woody received Most Melodramatic and Best Performance in a Senate Debate. Angela Haas, commuter senator, took home the Most Talkative and Most in Touch with her Constituents awards.
Perry presented Special Awards to Vice President for Student Development Kathy Humphrey and SGA Moderator and Director of Student Life Phil Lyons.
The SGA President’s Award was given to Academic Vice President Becky Shelby, in recognition of her efforts this year including the Faculty Excellence Awards, the Madrid student survey and the faculty course ratings.
“I don’t think I’ve ever known what true honor is until now,” Shelby said.
Perry’s farewell address followed the awards ceremony.
“SGA is more than a student activity,” Perry said. “For four years, it has been a way of life for me.” Perry continued, “Change can and does happen. Shared governance really does work.”
The meeting ended with the introduction and installation of the 29th General Assembly. Perry retired his gavel and presented a new one to his predecessor, Michael Cappel, who adjourned the meeting.
