The 50th student senate elected the Campus Auxiliary Services (CAS) Board on-campus student representative, confirmed seats to three committees and passed a declaration regarding the New Paltz Fire Department going district on Tuesday, Sept. 28 in the Student Union.
The legislative body confirmed Jonathan Freifeld to the on-campus student representative position for CAS Board. Freifeld was initially nominated and confirmed to the alternate CAS Board position at the Aug. 31 student senate meeting. Student Association (SA) President Jennifer Sanchez nominated and presented Freifeld to the legislative body as an alternate while he believed he was running for a voting position.
At Tuesday’s meeting, Sanchez clarified that there is an on-campus student position, an off-campus student position and an alternate position, which serves as an alternate for her. Because the alternate only votes when the SA President cannot make the meetings, Freifeld decided to run for the on-campus voting position against Executive Vice President Eve Stern. Many senators expressed that while they thought both candidates were capable of doing a good job, they thought Freifeld would have more time to focus on the board.
Sen. Megan Grieco said that even though she thought Stern would make the time for the position and would do a great job, “[Freifeld] would have time to look in depth of things like the budget, and do the research,” Grieco said.
After the legislative body confirmed Freifeld to the on-campus voting position, Stern ran for the alternate position on CAS board and was confirmed to the seat.
After some friendly amendments, the legislative body passed a fire department declaration which requested the Village Board of Trustees “create and conduct a ballot for town residents to vote on the issue of the New Paltz Fire Department going district.”
The senators agreed that many New Paltz residents have strong opinions about the issue and have the right to express those opinions through a democratic process. The declaration, sponsored by Sen. Ayanna Thomas and co-sponsored by Sen. Samantha Kossin.
The legislative body also tabled a resolution regarding trip funds for clubs and organizations. A resolution was passed during a past senate meeting, but the document is missing. Because there are no current guidelines for how trips should be funded, Sen. Kondwani Jackson sponsored a resolution that said “the SA may financially cover up two-thirds the cost of the trip for any recognized organization or club in good standing.” After a discussion, the legislative body voted to table the resolution in an effort to specifically define what type of trips they will fund.
Fourth-year English major Christopher Gordon was elected for a position on the Tenant Landlord Committee to serve as a student voice. Even though Gordon was elected by the student senate, he has to be confirmed to the position by the Village Board of Trustees because it is a village committee. Gordon, who has been living off-campus since his second-year at SUNY New Paltz, said he wants to help students living off-campus become aware of their rights as a tenant.
Sen. Chris Thurston was a confirmed a seat on the Safety Committee which works on keeping the people on campus safe by improving systems such as the blue light system. Sen. Ayanna Thomas was confirmed to a seat in the Academic Affairs Committee.
Sen. Max Lasky and fourth-year elementary education Lauren Brois were both confirmed a seat in the Sustainability Committee which works on promoting environmental sustainability throughout campus.
The next student senate meeting will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 5 in Student Union 417.