Grand Valley State University’s annual State of the Student Senate address was held on Thursday, Feb. 13. The meeting showcased the Senate’s efforts from the past year, and outlined successes of their new structure, recently established roles and future plans for advocacy, financial allocations, public relations and policy.
The State of the Student Senate address was held at the University’s Cook-DeWitt Center. The address highlighted various updates from each of the Senate’s five committees, along with updates from the Senate president and vice president. In addition to discussing each committee’s policies, reestablishing faculty-student relationships and solidifying responsibilities of the new “chief of staff” position were central focuses.
Senate President Quinten Proctor opened the address by providing updates on his recent work, which included reestablishing relationships between faculty and students. To do so, Proctor has worked closely with the University Academic Senate (UAS).
“Generally, faculty care a lot about the student experience and want to ensure students are successful, so student and faculty interests are aligned in many ways,” Proctor said. “I’ve worked very closely with Courtney Karasinski, the chair of (UAS), which has helped us both have a greater understanding of student and faculty perspectives on issues.”
In March, Proctor said he plans to introduce a new bill to the Senate focusing on learning disabilities, alongside Senator Brin DeVries.
“(The bill) will for sure be asking Inclusion and Equity and the (Pew) Faculty Teaching and Learning Center to create module(s) highlighting disabilities, and also (how) communication challenges can impact students’ experience and ability to engage in class,” Proctor said. “This would be a resource available to faculty seeking to better support students, and this bill will encourage faculty to use (the) module.”
The bill proposal may also call to shift a portion of mandatory staff “core competency” training to focus on inclusivity, though Proctor said the bill is still in the developmental stage.
Chief of Staff
Following Proctor’s speech, Senate Chief of Staff Evan Jackson was introduced. His position is a brand new role to Student Senate, and was established in the organization’s restructuring last year. Jackson said building the position from the ground up has been “both rewarding and challenging.”
“Since this was the first time Grand Valley’s Student Senate had a Chief of Staff, I had the unique opportunity to define what the role should be,” Jackson said. “My focus has been on three key pillars: efficiency, accountability and communication. That meant ensuring committees and executive leadership were aligned, holding senators accountable to their commitments and creating stronger communication between (the) Senate and the student body.”
Jackson said he has worked to simplify the Senate structure to make it easier for the general public to understand his position. He has also assisted senators with 193 events, and
addressed results from a mid-semester survey, which highlighted successes made by the Senate. Survey findings show that 97% of senators felt engaged during General Assembly meetings, and spotlighted a rise in organizational diversity.
Advocacy & Policy
The chair of the Senate’s Advocacy Committee, Genna Wright, shared information about multiple events that the Advocacy Committee recently helped make possible. These events include teach-ins, service opportunities honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and spreading awareness about breast cancer in October.
Wright teased the introduction of a new event in the works titled “Multicultural Night.” The event will be held on Thursday, March 29 from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in Kirkhof’s Grand River Room. The event’s focus is to highlight the diverse culture found throughout the University’s campuses.
Policy Chair Alec Palumbo shared that the Policy Committee has been working to build relationships with on-campus services, such as Housing and Residence Life, Parking Services, the Office of Sustainability Practices and the University Libraries. He also shared further information about a holiday bill for international students that was passed in January by the Senate.
Other legislative updates included the introduction of a new bill to provide Narcan, menstrual products and other health-related resources to students in an accessible manner. Vice President Paris Lawson further addressed the initiative in her closing remarks.
Allocation Address
Allocations Committee Chair Nancy Boyd said the committee was able to utilize a $100,000 fund from the Office of Student Life to help 50 different student organizations.
“Student Senate is honored to support student organizations (that) have members dedicated to engaging the campus community,” Boyd said. “Allocating $100,000 to diligent and enthusiastic student organizations has been an absolute honor. They (student organizations) are the backbone of this campus.”
For any allocation of funds to be given, a registered student organization can request funding on LakerLink, which will then be reviewed by the Senate’s Allocations Committee. Following this, requests can be denied, approved or adjusted.
The committee was also able to use a portion of the reserve fund to renovate the Russel H. Kirkhof Center by upgrading audiovisual systems in several rooms of the building. The $200,000 allocation to upgrade these systems improves convenience for faculty and students. Of the 12 rooms in Kirkhof that have or are in the process of being renovated, three have received equipment to become “Zoom rooms.”
“This allocation upgrades incredibly outdated technology (in Kirkhof), and allows these rooms to accommodate events and clubs that require such technology,” Boyd said.
Public Relations Address
The Public Relations Committee’s main focus has been improving its social media engagement and collaborations with other on-campus services.
Ty Vanlerberghe, public relations chair, shared that there has been a 250% increase in the Senate’s Instagram engagement.
“Aside from collaboration, this year, I am especially proud of our expanded social media presence with an increased professionalism across our accounts,” Vanlerberghe said.
Health Vending Bill
Lawson closed out the address talking about the focus of her work in the Senate. Lawson shared that she has facilitated the Senate’s legislative process, worked on dashboard documents and recently passed a bill to add health vending machines to areas of the University’s Allendale, Pew and Health Campuses.
The machines will provide free Narcan, emergency contraception, condoms, over-the-counter medication, menstrual products and pregnancy tests.
The bill is a great pride of many senators, and Proctor said he is very proud of the Senate’s work.
“The Vice President, Paris Lawson, spent a lot of time and effort to write this bill and garner support from stakeholders across campus,” Proctor said. “I also think this bill will be impactful to students.”
Overall, Senate Events Chair Karen Theakston feels one of the most promising developments of late has been the building of unity between senators.
“I’m deeply proud of how our Student Senate has significantly ramped up its involvement in various events and activities, particularly in (its) volunteering efforts,” Theakston said. “We’ve seen a noticeable increase in collaboration among senators, (which has) fostered a sense of unity and teamwork that has been truly heartwarming.”
