Senators stepped up to the plate and brought thought-out initiatives at this week’s Associated Students of the University of Arizona meeting, the university’s undergraduate student governing body. The meeting was called to order at 6:07 p.m. and was adjourned at 7:26 p.m. on Feb. 2.
After a late start to the meeting because of a lack of senators present, Executive Vice President Alexandra Devereux stressed the importance of announcing ASUA’s election season, especially after a small turnout for last Friday’s ASUA informational events.
“All of these universities are running into the same issue of students just not wanting to participate in elections or student government right now,” said ASUA President Noah Vega. “I think we did all we could to get students to show up.”
After that, the bulk of the meeting focused on three senators who brought initiatives with logistical backing, as Senator-at-large Lady Dorothy Elli had suggested at last week’s meeting when the topic of debate was the senators’ lack of initiative.
Campus Thrift Store
Senator for the College of Architecture Lauren Heath brought to the table the idea of a campus thrift store. During move-out week at the end of the semester (May 9-13), ASUA would collect things that students would like to donate before they leave campus — such as mini-fridges, decorations, clothes and other items.
They would store them somewhere during the summer, when the items would be priced. During the fall semester move-in, ASUA could host a thrift shop-like event on the UA Mall for incoming students.
The money collected would go to Campus Pantry and Campus Closet, and the leftover goods could be donated somewhere.
However, Administrative Vice President Kyle Klein called the initiative “not feasible” because of the amount of money it would take to store items over the summer, saying it would cost up to tens of thousands of dollars.
“I would really like this to happen,” Devereux said. “I think it would be a huge need that we could fulfill.”
She suggested Heath look into getting quotes on how much it would cost to rent space for the items to be stored over the summer. ASUA advisor Sylvester Gaskin recommended students seek guidance from Estella Trevers, the business manager of ASUA, to establish more logistics.
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Not a Renovation
A renovation of the ASUA office space was proposed as well.
“‘Renovation’ is honestly the wrong word to use for it,” said Senator of the College of Pharmacy Ziana Collins. “It’s more of just turning it from what it is into a collaborative space.”
Collins and Senator-at-large Jordan-Isaiah Toyos suggested more charging extensions, a different floor plan and additions like lamps and whiteboards to make it a space where students can visit and engage with ASUA.
Both initiatives require more information on costs and logistics as they are both on the table to be possible ASUA projects.
“It’s really good that we’re pursuing both initiatives at the same time and diverging our efforts,” Heath said.
Honorable Mentions
Vega is still in talks with the UA Strategic Planning Committee over a 5.6% increase in tuition for non-residents.
Club fair registration closed on Friday, Feb. 4, and the fair itself will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 15, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
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