SGA President Samantha Zwerling
SEE proposes changes
To address concerns about the transparency of SEE’s application process, Stephen Gheysens, Student Entertainment Events president, proposed two changes to the group’s constitution at Thursday’s SGA meeting. With the Student Government Association’s approval, SEE — the student-run group that organizes some of the biggest events on the campus — will increase advertising for its application process and add a multimedia director position.
While those changes will appear in a bill for the SGA to review next week, Gheysens also briefed the SGA on SEE’s upcoming events, including the Oct. 24 homecoming comedy show featuring Jim Gaffigan and Art Attack, the annual concert SEE puts on at the end of the spring semester.
Because Art Attack is still months away, SEE does not know yet who will be performing at this year’s show, Gheysens said.
University takes action to meet sustainability goals
Two policy proposals that would help the university reach its carbon emission goal went to university President Wallace Loh’s cabinet for approval Wednesday, Mark Stewart, a sustainability office senior project manager, told SGA members. One of the policies would require new developments to be carbon neutral, while the other addresses the implementation of conservation programs in existing buildings.
The university aims to cut its carbon emissions by 50 percent by 2020, with the goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050, a target set in 2009, Stewart said.
“I have strong confidence that we will meet the purchased energy goal by 2020 without it being codified by the university just yet,” Stewart said.
The university hit its goal for 2012, but Stewart said without taking significant action, it will miss its 2020 target by 47,000 metric tons of carbon emissions. An important next step will be looking into how the school can offset emissions it can’t simply eliminate, he said.
The university’s natural gas power plant on Route 1, for example, accounts for nearly half the university’s emissions, and there is no easy way to reduce that amount. And with the university’s imminent move to the Big Ten, Stewart said, emissions from university-sponsored air travel will definitely increase.
“We have a serious challenge, and we need to take serious action to make that goal,” he said.
RHA promotes Sex Week
From Oct. 15 to 18, the University Health Center, along with several student organizations, will host Sex Week on the campus, said Sree Sinha, Residence Hall Association liaison to the SGA.
The event, which is geared toward providing “diverse opportunities for the campus community to learn, connect, and explore the dynamic world of sexuality and sexual health & wellness,” according to the Health Center’s website, will feature speakers, workshops on birth control, a meet-and-greet with a sex therapist and free HIV/STI testing.
“There’s something for everyone, without exaggeration,” said Tyler Babin, SGA health and wellness director. “Everything from how to keep your sex toys clean to a panel sponsored by the Catholic Student Center about meaning in sex and relationships.”
