Cait Mckinzie
Senators of the Associated Students of Colorado State University representing different Cultural Resource Centers stand in the front of the ASCSU senate chamber waiting to speak Feb. 19. Students and staff of various CRCs came to share their experiences on campus and the impact the centers have had on their lives.
The Associated Students of Colorado State University convened Sept. 3 for the third session of the 55th Senate.
Following the swearing in of new senators and associates, Parliamentarian Giovanni Falbo gave a presentation on parliamentary procedure to introduce Senate processes to new members.
Members of the executive, judicial and legislative branches then shared updates on their respective work and upcoming events.
During executive reports, Director of Pathways for Excellence Benjamin Gregg announced upcoming cross-collaboration meetings hosted by ASCSU to ensure cross-branch communication throughout the semester. Director of Basic Needs Lauren Davis shared details regarding upcoming planning for ASCSU’s annual Wellness Wonderland resource fair and encouraged student organizations to contact the department of basic needs to get involved. Chief of Operations Andrew White recapped the annual ASCSU retreat, and Student Body President Jakye Nunley shared information from the Colorado Student Government Coalition and joint efforts between universities at the state level.
Chief Justice Melanie Brousseau announced during judicial reports that election hiring will open Monday, Sept. 8 and close Sept. 16.
During officer reports, Recruitment and Retention Officer Ferrin Jaudon invited senators to attend an upcoming day on The Plaza to prioritize getting to know their constituents and hear what they want ASCSU to focus on this year.
The Accessibility Caucus will meet weekly at 3:30 p.m. Thursdays in the ASCSU conference room, the Internal Affairs Committee meets at 10 a.m. Fridays and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee will be meeting at 3 p.m. Mondays.
Moving into confidence business, new interns for the executive branch were ratified. Seanna Bucknor was appointed as an executive assistant intern and approved by the Senate with unanimous consent. Governmental Affairs Intern Ava Fricke was also approved with unanimous consent. Additionally, Isaac Lutalo and Arsema Taffese were approved as event programming interns with unanimous consent.
Next, Bill #5508, “Approval of Intern Job Descriptions,” was approved and sent to the Internal Affairs, University Affairs and DEI committees for further review.
A new chair of the Women’s and Social Justice Caucus was then elected. Senator Miriam Hill was nominated, elected with unanimous consent and subsequently sworn in.
Moving into new business, Bill #5509, “Creation of Elections Manager Job Description,” was introduced. The legislation aims to create an elections manager position within ASCSU to increase student participation in ASCSU elections following last year’s disappointing 3.82% voter turnout. Senate voted 27-0-1 to expedite the bill’s passage and approved it by voice vote following discussion and debate.
Bill #5510, “Changes to the Elections Manager Job Description,” was then discussed. The legislation aims to make the role’s job description more consistent with the ASCSU Constitution, require Title IX training and adjust the timeline for election committee ratifications. Senate voted 25-0-1 to expedite the bill and approved it by voice vote following discussion and debate.
ASCSU Senate will resume Sept. 10.
Reach Laila Shekarchian at news@collegian.com or on social media @CSUCollegian.