SRSGA met formally on Monday at 5 p.m. approving finances, shaping committees and facing a contentious vote during their first formal meeting of the Spring 2025 semester.
Contentious vote
On the docket for SGA was the application of a new Senator At Large. The senator, who had served in the Senate, said they took a break to focus more on their company and academics.
“I was a very active person on campus, and a lot of those people who I talked with, everyday…now they ask me why am I not in [SGA]?” This last semester was far too busy with starting a company and getting school all situated,” the ex-senator said.
The senator said parking was a major issue for them, suggesting that the school begin a lottery system to grant students parking spaces.
“What I do think would be a great idea is [to] enter a random lottery system. 200 spots, I looked at our past enrollment rates for freshmen-200 spots is roughly 10 to 13% depending on the year. If it’s randomly given, they have the option of say ‘Yes! I would like this parking spot right outside my door. That’s the real parking issue,” they said.
Following questions about their plans, several Senators continued to ask about their application and reason for leaving SGA.
At the time of their approval vote, a majority of the Executive Board and several other Senators abstained. Ultimately, the motion to approve the Senator failed, a rare occurrence at SRSGA formal meetings. Exact vote numbers are not available until approval from the Senate at their next formal meeting.
Finances
According to the finance report, the amount in SGA’s reserve budget did not change from last semester, remaining at $57,079.42 in the account.
Following the contentious vote, the SRSGA approved the 2025-2026 student activity budget, which is currently $2,500,000.
Senator Confirmations
Several Senators were confirmed to various boards and committees at the vote. Aderinmola Adegbulu was approved as a Student Director on the SRSGA Inc Board of Directors. President Ella Bloom, Austin Burchell, Mercedes Nearhood and Maddie Caroff were confirmed to the 2024-2025 Election Committee. Mercedes Nearhood and Maddie Caroff were also confirmed as Co-Chairs of the committee.
Miscellaneous
Green and White Society was invited to speak about their organization, and how they hold different events to boost school spirit.
The executive board delivered an update on the ongoing turf project funded by SGA, with two proposals now being decided upon. Implementation of the proposal is intended to start in March with the project finishing in August, just in time for the Fall semester.
