The senate first debated the Pre-Business Group's (PBG) request for funding for their Interterm business seminar. During last week's meeting, the senate had appointed Senators Andrea Gyorody '07, Avi Das '07 and Jason Kung '08 to carefully review the PBG's request and then report back on their findings. The trio concluded that the PBG should be funded. "What they want is to be self-sustaining ... they want money from the College rather than the student activities funds," said Gyorody. The group noted that while President Anthony Marx offered to give $5,000 next year for the seminar, it is vital that the senate support the program this year to ensure its survival. Senators voted to accept the committee's recommendations on the condition that the PBG seeks funding from alternative sources in the future.
The debate then turned to the funding of the Bi-Semester Fellowship's upcoming program.Senator Josh Stein '08 questioned the $269.98 requested for one night's accommodation for the speaker. "The price makes no sense. It does not cost that much money to stay at a hotel in Northampton, even on Commencement Weekend," he said. The senate decided to table the recommendation until next week's meeting so that the hotel cost could be checked.
Senators next discussed some complaints about the annual roomdraw lip-sync competition. "The same type of people win every year-a group of males, often dressed in drag and often involving some sort of boy-on-boy make-out," said Das. The senate did not reach a decision on the matter.
Discussion then moved to a senate project that has been organizing focus groups. The group of four senators, led by Senator Emily Silberstein '06, sought funding from the senate fund in the amount of $490. Silberstein explained that the project would randomly contact students by e-mail and then ask them to attend a focus group discussing a specific department of the College. She noted that the money would be used to purchase food for the groups to increase interest and attendance. "We get an 80 percent response rate on our e-mails and about a 45 percent attendance rate." The senate approved funding from the senate fund.
Hillel co-chairs Joshua Stanton '08 and Justin Epner '08 then requested a $1,250 allocation to invite a prominent Israeli speaker to campus next week. The senate seemed impressed by the program's merits and unanimously voted to allocate $1,000, and approved funding from the discretionary fund.
Near the meeting's end, President Mike Simmons '06 commented that certain club leaders had informed Simmons that senators working with them on their budgets had belittled the club leaders. "You took an oath at the beginning of the year to fight for students rather than against them," he said. "And for me, when somebody comes to me and says that their [Budgetary Committee] representative was condescending and rude, that's embarrassing."
The meeting concluded with a resignation announcement by Kung. The senate applauded him for his service and announced that a replacement election will occur in the near future.