SGA Makes History on Quad

The Student Government Association (SGA) held their weekly meeting on the quad for the first time this past Wed., Sept. 23. Vice President of Public Relations, Jennifer Walts, suggested that the meeting location become an annual tradition.

"This meeting was a great way to kick off our first full general board meeting, and also a way to show the community our professional business nature [and] how much we care about the betterment of the community," Walts said via email.

Although Walts acknowledged the student turnout for the meeting wasn't much larger than usual, "…with such a central location we were able to show students walking to and from class who SGA is and what we are working on," she said.

One of the biggest concerns discussed at the meeting were issues regarding the new York Hill campus. Benjamin Wald, a class of 2011 representative, reported on his meeting with the administration and stated that the University is working to get Verizon cell phone service in the housing complex. Additionally, QU is looking to hire more Quinnipiac and Five Star security guards to patrol the area surrounding the complex.

Wald also spoke on the status of security cameras on the campus, as the current ones installed are not working. According to Wald, the outside company that installs the cameras has not finished their portion of the project. He plans to meet with the Chief of Security, John Twining, to sort out this issue on Tuesday.

Senior Class President Stephanie Annunziata spoke about the class of 2010's aims to have a "Safe Rides" program implemented. The goal of this program, according to Annunziata, is to keep seniors safe while allowing them to pay cab fares immediately with cards instead of calling ahead. While the program is developed, the cabinet intends to reach out to local cab companies in hopes of getting them on board for the initiative. If in agreement, cab companies will begin accepting Q-Cards and debit cards—instead of just cash—as a form of payment.

While the senior class is promoting safer transportation, the junior class seems to be looking more towards an eco-friendly environment. In an effort to go green, junior class president Matthew Hudak presented the idea of swapping the paper notifications students receive in their mailboxes with e-mails. Students would still receive notice of their packages, but the need for excess paper will be eliminated.

Hudak also noted the time-saving aspect of this program as an incentive. "Due to construction, the line for the post office seems even more congested than before and if people know exactly when they can pick up their packages they will not have to waste time nor will they clog the area by checking potentially empty mailboxes," Hudak said.

Another project currently underway was created by the sophomore class cabinet, led by class president Jameson Cherilus. Midterm Madness—which will take place during midterms—will allow sophomores the option to study in Alumni Hall if the library becomes crowded. Free coffee will also be offered to students on Friday, Oct. 9 near Mountainview and New Village dormitories, as a way to promote Midterm Madness.

"The purpose of the ‘free coffee' is to let all the sophomores know that on Sun., Oct. 11, from 8:30 p.m. to 11 p.m., Alumni Hall will be wired up with computers, study music in the background, more coffee, hot chocolate, tea, doughnuts, and goodie bags," Cherilus said. "The sophomore class cabinet realizes how important midterms are, so we wanted to set up Alumni Hall in such a manner so that when the library becomes jam packed with other students, people can still have a place to study."