ASG went through another round of funding approvals at Wednesday night’s Senate, this time assessing the proposals from B-status student groups. The meeting was more sparsely attended and lasted for two fewer hours than last week’s, when the Senate heard requests from A-status groups under the Student Appropriations Funding Committee in a marathon four-hour session.
After Speaker of the Senate Ani Ajith read through a list of around 40 student groups, including AISEC, Tonik Tap, and BLAST, representatives from each group could propose amendments. The Student Groups Committee then voiced their recommendation on each proposal, and senators voted for or against funding.
Only a handful of groups requested small increases in funding from the pool, which usually did not amount to more than $200. After a short debate, the Senate approved a $50 motion from The Northwestern Flipside, and a $170 proposal from Rotaract.
Hope was renewed for the Happiness Club, which received a $20 boost in funding for the purchase of play dough during Happiness Week next year.
The International Students Association was only granted half of the $300 they requested after failing to submit their application for funding by the deadline in April.
The only group that was fully denied their requests was Camp Kesem, represented by ASG President Victor Shao at the meeting. Shao proposed a $100 increase for a new banner, but the Student Groups Committee disapproved the request since ASG generally allocates a limit of $20 to B-status student groups for publicity.
In other Senate news:
A reformed committee on diversity and inclusion
ASG Vice President Brad Stewart proposed that the new diversity ad-hoc commission become the official Committee on Diversity and Inclusion. Since the commission has played an integral role in the response to the recent controversial events, Stewart saw the need to “formalize the structure so that moving forward is not forgotten.” According to the new bill, the title of ASG Diversity Chair would become the associate vice president for diversity and inclusion, a position appointed by a committee chaired by the student life vice president. Stewart said he hopes to hold the same structure with the creation of a new Committee on Sustainability.
Free video chat alternative for students
“If you thought Skype was cool, just wait until you try Vidyo,” wrote Technology Chair Ethan Romba in an announcement to senators. Northwestern University is the first to team up with Vidyo, a leading video conference company, to try out the new VidyoCampus program. VidyoCampus allows for simultaneous video chats with up to 7 other people on any desktop or mobile device. The service is completely free and offered to all Northwestern faculty, staff and students.