Student Senate encourages involvement and addresses campus safety in town hall

At Ohio University Student Senate’s first town hall of the semester, members talked funding for student organizations, the restructuring and growth of Senate, student safety, and student finances. 

Student Senate President Danya Shoulders noted the accomplishments and goals of the senate this past semester, including establishing better relationships with community leadership and ensuring a strong foundation within Senate for next year’s executives

Shoulders also touched on Senate’s push to raise the wages of student workers on campus from $9.35 to $11, a point of pride for her.

“That’s something we’re really excited about, because it allows students to really participate in college life in general, and also to cover their needs,” Shoulders said.

Senate Treasurer Trinity Robinson started an “Early Bird Funding Cycle'' during the summer, which aims to help student organizations raise money at a time of the year when many students do not have access to campus buildings.

“The Early Bird Funding Cycle’s intention was to not only aid student organizations but encourage them to increase their programming,” Robinson said.

Robinson noted that during the first few weeks of this semester, Senate was able to provide $2,500 to assist student organizations in their preparement for events like the Involvement Fair and the Multicultural Student Expo.

Restructuring of Senate was brought up at the town hall. Senate Vice President Luvina Cooley talked about Senate’s growth noting that membership doubled from last year to this semester.

“We do have spaces for more individuals, particularly the Academic Affairs Commission could use a commissioner,” Cooley said. 

She went on to mention that meeting one-on-one and networking with academic senators has been very important for internal relations of Senate going forward.

The Senate leadership board, consisting of the president, vice president and treasurer, noted that there are roles for senators representing each university college, including the College of Engineering, the Honors Tutorial College and the College of Arts and Sciences. 

The board also noted that the Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC) has several positions open, including vice president of financial affairs, vice commissioner of community outreach and vice commissioner of operations. There are also delegate positions overseeing funding requests that need filled.

The board was asked if there was an issue on campus they could devote all their time towards solving.

Shoulders chose public safety on campus, given an experience she had on Court Street where individuals yelled racial slurs at her while she was walking home. 

When she reached out the Ohio U Police Department transferred Shoulders to the Athens Police Department (APD). APD told her they could not drive her home, since she lived so close.

Shoulders recognized that safety is a major issue on campus. Senate took campus leaders, including Assistant Dean of Students Chad Barnhardt, on a safety walk tour of campus. This highlighted the routes students take at night and sparked a conversation on the poorly lit streets in Athens

“We got to talk about different places on campus that might lead to off-campus,” Shoulders said. “So if I felt like there was a better route through campus to get home, I might have taken that route, but because I felt just as unsafe walking uphill as I did walking around campus, that was an issue.”

The issue Cooley would focus on would be supporting students and student leadership.

“Cultivating student leadership is something that I really think is important, especially as we move forward and start to adapt to the way engagement looks now, which is quite different than it used to be pre-COVID pandemic,” Cooley said.

Cooley is actively working on the Wellness Legislation, which would ensure students get time off when needed for mental health reasons.

Robinson shared that she believed there should be another round of financial aid in the middle of the semester, citing student financial instability and uncertainty while registering for next semester’s classes.

Athletics Senator Reagan Farmer asked what drove attendees to the town hall. Mia Citino, a junior on the Board of Trustees, told Senate that she was there to promote the organization.

Many in attendance were members of Senate, but also students from the Patton College of Education and environmental science majors in attendance for class requirements.

When asked about efforts the senate made to get students out to vote, Governmental Affairs Commissioner Dan Gordillo talked about Student Senate’s tabling efforts to hand out voter guides this year.

“It was all very grassroots and we hope for the next election, we can really ramp up our efforts,” Gordillo said. 

Student Senate will have their next general body meeting on Wednesday with a presentation from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.