On Wednesday, March 4, Washburn Student Government Association reconvened in the Kansas Room for its regular weekly meeting, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Funding proposals, a revision to the budget and updates to election procedures were all reviewed and approved during the nearly three-hour meeting.
The meeting began with roll call and the review of previous meeting minutes. Key updates included the addition of student resources and printing to the virtual map on the Washburn website and the finalization of details for an upcoming event.
The meeting then moved on to approve several funding requests. Indira Hiyas Tiongson, sophomore political science major, presented a grant request on behalf of the team for their National Model United Nations conference at New York City.
Following requests, the cabinet report started with Taylor Redington, campus and community affairs director. Redington discussed updates to the virtual campus map on the Washburn University website. She explained that new features such as Bods Outposts were recently added and she had been working with the webmaster to include student printing locations noting that the map allows users to click on buildings to see more information.
Kate Coulter, President of WSGA, mentioned that there is a campus dining focus group that collects students’ thoughts about Chartwells and uses the feedback to improve dining services.
“I need you to tell five people who live on campus and eat in Lincoln dining hall, about the survey the group that Kate told because you all are representing students,” said Teresa Clounch, acting vice president for student life. “I need for you all [members] to represent the students who are not around you at this point in time, who live in the halls, who eat in Lincoln on a regular basis. If you remember that experience, that’s great, but they would like to get input from you…, so they can hear out.”
Clounch also reminded everyone that this time of the semester is very busy, with many students involved in different activities and events. So it is important to support one another and check in with friends and peers. Finally, she encouraged everyone to take care of themselves by staying hydrated, resting and keeping up with their responsibilities.
Chris Enos, chief of police, discussed the campus security camera system and explained that cameras are installed throughout the university including at Washburn Tech. Enos said the cameras provide live monitoring across different areas of campus. According to Enos, the system can pick up recent movement which helps campus police observe activity quickly, noting that in emergency situations such as a possible armed intruder people are told to shelter in place through iAlert. Officers can use the cameras to track motion and locate where the threat may be.
One of the changes in WSGA was the appointment of Parker Whaley as the new director of Student Accessibility and Belonging.
In conclusion, the discussion focused on the upcoming election campaign and voting timeline. It was confirmed that voting would take place from March 10 to March 12 and the results would be announced on March 13. The election included positions such as president, vice president and senators. It was also mentioned that all students at Washburn were eligible to vote and support the candidates of their choice.
Edited by Bidhya Sapkota and Anushma Dahal
