Photo Courtesy of Imaane Patel '24
By Katie Goss ’23
Business Manager & News Editor
The SGA senate meeting on Oct. 19 began with a land acknowledgement, read by Chair of Senate Shula Mathew ’22, in accordance with the new Mount Holyoke College policy. The Nonotuck, Nipmuc and Pocumtuc peoples were acknowledged, as they once occupied the land that is now Western Massachusetts, including the Mount Holyoke College campus. The land acknowledgement also included surrounding Indigenous nations such as the Nipmuc, Wampanoag, Mohegan, Eastern Pequot, Mohican and Abenaki peoples. Mathew asked for a brief moment of silence after the acknowledgement was read in order to give time for reflection.
Following the land acknowledgement, the senate discussed the recent campus-wide elections, as voting ended on Oct. 16. According to their constitution, a quorum of 50 percent plus one of eligible voters must cast a vote in order for the election to be called. However, if quorum is not reached, a three-fourths majority of the senate may pass the election results as they are. Because quorum was not reached for either the Class of 2025 or SGA position elections, the election went to a vote at senate, where senators could either vote to accept the results or reject them and keep voting open for another week. At the end of the meeting, it was voted that the results would be announced as they were when voting closed on Oct. 16 and that voting would not be extended another week. The community will be notified of the results 48 hours after the candidates are informed of their status.
Additionally, senators were informed about dining updates in regards to concerns posed at the previous meeting. Grab ’n Go will now open at 9:45 a.m. in order to accommodate students who have a class starting at 10 a.m. More gluten-free options will be added to breakfast; however, no specifics were given as to what the expanded items would be. Reminders about respecting the Tranquility Room space and keeping non-kosher food off the L’Chaim counter area to keep kosher at the station were given. In addition to these measures, SGA also highlighted several problems brought up at the last meeting that they have begun to address. These include the accessibility van not running on the weekends, the lack of outdoor trash receptacles and the dining hall having compostable utensils. The SGA clarified that the College’s compostable utensils supplier is currently having a supply chain issue and is unable to send its products to the College.
Senate then opened the floor for any questions, comments and concerns the senators had to share. One senator stated that the dining hall’s menu did not match what they actually served on some days. In response, SGA then informed everyone that, like the utensils company, the dining hall has faced food supply issues that are out of their control, which is why menus sometimes do not correspond with the food put out.
Family and Friends Weekend, beginning Oct. 23, was also discussed. Senators were reminded that guests who have signed up to come onto campus are only allowed in pre-designated buildings and not in any residential halls. A senator mentioned that students who do not have family coming for the day can join a get-together happening at Pearson’s Annex to hang out with other students, on Oct. 23. The equestrian team will also be hosting their Sunrise Pleasure horse show all day on Oct. 23 at the Equestrian Center.
The senator from the Jewish Student Union, Nina Baran ’25, thanked everyone who came to Shabbat on Oct. 15 to show their support for the Jewish community on campus.
Senators were split up into their commission groups for the last 30 minutes of the meeting. Each group has a specific assigned topic or issue to focus on improving on campus, such as COVID-19-related complications, dining, accessibility and anti-racism, among others.
Senate meets every Tuesday from 7:30-9:00 p.m. in the Great Room in Blanchard Hall.