Student Senate voted unanimously to increase the Student Activity Fee in its meeting last Thursday night.
Organizational Sen. Alex Hendzel expressed the need for the increase to help support the creation and the funding for new campus organizations. Sen. Michael Riebel backed her on this notion.
“I feel like this is something that needs to be done,” Riebel said. “It’s just going to be more sustainable for organizations in the future.”
The increase of $7 per semester will be effective for the 2012-13 school year. The current Student Activity Fee of $66 per semester has not been increased since the 2008-09 school year.
Student Senate also unanimously passed a funding allocation for members of the newly-approved Drake UNICEF organization to attend the Campus Initiative Summit in New York this weekend.
Vice President of Student Life Matt Van Hoeck campaigned for a Committee Membership Clarification Amendment, which would change the amount of members on campus committees from a fixed number of students to a range of students. Senate will vote on the motion next week.
Dean of students Sentwali Bakari announced that Drake has hired Mark Kloberdanz as the new director of counseling. Kloberdanz will start his new position on Nov. 1. Bakari also announced the resignation of Leigh Thiedeman, director of sorority and fraternity life.
The rest of the session was dedicated to Senate’s second installment of a strategic meeting, a new effort to discuss student issues and brainstorm solutions.
One major issue brought up was campus security, particularly the shooting near campus on 26th Street that occurred last week. Senators were concerned that campus was not formally notified of the incident through email or emergency text message.
“(Drake Security) made a judgment call that this was not a particular threat to the Drake campus,” Bakari said.
Another security issue discussed was the condition of the 26 security poles located around campus. Sen. Erin Hogan reported that some poles contained some dysfunctional elements.
Other issues discussed were operational issues at Hubbell Dining Halls, putting printers into residence halls and the option of gym credits for students.
Before adjourning, Student Body President Greg Larson polled the senators on their feelings about the monthly strategic meetings. Senators agreed that the meetings were beneficial but voted to review the process of gathering student issues.
In Brief
– Activity fee increased $7, from $66/semester to $73
– Campus security procedures were discussed
– Vote to review the strategic meeting sessions
