At Wednesday’s Student Senate meeting, Senators debated future routes Student Government could take to inform students when there are changes to the academic calendar.

A resolution titled, Academic Calendar Communications Act, was up for a second reading at the Senate meeting.

According to the three-year academic calendar, there are no reading days before final exams in the 2018-19 academic year, the next reading day in fall 2019. In the resolution it is suggested that the student body will be updated on any major updates that are scheduled at the beginning of each academic semester.

The resolution also states that Student Government would work with all future University Standing Committees on Registration, Records and Calendar and the Department of Registration and Records to publicize the changes in the academic calendar to the student body. In addition, it would require that Senate consider all “relevant communication channels” to publicize calendar changes.

According to the resolution that includes, “removal or additions of Reading Days, starting or delaying the semester more than five (5) days before or after the 3rd Wednesday in August Fall semester or 1st Monday in January in Spring semester, and changes to the drop/revision deadlines.”

Coleman Simpson, a fourth-year studying agricultural science, anthropology and political science and a senator representing the College of of Agriculture and Life Sciences, sponsored the bill. Simpson said that informing students about drastic calendar changes in the future would be useful for students.

Senators expressed a few concerns about how many people will have to deal with the bill on a daily basis and its wording so the bill was sent back to the Committee on Academics.

During reports of Senate Permanent and Select Committees, Simpson reported that he and Meredith Spence-Beaulieu, a fifth-year Ph.D. student studying entomology and student body vice president, met with Brian Garsh, a coordinator at Student Involvement and adviser of Student Government, and discussed the SBO retreat that occurred last summer.

Over the summer seven student body officials and three Student Involvement staff members went on a leadership retreat to Asheville, North Carolina. The entire cost of the trip was $6,000, which is the entirety of the line item allocated to Student Government leadership development. The expenditure of student fees without input from Student Government caused contention.

According to Simpson’s report, the following were the expenses told to them by Garsh:

• Adventure Center – $250

• Meals – $842.50

• Hotel – $4088

• Travel Reimbursements – The remainder of the money allocated

At the Senate meeting, six new Senators were also appointed and eight were sworn into positions. 

• John Pashby, a first-year graduate student studying nuclear engineering

• Lexie Malico, a Ph.D. student studying chemistry

• Samantha Crossen, a first-year studying management

• John Brooks, a first-year studying environmental sciences

• Valeria Mera, a second-year studying political science

• Anneka Todd, a first-year studying industrial design

• Andrew Grierson, a first-year in exploratory studies

• Marshall Tomat, a Ph.D. student studying chemistry

Grierson and Tomat both won their positions in the runoff election.

The Examination Policy Revision Act was in its first reading of legislation and was moved to the Committee on Academics.

The next Senate meeting will be Oct. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in the Student Senate Chambers of Talley Student Union.