Solynna Crownson
Senators listen to Student Senate President Adam Schmidt speak at the first meeting of the semester at Talley Student Union on Wednesday, Aug. 29. Student Senators act as advocates to better academic programs and student life.
One week into classes, the 98th Session of NC State’s Student Senate discussed student voting and appointed positions during the first meeting in the academic year.
The Student Senate is the Student Government’s main legislative body, in that it works to address the wishes and concerns of the student body by proportionally representing each of the University’s schools and colleges.
Adam Schmidt, a third-year studying civil engineering and Student Senate President, elaborated on the purpose Student Senate serves to NC State’s students.
“We have five standing committees that address a number of issues on campus: … Academics, Finance, Government Relations and Oversight, University Affairs, and University Relations,” Schmidt said. “Senate is really a place where students come and they bring their issues to their senators [who then] bring those issues here.”
Following the opening pledge of allegiance and roll call, Peter Harries, dean of the Graduate School at NC State, spoke to the Senate.
Harries emphasized the unity between undergraduate and graduate students that he hoped to see over the next few years, saying that it’s been gratifying to see “the desire to bridge [the] apparent gap” that he’s noticed at many institutions like NC State.
As the meeting went on, issues like upcoming student fees meetings and the Senate’s new use of Top Hat for voting were briefly discussed.
On the shift to Top Hat, Sophie Holmes, a second-year studying engineering representing the College of Engineering, explained that this change had been in the works for the past two Senate sessions.
“We ultimately found that, because NC State has a license for Top Hat, this is going to be something free for Senate to use, and will hopefully work really well for our purposes,” Holmes said.
The majority of the meeting was spent appointing individuals to open positions and discussing how to get more students involved in Student Government. The newly appointed individuals are as follows:
Nicole Teague, a third-year studying business administration, to Senator of Poole College of Management
James Withrow, a graduate student studying entomology and plant pathology, to Student Senate President Pro Tempore
Daniel Mock, a fifth-year studying computer engineering, to the office of Director of Athletics
Justin Lindemann, a third-year studying political science, to the Board of Elections Commissioner
Emily Pitt Whitfield, a third-year studying communication, to the Board of Elections Commissioner
Kieran Forbes, a first-year studying engineering, to the Board of Elections Commissioner
Guatam Worah, a graduate student studying computer science, to the Board of Elections Commissioner
Lauren Siegel, a fourth-year studying computer science and economics, to the position of Treasury Assistant
With the filling of four Board of Elections Commissioner positions, senators and officers discussed how to get students involved in voting the upcoming Student Government fall elections.
Having positions in NC State’s Student Senate, many of the senators voiced concerns with voter participation among college students. Board of Elections Commissioner Appointee Forbes discussed this in his brief introduction.
“I’m looking to increase voter participation here,” Forbes said. “Because I know apathy is a really big problem in young voters, not just in school elections but also nationwide.”
Senators are working with organizations like Pack the Polls – a group that works to get students registered to vote in Wake County so that they are given the power to choose who represents them from the municipal level to the President of the United States – trying to reverse the trend of young voter absenteeism.
“To get involved in Student Senate, typically you would run for office,” Schmidt said. “You can file to be a candidate for office … until next Tuesday at 5 p.m.”
With open seats in nearly every college, this is one of the most direct ways students can make an impact on NC State’s campus. To file for candidacy, students can visit the Student Government website.
The Senate will be discussing fees during the next meeting on Sept. 12 at 7:30 p.m. in room 4140 in Talley Student Union.