On Wednesday, Nov. 9, Student Senate debated the confirmation of a former senator and passed four bills, including the Campus Suicide Prevention and Response Act in response to several student deaths this semester.

The passage of R 58 – Campus Suicide Prevention and Response Act would establish an official opinion of Student Government (SG) intended to be shared with campus officials addressing its concerns about the lack of physical barriers on high places on campus and NC State’s limited progress towards becoming a JED campus, which encourages college campuses to build on their existing mental health offerings. Both of these initiatives were previously proposed in R 66, which was passed during the 101st session in 2021.

Student Senate President Miles Calzini, a graduate student in chemistry, said the bill was made to push the University to be more transparent and to better support its students. 

“[Students] feel like things are being swept under the rug, that the University doesn’t care and things of that nature,” Calzini said. “In addition, [the bill is] reiterating something that we asked for a year ago that no measure was taken on. This is saying to get it together, do what we called on you to do a year ago and please share with us what your plans are in the short, medium and long term.”

Benjamin Pulgar-Guzman, a graduate student in international studies and sociology, humanities and social sciences, said he wants SG to stand up for the student body. 

“I am so tired, and everyone around me is so tired,” Pulgar-Guzman said. “We are physically and emotionally fatigued. The University wants to protect itself, so it asks rather defensively why we’re not using the resources that they have. Telling faculty, use the resources that we give to you, please don’t complain, telling us not to complain. To an extent, all of you are the ones who represent us, the student body, and we the student body are continuing to organize. At some point you all have to give a decisive answer.”

R-58 passed unanimously. 

After officers read their respective reports, which can be found in the agenda, appointees Thomas Jackson, a fourth-year studying horticulture science, and Sabah Afroz, a first-year studying engineering, were considered for confirmation to the senate.

Jackson served on Student Senate in previous years on the 99th and 100th sessions. He elected not to run for reelection for the 101st session, to which he was asked why.

“There was a notorious rift during my career,” Jackson said. “Three pieces of legislation drafted by me were ruled out of order all at once. That hurt, so I needed to take a break and find ways to engage beyond the Senate that weren’t going to be dashed to the wind, but now I’m back.” 

When engaging in debate, several senators raised concerns that Jackson’s decision to take a step back demonstrated a lack of commitment to the mission of the student senate.

Calzini said the ruling of Jackson’s legislation from previous years wasn’t his fault.

“As someone who was chief justice at that time, this was a situation where the legislation was ruled out of order in a way that many considered to be an abuse of power,” Calzini said. “It was unevenly enforced rules because the senate president at the time, in my opinion, used their ability to rule legislation out of order in an unfair application to stop legislation that he did not like. In my opinion, this was a prejudicial situation.” 

Student Senate President Pro Tempore Katie Phillips, a third-year studying political science and science, technology and society, said she recommended confirming Jackson as a senator. 

“[Jackson] is very committed, and he knows his stuff, so I can not speak highly enough of his qualifications and how much I think he would be an important addition to this body,” Phillips said. “I think that the engineering appointee is wonderful and well-spoken as well.” 

Both Jackson and Afroz were confirmed and subsequently sworn in as senators to the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and College of Engineering with 40 positive votes, eight negative votes and zero abstensions.

Student Senate also confirmed Caleb Jones, a third-year studying business administration, as an allocation official with 50 positive votes, zero negative votes and zero abstensions.

Legislation Passed

FB 59 – Bangladeshi Student Sports Club Funding Act – Passed

FB 59 allocates $1,200 to Bangladesh Student Sports Club for tournament hosting, equipment and traveling. The bill passed unanimously. 

FB 60 – Oak City Revolution Funding Act – Passed

FB 60 allocates $2,500 to Oak City Revolution for venue expenses and food. The bill passed unanimously. 

BB 62 – Creation of SG Campout Line Item Act – Passed

BB 62 amends the Fiscal Year 2022-2023 Student Government Budget to add a new line item to allocate funds for the Student Government Campout Initiative. The bill passed unanimously.