The Senate convened on Sunday to review progress on various campus initiatives. After delaying the start of the meeting in order to obtain a quorum, Student Union Vice President Paul Sindberg ’18 began the proceedings with executive officer reports. 

Sindberg mentioned that some graduate students serve as officers in undergraduate clubs, which is unconstitutional. The Union should clarify what is and is not allowed in those regards, Sindberg said. He also mentioned that he was working on strategies to keep people engaged with bystander training. 

Executive Senator Hannah Brown ’19 encouraged people to be safe at Springfest and announced that the Campus Activities Board is replacing Student Events. Brown also informed the Senate that the State of the Union address next week would occur from 6 to 7 p.m. on the same night of the Midnight Buffet. Because of this, she discussed the possibility of giving a Midnight Buffet “fastpass” to the first 20 attendees at the address, enabling them to jump to the front of the line at the catered event.

In Senate Committee chair reports, North Quad Senator Jack Rubinstein ’20 updated the Senate on progress with the initiative to provide free menstrual products on campus. The products have been purchased and are now awaiting distribution in the Union office, Rubinstein said.

Speaking for the Dining Committee, Ziv Quad Senator Brandon Stanaway ’19 discussed the effectiveness of the recent “Meatless Thursday.” Although the committee planned for the event to consist of one meal in one dining hall, Sodexo surprised them by doing both lunch and dinner in both dining halls, which resulted in complaints from students, added Senator-at-Large Matt Smetana ’17. Both Stanaway and Smetana suggested implementing a “less-meat” day in which meat is not eliminated, but rather reduced.

Class of 2020 Senator Tal Richtman spoke on behalf of the Club Support Committee, which has been working to improve the recognition and chartering processes for University clubs, particularly in regards to efficiency. In an attempt to discover other approaches, the committee has reached out to other universities to gauge how they handle recognition and chartering, Richtman said. The committee hopes to eventually pursue an amendment for the Union constitution.

Brown updated the Senate on the performance of the April break “bunny shuttles,” which yielded “modest” sales. Losses were mitigated by Joseph’s Transportation offering smaller vehicles at lower costs for departure times that sold fewer tickets, according to Brown.

The Senate unanimously approved a senate money request for the Midnight Buffet, allotting $7,558.33 to the event.

Rubinstein spoke of his shared goal with Student Union President-elect Jacob Edelman ’18 to model a sculpture initiative after the community-painted cannon at Tufts University and the graffiti box at Brandeis, in order to give students greater outlets for free expression.

East Quad Senator Elijah Sinclair ’19 updated the Senate on concerns within East, including complaints about early-morning construction on Usen Castle, as well as problems opening windows in Pomerantz.

—Amber Miles