SGA Beat

Author: Tim O'Grady

At the Jan. 18 Student Government Association (SGA) meeting, officers updated the committee and discussed their plans for the coming year.

Senator Roger Perrault '09 discussed the need to create a centralized resource for incoming first-years to pose their questions to current students. Although "Ask Hiba", a blog created by Hiba Fakhoury '09, is available for incoming students, it is not officially affiliated with the College, nor is it widely publicized.

Perrault also brought up a proposition to create a condensed document that would specify the various student parking regulations. There is confusion over whether Public Safety or the Town of Middlebury has jurisdiction over certain parking spots on campus.

"There are overlapping regulations and sometimes it complicates the picture," Perrault said.

Senator David Peduto '11 suggested that the SGA fund some sort of end of the year event specifically for sophomores, 60 percent of whom will study abroad next year.

Wonnacott Commons Senator Loren Mejia '09 hopes to make students more aware of who SGA members are and how to contact them. The group consiered measures such as hanging posters with photographs of SGA members and their e-mail addresses.

Senator Alyssa Limperis '12 discussed the lack of automatic hand dryers in bathrooms, stating that the use of paper towels is contrary to the College's environmentally sensible mindset.

Ross Commons Senator Anne Weinberg '10 addressed the College's current policy concerning the custodial staff's ability to eat lunch in dining halls. Currently, custodians can eat in the dining halls only if accompanied by a student. Several SGA members expressed interest in either promoting the already existing policy, or reforming it so the custodial staff can enjoy hot lunches.