Director of Membership and Chair of Elections Council Zak Fisher ’16, opened the Oct. 4 meeting with a welcome to the four new senators, Atwater Senator Jigar Bhakta ’18, Feb Senator Millie von Platen ’18.5 and First-Year Senators Charles Rainey ’19 and Kieran Parikh ’19. Fisher said the turnout for first year elections was slightly higher than the past few years.
Members then continued to discuss possible ways to improve relations between the CCI and the SGA. Reshma Gogineni ’16 proposed a vote to create an ad hoc committee of SGA senators who would work for the Director of the Center for Careers and Internships (CCI) Peggy Burns. Headed by Gogineni, the committee would aim to get student feedback on CCI programs and events.
Members then shifted to discuss the proposed Ridgeline Perch, a project put forth by Brandon Gell ’16. Gell, an Architectural Studies major, has received the full support of the administration to create a public space available to the entire student body. Gell cited the administration’s increasing focus on student mental health, and he believes the Perch will function as a place of solace and separation from the academic and social pressures of campus.
“That’s definitely what the Perch is going for,” said Gell. “The fact that every student will feel like they have a piece and can feel comfortable in a space like that ... I think that it’s going to cultivate a really awesome sense of ownership over the campus.”
Gell needs $53,482 to complete the project, and he plans to receive most of the funding through grants. He has applied for $35,000 to $40,000 from the Fund for Innovation and plans to fundraise contingency money through the Office for College Advancement. Gell also requested $5,000 from SGA and was allocated $1,000.
“SGA should and does exist to support students, and I think that these kinds of projects are something that are emerging a lot more now that students aren’t really as satisfied with just sitting in class; they want to be building things and making things,” Gell said. “I think it’s great that [the SGA] is beginning to support it.”
The design of the Perch, approved by the Space Committee, is one that Gell hopes to be ecologically conscious and economically frugal. The structure, to be constructed of steel with cedar siding, will overlook the Adirondacks and can accommodate up to twelve people.
Once the Perch is fully funded, it will go through a permitting process, and construction will begin in the spring when the ground thaws. Gell plans to stay on campus for two weeks after graduation to complete the construction.
