New IWU President Dr. Zenger welcomed IWU’s Student Senate to the President’s house for a dinner and basketball showdown.
Following the introductions, Dr. Zenger welcomed students to the President’s house and its newest additions: a basketball area, pickleball court, and volleyball court. He added the recreation areas as a safe haven for faculty and students to interact.
The Student Senate met in the Vineyard Room to host their first General Assembly of the school year. Dean Karla welcomed the newly-elected senators and plugged the Bias Town Hall Meeting on Monday, September 16, where Piña presented about last year’s bias incidents.
“We hope that it’s a vibrant opportunity to talk about campus life and lift up the concerns of the community,” said Dean Karla.
Student Senate Treasurer Jishnu discussed how the Student Senate has allocated IWU’s student activity fees. $8,620 was collected and has since been transferred to RSO programming. The Senate’s current account balance is $151,852. Senator’s vote on RSO requests between$500 – $10,000 for approval and the Financial Advisory Board (FAB) votes for anything under $500.
Directing the assembly back to student senators, each senator was offered the opportunity to express constituent concerns that they personally had or obtained from fellow students. All students can express their concerns via a google form on Student Senate’s instagram.
Emma Kudelka ‘27, addressed the issue of communication with campus security that occurred when there was a claim of a gunman on campus. Students wanted to feel safe and aware of potentially harmful situations on campus. Dean Karla clarified the incident, claiming that the university did not contact Bloomington police; the police showed up to campus unannounced. She encourages students to be wary of the “rumor mill” that runs through campus.
“I would ask that all of you think carefully about the impact of social media,” said Dean Karla.
Evie Wilson ‘25, highlighted that the front door of Shirk Center has a wheelchair ramp, but no handicap accessible button. Student Senate President JB Bickett made plans to contact Shirk’s facility director to address the issue.
Shirk was also a focus when an inquiry about getting pickleball lines on the tennis courts reached the floor. Bickett plans to broach the issue with Mike Wagner.
Sodexo was another student target since there are concerns about Passport being taken away, the Bertholf Commons’ renovation status and the sustainability practices of coffee shoppe with their leftover pastries being discarded. Another student senator is the marketer for the Instagram profile, @iwueats, and claimed that there will be new dishes added to Southwest Station dining options and the to-go/order ahead option will help move lines along.
The concern about diversity on campus reached the floor, brought on by a new freshman senator. Certain clubs target specific demographics, and the senator wanted to consider solutions for the lack of inclusivity within certain media marketing campaigns. The Student Senate’s executive board vowed to examine this concern.
The meeting welcomed new senators, concerns and ideas to the floor. Seven General Assemblies will occur throughout the Fall semester and any student, senator or not, has been invited to make their voices heard by bringing their concerns to the Vineyard Room.