Bridging the Gap between Students and Faculty Staff: Introducing a Potential Bill from DIRE Committee

The Student Government Association held its annual monthly senate meetings on November 7 at 4 pm in the Mocha Room. This is where they informed students about important information regarding the students, faculty, and staff at Southern University.
The meeting started with gaining attendance and making sure all senators were in attendance. The senators spoke about their progress in various events and activities that they held.
Senator Kendra Carter spoke on behalf of College and Government and Social Sciences, where she discussed the encouragement to go out and vote in the upcoming elections. She then stated that the NAACP would be having ‘Prowl to the Polls’ on Tuesday where students would be excused from classes from 11-4 to be encouraged to go out and vote.
Senator Taylor Curtis spoke on behalf of the College of Humanities and Interdisciplinary Studies where she welcomed the new faculty and staff in the Mass Communication department. Attorney Derrick Cow is the communications law instructor and for the School of Education, the new residency coordinator is Dr. Natasha Hunter. The College of Humanities and Interdisciplinary Studies has widened its program and has added an English Literature program for Philosophy students.
Senator Trinyty Turner spoke on behalf of Sports Athletic, where Athletics will hold Jaguar Christmas, where they adopt two families in need. They are taking monetary donations at the football game on Saturday or you can always stop by the fieldhouse to make donations.
Senator Khalil Bynum spoke on behalf of Human Jukebox and The Dancing Dolls, where he was happy to announce that we will host the BoomBox Classic on Sunday, where they encourage everyone to come out to support the Human Jukebox. He also was happy to announce the partnership with AWS on having an all-women band was able to perform at the AWS pageant. The women students were honored to be a part of such an amazing experience.
Later in the meeting, Senator Kendra Carter talked about the survey that was held by Inclusivity and Representation. she showed the results from the surve, and stated that some of the results would be quite surprising. One of the points that stood out was the results of the committees that show inclusivity and Representation. Some of the organizations that they felt were very diverse were NAACP, JAB, Men’s Fed, and AWS. Although she didn’t name all of the organizations that weren’t very diverse she stated that one that was named the most was Student Government Association. Which she stated was very bad because they are the voice for the student body and they should be able to take accountability that it is a gap and they should be more inclusive.
Later on in the agenda, Kendra Carter presented “Senate Bill Number 1” by the DIRE committee. Where they are trying to get a senator for the DIRE committee. The purpose of the bill is to promote diversity and inclusivity in the student government association. The position would be a selected position by the inclusion team and if voted in it would go into effect in the fall. One of the main questions is what is the duty of that senator. Carter responded, “The duty of that senator would be to interact with resources on campus such as disability services, counseling center, academic affairs, and other organs on campus to make sure that they highlight the needs of marginalized communities on campus.” The senator would overall just make sure all students feel included.
Lastly, students inquired about the Bayou Classic bus and if it would be a student bus that would go to New Orleans. They then stated that they were not sure at the time if there would be a student bus provided.
The next senate meeting will be scheduled on November 21 at 4 pm in the Union Ballroom.