Student Government (SG) discussed the PawPrints 2.0 site and new workflow for the platform, the “ROC the Block” event and elected a new Global Union (GU) vice president during their Jan. 16 meeting. The group also selected its SGers of the Month and went over brief announcements regarding upcoming events on campus.

Updated PawPrints Overview

SG’s Director of Technology Services, Alex Kilroy, gave a presentation on current and future changes to the PawPrints website. The changes currently include a search bar that filters petitions that are active, have been charged, have received responses or have expired and includes a new color scheme and logo. 

Kilroy stated that the main area his team will be working on is a separate page to access PawPrints, which will be called “major projects initiatives.” The page will have the same system of petitions, but will instead be posted by SG members. He explained that it’ll serve as “a way to publicize what we as SG are working on internally when it’s not necessarily directly associated with the petition.” Students can sign the major project initiatives the same way they would a petition, and SG members will be able to add updates. 

Kilroy’s team will also be working on a few “post-launch functionality improvements”, such as site usage and signature demographic statistics, UI improvements and a new feature that will allow students to add their input and feedback to SG initiatives. This will only be viewed by SG members and will not be displayed publicly on the website. These changes will at the latest be in effect by the end of the semester. 

Along with the changes to the website, SG will be deliberating PawPrints differently to help “address true concerns raised and questions asked in the PawPrint.” The PawPrints will be charged at the Senate meeting, but now with the entire petition as it appears on the site, being in the presentation. The committee will then generate key points of the petition, along with goals and plans to address those key points. Those points and goals will be presented at the Senate, where they’ll be discussed.

ROC the Block Downtown

SG President Rafael Gilboa stressed the importance of attending the upcoming “ROC the Block” downtown event, which will bring back the downtown bus and drop students off in Rochester during FreezeFest on Jan. 30. Tickets are $5 each way, and tickets heading downtown must be purchased on Campus Groups ahead of time. The shuttle bus will start at 6 p.m. and will arrive back at RIT at 1:30 a.m., giving students time to explore the city of Rochester. Additionally, SG and the College Activities Board (CAB) will be handing out hot chocolate to students while they wait for their bus. 

Until COVID-19’s impact, RIT had a shuttle that traveled from campus to downtown Rochester, but it was discontinued due to a mix of safety concerns and low ridership, according to RIT’s administration. Additionally, the money that was allocated for the shuttle from the student activities fee has now been reallocated, mostly to CAB and other student organizations. 

“We wanted to build up numbers to prove to the administration that this is something worth consistently paying for,” said Gilboa. “And so the way we’re doing that is by starting off with events.”

Global Union Vice President Election

SG has elected Mobassirul Karim Faraz as Global Union’s (GU) new vice president. Faraz, a third year Mechanical Engineering student, explained that working as GU’s community manager has allowed him to collaborate with the GU president, vice president and advisors, and that together, GU has seen a rise in student engagement.

SGer’s of the Month

SG handed out awards for SGers of November, as time restraints in the previous December meeting prevented the awards from being distributed. Saunders College of Business (SCB) Senator Ericka Chen and School of Individualized Study (SOIS) Senator Peyton Jesse were both awarded Senator of the Month. Student Affairs Committee Chair Noah Manning was awarded Committee Chair of the Month and ALANA Collegiate Association (ACA) VP Kifekachukwu Nwosu was awarded RSO of the Month. Finally, Director of Collaboration and Inclusion Saeed Sharifi was awarded Cabinet Member of the Month.

Upcoming Events

On Jan. 30, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in Lowenthal Hall’s Atrium, SCB will be hosting its Spring Club Fair. Free entry and food will be provided while students explore the many Saunders College-affiliated clubs.

NTIS Student Congress (NSC) will be hosting its forum on Jan. 20 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Student Development Center (SDC) 1300/1310, where University President Bill Sanders will receive his sign name. Interpreters will be provided, along with games, pizza and ice cream.