SG Update 10/11

C02.0 Policy Update

At the Student Government meeting, the senate voted to support a revision of the C02.0 policy. The policy covers academic misconduct and how that conduct is reported. The revision updates guiding principles to seek balance in the governance policy. Additionally, the revision encourages reporting to create conscientious research and concrete/inclusive identification of inappropriate research practices. The revision will also allow the RIT associate provost for Faculty Affairs to participate in C02.0 matters, better preventing biased decisions.

Windows Policy

The senate voted on closing the issue concerning new security windows and the lack of air flow they reportedly caused in student dormitories.

RIT’s Housing and Dining Committee recently installed new security windows in some of the on-campus student dormitories. The new windows do not fully open like the traditional screen-in windows that students may be familiar with. Rather, the new windows allow ventilation by opening four inches. Some students had complained that the windows do not allow for proper ventilation and make the rooms in the dormitories warmer. After the complaint, the committee conducted tests and concluded that the windows meet standards for proper air flow and ventilation set by Environmental Health and Safety, as well as Occupational Health and Safety.

RIT Housing and Dining also added that they began selling electric fans in Sol’s Underground to help students who find that their dormitory rooms are uncomfortably warm. The senate voted in favor of closing their investigation into the matter. While the senate did close the investigation, they noted that if warm dormitories are the root issue of student concern, they would be open to reinvestigating the matter in another form such as lack of air conditioning.

New Issues

Some new issues were brought to the senate's attention, originally stemming from popular PawPrint petitions. The issues that were voted on included the lack of access to music rehearsal rooms for students, additional lighting for club sports fields, a plan to address conflicting exams during Career Fair week and a plan to fix, and add to, the existing lighting of the Quarter Mile and Global Village. These concerns that were brought to the senate were all voted in favor for and now have open investigations into solutions.

Another issue that was voted in favor of investigating struck up a more in-depth discussion among the senators on how to best address it. The issue is twofold and that of Gracie’s; one part apparent understaffing and one part overworking of current employees. This issue also originated as a PawPrints petition, which received nearly 600 signatures. The initial solution among the senators was to press the Housing and Dining Committee to temporarily increase wages for current employees, since they are the ones bearing the burden of inadequate staffing. However, that solution was met with concern for multiple reasons. One reason being that once adequate staffing is achieved, wages will most definitely be decreased again. Another reason was that Housing and Dining does not decide on wages, so pressing them would be ineffective.

Eventually, the senators voted in favor of an investigation into the root cause of understaffing at Gracie’s. The investigation in its current form will pursue the possibility of a permanent increase in wages for employees at Gracie’s while also tracking how the Housing and Dining Committee plans on utilizing increased funding they are reportedly about to receive.