The Tufts Community Union Senate heard supplementary funding requests, held internal elections and reflected on its work this fall during its last meeting of the semester on Sunday, Dec. 5.
After a brief roll call, TCU President Amma Agyei introduced Mark Lannigan, chair of the TCU Elections Commission, to conduct an election for administration and policy committee chair. Class of 2024 Senator Liani Astacio was elected to the position over nominee Wanci Nana.
TCU Treasurer and Class of 2022 Senator Elizabeth Hom then introduced 13 supplementary funding requests.
The Tufts Middle Eastern Research Group made a new budget request of $2,999. The Allocations Board proposed $1,966 and the request passed by acclamation with five Allocations Board members voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Tufts Hillel requested $1,150 to pay for gas, parking, hotel accommodations and food for the Shir Appeal Winter Tour. Shir Appeal is a Tufts mixed gender Jewish a cappella group. The Allocations Board proposed $950 and the request passed by acclamation, with five Allocations Board members voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
The Tufts Tap Ensemble requested $620 to pay their semester flooring fee. The request passed by acclamation, with five Allocations Board members voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
TCU Senate requested $3,800 to pay for raffle items and self-care kits. The request passed with 25 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Tufts Gaming Hub requested $139 to pay for card packs and tournament registration. The request passed by acclamation with five Allocations Board members voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
The Palmier requested $1,672 for printing and recipe testing for its magazine production. The request passed with 25 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Tufts University Social Collective requested $62,000 to pay for Spring Fling lost ticket sales revenue, spring daytime programs, spring late night and weekend programming, senior events and fitness programs. The request passed with 25 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
The Returning Students Organization requested $258 to pay for graduating senior gifts. The request passed by acclamation with five Allocations Board members voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Tufts JumboRaas requested $4,875 to pay for new costumes for their shows. The request passed with 24 senators voting in favor, none opposed and one abstaining.
Tufts Dance Collective made a new budget request of $2,858to help pay for costumes, wristbands, food and water, a photographer and a videographer. The request passed with 12 senators voting in favor, eight opposed and three abstaining.
Ears for Peers requested $396 to pay for food for a club dinner. The request passed by acclamation with five Allocations Board members voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
WMFO requested $3,609 for music equipment including an amplifier and a stage piano. The request passed with 21 senators voting in favor, none opposed and one abstaining.
Hom then introduced the preliminary budget for the Class of 2024 Prom, which is expected to take place in March 2022. TCU Senate requested $137,000 to pay for the venue, food, entertainment, transportation, room decor, photography, memorabilia and promotion for the event. The request passed with 20 senators voting in favor, none opposed and three abstaining.
Agyei finished the meeting by delivering her state of the union address, which the TCU president gives at the end of each semester. She recapped some of the Senate's initiatives from the semester, such as a resolution calling on Tufts to put an end to legacy admissions and an abstract for Tufts to cancel its budget cuts to the Portuguese program.
Agyei expressed her pride in the TCU Senate's work this semester and her hopes for the spring.
“I think things have changed this year … this is one of the most diverse Senate bodies we’ve ever had,” she said.“I’m really excited to see where these different projects go, I’m excited to see what the new Senate is going to look like, I’m excited to see just everything coming to fruition.”
