The Tufts Community Union Senate heard supplementary funding and capital expenditure requests and voted on resolutions about the presidential search committee and student mental health on Sunday night in the Sophia Gordon Multipurpose Room. The meeting was the body’s last of the semester.
TCU Treasurer Elizabeth Hom introduced 15 supplementary funding requests.
Ears for Peersrequested $400 for their annual retreat, which the Allocations Board unanimously voted to fully fund. The request passed by acclamation.
Tufts Dance Collective requested $2,115 for their spring dance showcase. The Allocations Board voted to fully fund the request, which passed with 21 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
The Tufts Amalgamates, an a cappella group, requested $231 to pay a sound and space fee for a performance venue. The request passed by acclamation.
Tufts Synthetic Biology requested $8,500 to cover registration fees for an engineering competition. The Allocations Board voted to fully fund the request, which passed with 11 senators voting in favor, four opposed and four abstaining.
Melisma Magazine requested $226 to cover costs of changing their website platform. The request passed by acclamation.
The South Asian Political Action Community requested $650 to fund their spring symposium. The request passed by acclamation.
Tap Ensemble requested $800 to rent Cohen Auditorium and pay sound fees for their spring show. The request passed by acclamation.
The Tufts Asian Student Coalition requested $800 to pay speakers fees. The request passed by acclamation.
The Arab Student Association requested $1,000 for their end of year gala. The request passed by acclamation.
The Japanese Culture Club requested $1,200 to fund their community building retreat. The request passed by acclamation.
Applejam Productions requested $980 to fund the purchase of two loudspeakers. The request passed by acclamation.
The Vietnamese Student Club requested $300 to fund their culture show, which passed by acclamation.
TEDxTufts requested $2,825, which the Allocations Board voted to fully fund, for costs associated with taping, editing and uploading speeches from virtual speakers at the TEDxTufts event.The request passed with 21 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
The Philippine Student Union requested $1,890. The Allocations Board voted to fully fund the request, which passed with 21 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Tufts Burlesque requested $600. The request passed by acclamation.
Elizabeth Hom then introduced eight capital expenditure requests. In certain circumstances, capital expenditure requests can be funded by the TCU Senate when there is a surplus in their budget. They differ from supplementary funding requests in that they usually fund long-term investments, as opposed to one-time costs.
The first capital expenditure funding request, which requested funding to update the AV system in Hotung, was withdrawn because the Office of Campus Life and the Allocations Board determined that it was not the Senate’s responsibility to fund the maintenance of a campus space.
Tufts Gaming Hub requested $13,310 to fund the purchase of gaming equipment and furniture. The Allocations Board unanimously voted to fully fund the request, which passed with 19 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Tufts Korean Dance Association requested $4,000 to fund video production equipment. The Allocations Board recommended funding the request in full, which passed with 20 senators voting in favor, none opposed and one abstaining.
The Palmier requested $414 to fund photography equipment. The request passed with 19 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Torn Ticket II requested $25,000 to fund a soundboard and equipment bundle. The Allocations Board recommended to fully fund the request, which passed with 19 senators voting in favor, none opposed and one abstaining.
Tufts Bikes requested $4,747 to fund a new shed to house bikes, which the Allocations Board voted to fully fund. The request passed with 20 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
Tufts University Television requested $8,650 to fund recording equipment. The request passed with 19 senators voting in favor, none opposed and one abstaining.
Tufts University Social Collective requested $40,000 to fund fitness equipment and publicity equipment. The Allocations Board unanimously voted to fully fund the request. The body debated over $10,000 which would fund air conditioning units in Hill Hall, due to concerns that it is the university’s responsibility to maintain and improve campus facilities. The request did not initially pass, but the body then voted on each individual request and ultimately voted to pass the total of $40,000 to TUSC.
Tufts WMFO requested $9,785 to fund recording and broadcasting equipment and new air conditioning units, which the Allocations Board recommended to completely fund. The body debated over the air conditioning units. The request passed with 15 senators voting in favor, none opposed and one abstaining.
Then, TCU Parliamentarian Ibrahim AlMuasher introduced two resolutions to be voted on during the meeting.
The first, “A Resolution Calling for Additional Members for the Presidential Search Committee,” aims to give a better representation of the array of academic disciplines in the search committee for University President Anthony Monaco’s replacement. The resolution calls for the addition of one professor representing the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, one humanist professor from a department with a graduate program and one undergraduate representative from the School of Arts and Sciences.The resolution passed with 18 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
The second, “A Resolution Calling for Financial Investments and Equitable Policy Regarding Students’ Mental Health,” seeks to improve the mental health resources at Tufts. The resolution calls for adding more counselors while ensuring that at least 50% of the additional counselors represent Black, Brown, Indigenous and/or LGBTQ communities; offering long-term, in-house counseling; cutting down appointment wait times; improving mental health training for residential advisors and professors; and releasing guidelines on assisting students during university-wide crises.The resolution passed with 17 senators voting in favor, none opposed and none abstaining.
TCU Vice President Tim Leong then opened the floor for updates from the committee chairs.
Services Committee Chair Arielle Galinsky gave updates on the textbook exchange and the final exams care kits.
Education Committee Chair Claire Bolash encouraged senators to grade professors based on course evaluations this summer, which will help administration decide on promotions and tenures.
Leong recognized members of the general board and acknowledged his appreciation for the Senate during his time at Tufts.
TCU Diversity Officer Jaden Pena gave a speech about his appreciation for the other members on the Community and Diversity Committee and brought attention to their successes this semester. He called out the accomplishments of the Senate body, acknowledged the diversity of the incoming Class of 2026 and thanked the Class of 2022 senators for their work over the school year and throughout their time at Tufts.
Hom, a senior, reflected on this past year as the body’s treasurer, expressing gratitude to the members of the Allocations Board, the treasury and the rest of the Senate. She highlighted the accomplishments of the Allocations Board and the work the board has done to support student organizations and revive student life on campus since the COVID-19 pandemic. She lastly thanked the executive board in supporting her to accomplish her goal of supporting all students at Tufts.
TCU President Amma Agyei gave a brief overview of the body’s accomplishments, including the initiatives on which the Senate’s different committees have worked over the year as well as her own projects. She thanked the Senate for its support and wished the next TCU president luck for next year.
The body conducted a closed session before adjourning.
The 2022–23 Senate presidential election will be held April 26–27.
