In the Senate's first official meaning they heard from a couple of clubs, discussed constitutional amendments, and voted in new positions.
On Sept. 29, the Student Union Senate held its first official meeting of the school year. Vice President Ria Escamilla-Gil ’27 began the meeting. During the meeting, the senators heard from three clubs, voted on constitutional revisions, approved a mental health awareness event and voted for new positions within the Senate.
The first club to present at the Senate meeting was the HWAA Dance Crew. The Senate heard from Captain Kora Liu ’25, Co-Captain Emily Ren, Event Coordinator Angela Zhang ’25 and Event Coordinator Coco He ’26. The club started as a group of friends that would get together to choreograph dances for cultural shows and has since grown into a club. Its purpose is to create cultural diversity with a focus on East Asian pop culture and create a supportive community. According to their presentation, the club has already had a couple of meetings and is currently working on three separate projects. HWAA is composed of not only dancers but also photographers and editors. After a Senate vote, the club was granted probationary status.
The next club to present was the Badminton Club. The presentation was done by President Samantha Hinccliffe ’27, Secretary Anika Bhatia ’27 and Treasurer Maxwell Cowardin ’27. The club's purpose is to be a fun, non-competitive and easy way to learn badminton, according to the club. It is open to all students and no experience is required. Once they have the requisite equipment, the club plans on meeting once a week. After a Senate vote, the club was passed with probationary status.
The Senate also heard from the Fashion and Beauty Society about changing the club name to “Brandeis Fashion Society.” The club wants to change its name to bring in “Brandeis” and drop the word "Beauty" from their title. The club wants to focus on fashion, not beauty—which is a narrow word with associated stereotypes according to the club. Brandeis Fashion Society hopes to partner with fashion professionals at future events and make the club more interactive. The Senate approved them for the name change.
Student Union President Rani Balakrishna ’25 and Chief Judicial Officer Zachary Miller ’25 presented the amendments to the constitution, a process that began this last spring. Student Union members have been looking through the constitution and bylaws to update and revise them. Many changes have been made. For example, Article two's revisions about mandating the due dates of executive board reports and updates are "more realistic" according to Balakrishna. Article two Section three revised the Student Union office hours to make them more convenient for members. The student body voted last year to remove the judicial branch, which is now just the Chief Judicial Officer. Article four has been revised to remove the attendance requirement of Senators at Student Union meetings, and the requirements are less strict and more flexible. Balakrishna and Miller have also been working on a handbook for the Student Union board to make it easier to pass down through different administrations.
Another revision allows for proxy votes so that Senators can still vote if they cannot attend a meeting. Senators can now call for a vote on a proposal to get basic thoughts and ideas of where other Senators stand on proposals without the vote actually counting. The amendments also more clearly outline the impeachment process, describe the Senate meeting procedure, how committees function and update committee purposes and goals. These amendments passed in the Senate. The Student Union continues to work through and update its bylaws and constitution.
Senators Ava Ferrigno ’27 and Allie Lanham ’26 proposed hosting a mental health awareness table on Oct. 10, Global Mental Health Day. They plan to stock the table with mental health awareness stickers, fidget toys and talk about mental health resources students have access to. The proposal was expedited and passed.
During the meeting, the Senate voted for Sree Dharmaraj ’27 as their Allocation Board (A-Board) Representative. In her speech, she talked about her passion for ensuring that every voice on campus could be heard and emphasized the importance of communication. As A- Board representative, she will ensure better communication between the Senate, the A-board and the student body.
The Senate also voted for Daniel Shin ’27 as the Elections Executive Senator. Shin discussed his past experiences on committees, including the health and wellness on last year's Senate and his past experience as an A-Board Representative.
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