Dr. Dana addresses the GSS
Robert Dana, dean of students, was the guest speaker at Tuesday evening’s General Student Senate Meeting. He spoke about Pope Francis’s recent visit to the U.S. and how it made him think of how important service is to others.
He told the senate that their job is one of service; not only to the University of Maine, but to society as a whole.
“You have a responsibility to make this a stronger community,” Dana said. “As senators, you have a responsibility to others.”
Before he left, he told the senate that he was proud of their work and that the university is thankful for their commitment.
“Don’t forget that what you’re doing has heft,” Dana said. “It has value. It is very, very important.”
President Stewart speaks about Yes on 1 campaign
President Harold Stewart voiced his disappointment that the Yes on 1 campaign failed.
If the resolution had passed, it would have changed the timing of the elections for the next term’s president and vice president to the spring semester instead of the fall.
“What happens is that a senior runs for the position and then only completes half of their term before graduation or taking other opportunities and leaving the student body and UMSG Inc. high and dry,” Stewart said. “In fact, I chose not to run for re-election based on this exact issue. It’s not healthy for the student body or the organization.”
When asked why the campaign failed, Stewart blamed those who spread false information across campus.
“Opponents of this argue that it gives the first-year students less of a voice. The fact is, they still get their one vote per year under this rule. It just changes the time that it happens at. It also allows them to have more than six or seven weeks on this campus and more time to feel the impacts that Student Government, particularly with effective leadership, can have on campus. As such, changing it to the spring semester allows them a semester and a half to figure out who they want in this position and who they feel really deserves their vote based on merit, instead of a guess,” Stewart said.
IT reported some issues with the voting procedures and results, which may result in a re-vote, but that has yet to be confirmed.
Club maintenance
The Real Food Challenge UMaine received preliminary recognition Tuesday evening. The club is part of a national movement known as Real Food Challenge. The primary goal of the organization is to get universities to dedicate a part of their food budget towards the purchase of “real food,” that is ecologically sound and humane.
The Real Food Challenge UMaine hopes to work with administration to get 20 percent of UMaine’s current food budget to go towards “real food,” by 2020.
