The University of Maine Student Government (UMSG) held its 11th meeting of the semester on April 8, led by President Keegan Tripp and Vice President Memphis Peterson. In this meeting, UMSG deliberated on many procedural resolutions for the end of the semester and finalized its hiring process for the upcoming academic year.
Senator Appointments, Club Maintenance and Guest Speaker
Senator Taylor Stanford resigned from her role as the Sergeant-at-Arms. Since the role would only be active for an additional two meetings before the closure of the session, the Senate opted to table a new election for its usual date in September.
The Sustainable Environment Action Division (SEAD), a revival of an erstwhile coalition devoted to developing and championing sustainable green solutions on campus, was granted unanimous final recognition by the Senate. Maineiaks, a student-led club promoting school spirit and the UMaine hockey teams, also received final recognition.
Alpha Omega Pi members briefly presented at the Mr. Fraternity event that they hosted on April 2 in the Collins Center for the Arts with UMSG financial support.
Erin Shultz of Maine Special Olympics delivered a brief overview of the program and asked the Senate to help provide physical volunteer support at events related to the Special Olympics including the Young Athletes Festival, health screening and opening festivals. The Maine Special Olympics will be held on June 6 through 8.
Executive and Periodic Reports
Vice President Peterson announced that a new executive administrative assistant had been hired and all relevant contracts had been fully completed, following the retirement of longtime assistant Jeff Dyer on April 1.
Vice President of Financial Affairs Oliver Bois stated that UMSG retained $41,326.78 as its unallocated budget.
Vice President for Student Entertainment Dillon Leeman said that ticket sales for the Ricky Montgomery show on April 11 had been relatively low, and to assuage this issue the Student Entertainment Committee (SEC) opted to shutter the CampusGroups link that allowed students to register for tickets. Leeman said that further tickets would be handed out solely in-person, with the SEC intending to heavily utilize tabling in the days before Saturday.
Senator Cynthia Shelmerdine, who chairs the Services Committee, expressed displeasure that none of the broken street lights illuminating campus had yet been fixed, and that she intends to press the issue in future meetings of her committee.
Senator Ezekiel Delorme shared that the Undergraduate Student Symposium would be held on Friday, April 11 in the Field House from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and encouraged all interested students to attend and support undergraduate research.
Representative Board Reports
Representative Jon Guzman, who leads the Student Heritage Alliance Council (SHAC), delivered a grim outlook for the future for his organization and its constituent groups. Guzman shared that several cultural groups were looking at potential disbandment due to lack of interest from continuing students, and that the future of SHAC itself was currently uncertain.
Representative Kass Belaya of Wilde Stein declared the Drag Show a major success, with Belyi reporting rave reviews from attendees that he had spoken to.
New Business and Executive Session
This meeting saw more resolutions introduced during new business than any other meeting this session. The resolutions, all of which were approved with broad support, concerned in order: an allocation of funds to the singing group the Maine Steiners for their spring tour; an act to hold an upcoming special referendum on constitutional amendments recently proposed by UMSG; an act that reaffirmed UMSG’s commitment to protecting student speech as well as its own political neutrality, which President Tripp sponsored and described as being inspired by the climate surrounding the Trump administration’s recent attacks on universities including UMaine and the recent increase in student activism on campus; a resolution that allocated funds to UMSG, Inc. to help provide support for the Hearty Maine Farewell event being held for graduating seniors; and an act to formalize the process of recognizing representative boards and community associations within UMSG.
After the conclusion of new business, the executive leadership of the Senate presented their recommendations for their incoming successors in every executive position not previously filled through election:
- Vice President for Financial Affairs – Joshua Bohm
- Vice President for Student Organizations – Jordan Thompson
- Vice President for Student Leadership – Nate Feng
- Vice President for Student Entertainment – Dillon Leeman (Reappointed)
- Assistant Vice President for Student Entertainment – Abby Hall (Reappointed)
- Board of Trustees Representative – Olivia Britton (Reappointed)
- Fair Election Practices Commission Chair – Zoey Stankevitz
- Director of Communications – Jason LeClerc
- Director of Technology – Israk Ayasin
- Clerk – Pending
