On April 3, in the 17th Associated Students of the University of California Riverside (ASUCR) Senate meeting of the year, the meeting was called to order at 7:01 p.m. All senators were present except for Senator Alex Lu who was absent, and Senators Ray Khan, Grace Su, Kaden Ho and Amariah Peedikayil who were excused. Senator Su later joined the meeting at 7:03 p.m.
The agenda for the day was approved unanimously after a motion was made and approved to add February Senator of the Month to Roundtable and Announcements.
Senate Meeting Minutes #16, covering the final Senate meeting of the winter quarter, was approved unanimously.
During the public forum, Senator Teesha Sreeram went up to the podium to deliver an update from the March UC Regents meeting which she attended. She reported that she was able to go and deliver two different statements during public comment, held conversations with others on what divestment looks like, and brought a UCR perspective regarding discussion on collegiate recovery programs.
Vice President of External Affairs (VPEA) Ángel Rentería then announced during New Business that ASUCR as a whole has won the Campus of the Year award from the UC Student Association (UCSA). He shares how a lot of tears were shed and that the award was long overdue, but that “we cannot forget the harm that UCSA has done to UCR,” and that this award is not just for the people working now, but for all the people in their positions in the past.
The Legislative Review Committee proposed four new pieces of legislation during Committee Reports. Beginning with SR-W24-004 In Support of Student Parents, this resolution was drafted to support student-parents on campus in two main ways, voicing support for creating a new student-parents center amongst the Ethnic and Gender Centers, and creating housing specifically for student-parents. A motion to approve the resolution was made by Senator Nadia Colon and seconded by Senator Anjana Narasimhan and passed 13-0-1.
SB-W24-013 Chapter 10 Amendment is a bill that was proposed by Executive Vice President (EVP) Victoria Nguyen. The bill would change some wording in the EVP bylaws, make some grammar changes, clarified that Senate meetings will be held in accordance with Robert’s Rules of Order, changed the name of Chief of Staff to Head of Staff, removed the President Pro Tempore (PPT) from the Senate Internship Program as there is now a Senate Internship Director, removed the Head of Staff’s responsibilities as an internship director, and would remove the Highlander, UCR’s school newspaper, from ASUCR governing documents. A motion to approve the bill was made by Senator Narasimhan and Seconded by Senator Nadia Colon and passed 14-0-0.
SB-W24-014 Chapter 17 Amendment is a Senate bylaw edit that was proposed that would remove senators from the responsibility of the parliamentarian. A motion to approve the bill was made by Senator Su and seconded by Senator Colon and passed unanimously. SR-W24-006 Resolution in Support of ASL Classes is a Senate resolution in support of implementing American Sign Language (ASL) courses at UCR, building off of previous years’ work. A motion to approve this resolution was made by Senator Leila Haidar and seconded by CHASS Senator Philson Ho and passed 14-0-0.
Next on the agenda was Public Comment, during which the EVP relayed a message from the ASUCR President Ankita Ahluwalia where she reported that winter reports are now available for viewing. Senate Intern Sofia also announced that the Ground Up Visual Arts Fair, an event he is working on, is looking for people to volunteer. She explained that the event will be at the Barn and will be a collaborative effort with UCR’s Arts department and consist of various showings such as live poetry readings, sculptures, short films, and more.
During Roundtable and Announcements, it was announced that BCOE Senator Anjana Narasimhan is the February Senator of the Month for her efforts with the ASUCR Global Fair, the Women in Unity event which was held in collaboration with the Personnel office and the Women’s Resource Center, and various other initiatives she undertook. Senator Sreeram announced that April is Sexual Assault Awareness month and that the CARE office will be hosting events.
The meeting adjourned at 7:39 p.m.
