There will be new faces at the table at the next Student Council meeting after the group elected new sustainability, grant allocation and SAC governing board chairs Thursday night.
The Daily Cardinal chatted with the three new chairs about what they plan to accomplish in the next year in their leadership positions with The Associated Students of Madison.
Rachel Widra, Grant Allocation Committee Chair
Rachel Widra will take over the role of grant allocation committee chair for the 24th session of Student Council.
“I’m honored that they elected me,” Widra said. “I know they had two really awesome candidates and I’m really excited.”
Besides starting outreach for next year, Widra said she plans to address a recently scrapped provision in the state budget allowing students to opt-out of certain segregated fees. Because the opt-out could still come back under separate pieces of legislation, Widra said it’s important to “not get blindsided” and have a plan in place.
“If students had the option of not paying that [allocable segregated fee], they probably wouldn’t and GAC wouldn’t exist anymore,” Widra said. “Right now, we’re funding over $500,000 worth of grants. We’re probably not going to find that amount of money anywhere else so we’re reducing the amount of grants that we’re responsible for and trying to find other sources of funding along with that.”
Because ASM is often the “first line of funding” for those seeking grants, Widra said she thinks administration would be willing to work with her committee in finding other sources of funding.
Leah Johnson, Sustainability Committee Chair
Leah Johnson will take over the role of sustainability committee chair for the 24th session of Student Council.
“I have really high hopes for what this committee can do and to be in a position where I can actually make that happen is...words can’t explain how excited and honored I am to be given this opportunity,” Johnson said.
Johnson said she plans to continue the environmental education requirement and hopes to promote intersectionality by involving groups like Black Lives Matter and the Equity and Inclusion Committee in committee campaigns.
Johnson said she will lead the committee by example and with respect. Although several members during their endorsement speeches acknowledged how frustrating campaigning for environmental awareness and action can be, Johnson said she prefers talking about the problems because getting angry won’t solve anything.
“The sustainability committee - we’re not going away,” Johnson said. “We have campaigns that will take us years to complete and we have countless actions that we need to work on and we’re going to. So we’re going to be here. We’re going to be working. We’re going to be fighting, peacefully, of course.”
Nick Hall, SAC Governing Board Chair
Nick Hall will take over SAC GB chair for the 24th session of Student Council.
“I’m excited to change the SAC,” Hall said. “First order of business is changing the orientation system this summer.”
Hall said he wants his orientation system to be an online training session that tenants must complete over the summer to learn how to keep an office at the SAC. The session would be mandatory and Hall said he wants tenants who don’t complete the training on time to have a punishment, such as not being able to access their office and key box.
“There’s been dumb things like broken keys which actually cost the SAC quite a bit of money every year,” Hall said. “It seems so dumb, but there’s a lot of education that goes into just having an office here that is not communicated very well now.”
In addition, Hall wants to work closely with the tenant relations at the SAC, particularly to solve the key box issue.
