On Wednesday, April 9, the Undergraduate Senate of the Student Government Administration (SGA) convened for its 1936th weekly meeting in the Cape Cod Lounge of the Student Union. During the meeting, Senators elected Clerk of the Senate Ishaan Dwivedi for the position of Senate Speaker and Senator Cody Germain for the position of Associate Speaker. In addition, the Senators approved DIA funding for the Black Mass Community Project (BMCP) for their “SoulFest Week” event.

After roll call was taken, President Colin Humphries announced during the Committee of the Whole the opening of sign ups for the University Relations Subcommittees which include Campus Experience, Events, Marketing and Swag & Merch and took volunteers to lead these committees.

The Senate then held an official election for next year’s Senate Speaker and Associate Speaker.

Clerk of the Senate Ishaan Dwivedi and Chair of the Outreach and Development Committee Ishaan Sarna were both nominated and seconded for the position of Speaker by members of the Senate body. Senators Morgan Kim and Cody Germain were nominated for Associate Speaker. Both nominations were seconded.

For the election, each candidate for Speaker and Associate Speaker was allowed five minutes to present their campaigns before the Senate body.

First up was Clerk Dwivedi. One of the greatest aims of Senator Dwivedi’s campaign is to streamline weekly Senate meetings. “We found a few ways to increase member retention and reduce vacancies in the Senate,” Dwivedi said.

“One of the biggest is reducing the amount of time that we spend in Senate. Of course, we do important work here. However, Senate meetings that drag on late into the night serve as a barrier to effective work. We’re all students here, and we all have other commitments. We don’t want SGA membership to have adverse effects on people’s outside lives.”

When asked about how he and Senator Germain would uphold Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) measures in weekly Senate meetings, Dwivedi says that he would appoint a group of chairs that are “diverse in everything, including in the way they think and their beliefs.”

Presenting next to the Senate was current Chair Ishaan Sarna. One of his main goals after holding multiple roles within the SGA is increasing retention amongst the members. “Retention comes from culture,” Sarna said, hoping to foster a community where Senators and members feel “seen and valued.”

In his speech before the Senate body, Chair Sarna emphasized a commitment to unifying the SGA. “This year, we witnessed a widening disconnect between branches that has hurt our ability to serve students,” Sarna said. “As Speaker, I will prioritize cross-branch collaboration by emphasizing the value of transparency and open communication within the body.”

Next, the Associate Speaker candidates delivered their speeches and took questions.

Senator Morgan Kim was first, emphasizing how experience on the Outreach and Development Committee (ODC) will get members and Senators enthusiastic about participating. He reiterated his positive experience being involved in the SGA and also hopes to boost Senate retention.

When asked about conflict resolution, Senator Kim wants to be as “neutral and open as possible,” making sure the Senate and SGA office are welcoming and open spaces.

“I want to make the SGA office a place where people can just speak freely and spend more time,” Kim said. “I want the SGA office to be a place where everyone can just come and hang out, study, talk to people, and ask about classes.”

Senator Germain, current Chair of the Rules and Ethics Subcommittee, emphasized his goal to complete a “comprehensive review of the bylaws,” for clearer expectations, support for branches and reduce the workload for the Ways and Means committee. He also wants to make more cross-communication between branches internally and externally.

“I want the Senate to be a place in which all people feel they have the ability to speak freely without fear of retaliation, and I want to be an associate speaker for all, because whether we agree or disagree on the issues, at the end of the day, we’re all here to represent the UMass community,” Senator Germain said.

When asked about how he plans to work with the Executive Branch, Germain explained how he has recently met with President Elect Michael Borowski and Vice President Elect Gianna Naulivou about plans and goals for the upcoming year.

After a brief recess, Clerk Dwivedi received the most votes for Speaker and Senator Germain received the most votes for Associate Speaker.

Next, the Black Mass Community Project (BMCP) presented a DIA Fund proposal for their “Soulfest Week,” which is themed around “SoulChella” this year. BMCP E-Board members presented the goals of BMCP, ways to keep student engagement and the importance of their event. The event will take place on April 26 in Lot 33 and is a collaboration between BMCP and the Residence Hall Association (RHA).

After a unanimous vote from the Senate, the BMCP was awarded $35,067 in DIA funding.

During his officer reports, President Colin Humphries announced that he will officially sign the Club Sports transition to RecWell on April 10. The transition was previously announced by

Humphries during the Senate meeting on March 5.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:48 p.m. after 2 hours and 18 minutes.

Nathan Legare can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X (formerly Twitter) @Legare_Nathan. Abby Joyce can be reached at [email protected].