The Graduate Student Organization amended its constitution to use gender-neutral terms at a meeting on Wednesday night.  

Nick Mason, GSO vice president of internal affairs, switched all uses of “he” and “she” with gender-neutral phrases in the constitution. Senators voted to approve the amendment, and passed an additional resolution requiring future resolutions to “use language that is inclusive and free of discrimination.” 

Obi Afriyie, a university senator and graduate student in the School of Education, proposed the second part of the resolution, which won’t be binding. The resolution acts as a recommendation rather than a new rule despite the usage of the word “required” because the GSO Senate can break its own resolutions.  

“I think this is awesome, and thank you for taking the time to go through this beast and figure it out,” said Rikki Sargent, an at-large senator and former vice president of internal affairs.  

The GSO also voted to elect a new university senator after Taylor Sanders, who is now recording secretary, stepped down from her position in University Senate. GSO President Jack Wilson nominated Rui Gomes, a graduate student in the mechanical and aerospace engineering department.  

University Senators are both voting members of USen, SU’s academic governing body, and the GSO Senate. GSO has 10 university Senators, who must serve on a USen committee and attend the meeting of both bodies.  

During the meeting, Sargent proposed a resolution that allocates $15,000 for a 2020 event celebrating the 150th anniversary of SU’s founding. The resolution was passed.   

The event, 150th Celebration GSO Featured Event, will replace the organization’s spring picnic. About $5,000 is usually allocated for the spring picnic, said Sweta Roy, vice president of external affairs, who plans the GSO’s spring and fall welcome picnics and other events.  

The resolution creates a task force that would plan a competition to determine which registered student organization would plan the event. 

“This will give us a presence in the community so we’ll have a forefront role in joining the celebration,” said Sargent, who is an elected representative on the steering committee that is planning a yearlong university-wide celebration for the 150th anniversary. 

Joshua Fenton, GSO comptroller, said the finance committee can use a portion of a $15,000 grant in the current budget for the remaining costs of the anniversary event.  

GSO senators also approved about $3,600 in special programming funding between several RSOs: the Iranian Student Association, the Turkish Student Association and the American Society for Engineering Education. The GSO has $22,000 available for special events or programs planned by RSOs.  

SU’s newly-created chapter of the American Association for Women in Mathematics received $200 in funding, the allowed amount for new student organizations within the GSO. Sargent said the RSO can apply for more special programming funding later in the semester.

Published on October 3, 2018 at 10:16 pm

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