Fall 2006 State of the Union Address

My fellow students: once a semester, it is my duty as President of our Student Union to give you, my constituents, a synopsis of all the work we have been doing on your behalf this semester, and the direction in which we wish to proceed in the next. When I ran for president last spring I based my platform on a principle that has guided my advocacy efforts since I joined the Student Union. I ran on results: tangible results. I am proud to represent this Student Union, because of the hard work and advocacy we have done on your behalf, and most of all, because of the results our efforts have produced.

When I was elected in April many people painted the Student Union with one color: the SAF, the Student Activities Fee. This year's Union is a rich painting with lots of colors as diverse as the elected officials who constitute it. We are much more than a one-issue administration. The purpose of the Student Union is to be a resource for the student body, to influence the administration to make decisions that positively impact our campus, and to advocate on behalf of projects that reflect and shape the culture of our university.

We act with the knowledge that both large scale policy changes and smaller, but equally important quality of life advocacy projects can generate results and effectiveness. Your Student Union works multilaterally to do everything from creating a more comprehensive Finance Board Funding Scope to providing lowfat cheese in Usdan. Governing is a fluid process that does not end when political terms end. This Union has evolved out of the Unions that preceded it, and we have carried on their ideals, turning them into real policy changes. Last April the Student body voted overwhelmingly in favor of a constitutional amendment that brought greater accountability and transparency to our SAF allocations system. It opened up the possibility for more money for clubs. This semester we implemented the reforms that are most relevant to the secured organizations and created new policies to be implemented next semester that will affect chartered clubs.

After a semester's worth of work analyzing the funding scope-who gets allocated what and why, what is working and what is not-we have created a new set of policies that expand the types of requests we fund. I am pleased to announce that starting with Marathon next semester the finance board will institute these policies. We will be communicating with clubs about the changes, which, among other things, include the much needed, and highly anticipated funding of transportation and lodging. This new policy broadens the scope for what F-Board will fund, in areas of proven need. It is a perfect example of how our Union is working diligently to identify lapses in the system and rectify them with smart, focused solutions.

As the organization that charters, recognizes, and funds clubs, the Student Union has the responsibility to provide resources beyond those allocated by the Finance Board. Senators are taking on this responsibility. This semester, the Club Support Committee has met with club leaders to help resolve conflicts, restructure student organizations, and guide new clubs. The Club Support Committee is also working with the Ways and Means Committee on updating the section of the Union website dedicated to club support. We encourage student leaders to take full advantage of the resources and opportunities that the Union offers including our ability to advocate for further resources that extend beyond the scope of the Student Union.

Last year the Union recognized a greater need for further support for our club sports teams and organizations. We worked with the Athletics Department and developed a proposal that would lower the out of pocket costs to students and raise the level of recognition and prestige that our club sports receive. The proposal will place club sports under the Athletics umbrella and will be funded by both the Finance Board and the Division of Students and Enrollment. It will give club sports extra financial resources; specifically for lodging, better access to field space and transportation for tournaments. For the moment, the Student Union has signed an agreement to ensure that the program has the funding it needs to operate; and the remaining details of the program will be finalized in the coming semester. The agreement retains student control over SAF Funds. The director of Athletics, will be presenting me a final copy of the proposal this week, and it is my goal for she and I to sign a final agreement by February of this coming year.

Over the past semester, there have been many initiatives that werenÕt (quite) sexy enough to make it to the cover of our campus media publications but impact studentsÕ lives in an integral way. Our Campus Operations Working Group, for example, has managed to solve over 60 complaints about facilities, helping to mitigate the simplest concerns such as broken toilets in first-year quads, broken benches in Rosenthal Quad, and broken handrails all over campus. The committee is also responsible for more universal issues like alleviating load noises while weÕre trying to sleep. Earlier this year, the committee advocated to push back the start of construction time in Massell Quad because Ð letÕs face it, weÕre not in high school anymore, and we donÕt all have to be up by 7 a.m.

ItÕs important to recognize that we each define our own lifestyles When we wake up is our decision, if and how we exercise is our decision, and what we eat is our decision. The Student Union advocates to ensure that students maintain control over these important, personal aspects of our lives. For example, we have advocated for the improvement of several recreational areas including Chapels Field and the Rosenthal Gym. We are proud of our achievements. Just a couple weeks ago, the latest in cardio equipment was delivered to the Gosman gym. The Rosenthal gym was also recently outfitted with better machines that expanded our work out options. Next semester we will continue to collaborate with The Department of Athletics to submit a proposal to renovate the Gosman weight room to provide newer equipment that matches student needs. The Union wants to enable students to make healthy choices about their diets as well as their bodies. The Dining Services Committee has been working with Aramark to expand nutritious options at all of our dining halls by eliminating transfats and including more whole wheat and lowfat options. Nutrition facts have been posted in serving areas so that students will know what they are eating.

Your Union uses its influence to make the Brandeis experience better for students. We fight for all issues, ranging from academics to housing. Did you know that just last week we defeated the proposed change to the pass/fail policy? The proposed changes would require students to receive at least a C- in order to cover their grade. We believed that change would directly contradict with the very philosophy behind the pass/fail option. Unsurprisingly, students felt the same way. As a result, we fought against this change and no policy reform was implemented.

It is important to recognize that our college experience extends far beyond academics Ð we live here. Even for those of us not living on campus, Brandeis is our home. So no matter if we live on or off campus, we should all have the ability to get ourselves here. Call me crazy, but I think we should all be able to park here. With that belief in mind, your Student Union advocated for the creation of 35 new student parking spots behind East Quad.

Since Ridgewood is being knocked down, this yearÕs housing lottery will be tougher than ever. In order to provide guidance for those looking to live in Waltham, we are advocating for a staff member to act as a quasi-quad director for off-campus students. We are simultaneously working with Residence Life to create a comprehensive guide on how to look for a house, what to look for in a landlord, and a specific evaluation of houses in the Waltham area that are consistently rented out by students.

The UnionÕs greatest value is putting studentsÕ needs first. With this mindset comes the duty to provide services to the student body. The Services Committee brought you the Turkey Shuttles to New York, Long Island, and Logan airport before Thanksgiving break, and tonightÕs Midnight Buffet.

As a service to the Brandeis community, Our Diversity Committee has planned a long overdue event for the Brandeis Community, appropriately named the Identity Retreat. We believe in bringing about positive change through dialogue. We want to empower students to ask the tougher questions and delve into deeper issues. We will not shy away from the things that scare us or make us feel uncomfortable. At the retreat, we will, in the words of Corretta Scott King, Òwork to eliminate the gulf of mistrust and ignorance that prevents us from learning about each other.Ó

This two day long retreat will ask students to challenge their preconceived notions about the world around us. It will force us to confront the questions, who we are, how we act, and why we act that way. We seek not to change Brandeis in a day, but rather plant the seed of change so that the next generation of the Union can help it grow.

This growth starts with conversation; conversation about controversial topics. This campus is not immune to controversy as evidenced in last yearÕs Palestinian Art Exhibit incident. We are eager to have a dialogue about what happened and why. The Student Union is starting these efforts through the Social Justice Committee which is writing a survey to be released next semester. We want to foster a community that respects all of its members and acknowledges that everyone contributes to the campus at large. We believe we must infuse the university with the spirit of BrandeisÑboth in upholding the ideals of its namesake and in stimulating excitement for our school.

Spirit is about bringing the community together to celebrate what we have in common Ð our love for the university we call home. Quad Senators and Quad Councils have fostered spirit by hosting events such as the Castle Quad Barbeque and Rose-n-Rock, and organizing tournaments like tri-quad bullseye. But community extends beyond our residence halls. Class Senators have sold class t-shirts and shot glasses to create a unified identity. In conjunction with Student Events, the first-year senators organized a class luau in the Linsey Pool.

Collaboration between student groups is key to cultivating excitement about Brandeis. In fact, on January 23rd the Union is cosponsoring an event called Face-to-Face where campus leaders will be able to meet and discuss their ideas and goals for the coming semester. Additionally, next march, PBUS, Project Brandeis University Spirit will co-sponsor a Smash Brothers tournament with Console Gamers X, bridging gaps between communities and proving that spirit extends beyond the sports field.

Just like the buildings on campus donÕt match but still feel like home, the interests of the student body are diverse and sometimes hard to link together. The Student Union is that link, encouraging school spirit and a variety of social outlets. But people still complain about social life. Every year it seems we ask the same questions: why arenÕt there parties? Why donÕt they let us have fun? ThereÕs nothing to do here.

The truth of the matter is there is plenty to do here. Student Events works every semester to provide constant entertainment on campus. Not to mention the over 200 clubs that provide social outlets for students every night of the week. We know that there are still problems: we know that upper classmen feel imprisoned in beer gardens and that underclassmen feel segregated outside of them, and we know that social life extends far beyond alcohol. What you should know is that we have already taken steps to fix these problems. Earlier this semester you may have heard about our advocacy project, Purple Rain. Purple Rain was more than an event. It successfully demonstrated the glaring problems present in the administrationÕs alcohol policy. we have already written a new draft of the alcohol policy which we will present to the administration at the beginning of next semester.

Last February, the administration created an alcohol policy without consulting the Student Union. This policy established the protocol for events with alcohol, demanding the following

That the planner of the event must be 21 or older
The presence of an inordinate number of Public Safety Officers
A cost of approximately $900 associated with each keg
And the separation of alcohol and alcohol consumers by an enclosed and distanced beer garden.

This policy is completely inflexible and cost prohibitive. It does not take into account the nature of different events or the fact that student organizationsÕ budgets are limited. While not all events need alcohol, the option for those who want to drink should exist. This is college Ð students will drink regardless of the policies enforced upon them. It is imperative that the University acknowledge this and allow for a more liberal approach to alcohol consumption.

Therefore, we are rewriting the alcohol policy. We are making the policy more flexible, to ensure that each event is examined as its own unique entity, and that there is no blanket standard for public safety presence. We are lowering the cost of alcohol by calling on the administration to purchase an ID scanner and to not force us to waste $300 on ID checkerÕs salaries. Even more importantly, we will change the beer garden. The beer garden unnecessarily segregates the community, imprisoning the students who are of age and excluding those who are not. Brandeis was founded on the basis of non-exclusivity, and it is unthinkable that a policy that mandates segregating an event exists here. We are therefore proposing that the beer garden be a place where alcohol is kept enclosed but members of the community are not left out.

Alcohol is not the only component of social life on this campus, and the Student Union is aware of that. Social life is vibrant in other areas, such as our in residence halls, in the Game room and the Stein, and of course, in our accessibility to Boston. To bring the possibilities of Boston closer to you, we are creating a map of the city including the hot spots and how to get there using the T and the Brandeis shuttle. We take advantage of the wealth of social opportunities available to us in AmericaÕs premiere college town.

But we shouldnÕt have to only look outside this campus for our social lives. According to the recent Social Life Survey, most students feel that their social lives are centered in their residence halls. The Student Union finds it necessary to promote suite parties, and so we are proposing a party registration incentive which will reimburse legitimate party costs to the first suite to register their party. We are also revamping the social venues on this campus. Thirsty Thursdays, the weekly happy hour boasting free soda, free food, and free beer, has revived the Stein. In fact, it has been such a success that President Reinharz has attended! New plans for the game room are also in the works Ð we will be purchasing new, more updated gaming equipment and hosting events in the space.

Before I conclude, there are several people who I would like to thank. The Executive Board, for believing in my vision, supporting me, and working tirelessly to ensure the entire UnionÕs success. To the Senate whose creativity, and energy inspire me everyday. If you havenÕt already met your Senators, try to find them tonight to introduce yourselfÑthey are all such amazing people. To the Reps, thank you for working so hard to advocate on behalf of students.

Finance Board: this yearÕs Finance Board has put in a tremendous number of hours implementing the SAF amendment. I would imagine that this yearÕs f-boarders have worked harder that any that came before and probably more than any in the near future. Thank you for putting up with my perfectionism in policy writing and for all of your diligence in evaluating our current policies.

To Jenny, my predecessorÑthank you for leaving me with so much hard workÑbut also for sticking by me and giving me guidance along the way. Thank you to my brother Adam, a senior for always rewriting everything, for cooking me dinner, and for sharing the car. You are a constant source of love and support.

To Sweet 303, Josephine, Hannah, Arum, Lily, and Estee thank you for making life so great, for being crazy and wonderful. I would also like to thank the administrators and professors who were able to make it tonight. I appreciate you staying out pasted your bedtimes. And Finally, I would like to thank every student here for taking an active interest your Student Union.

In order for the Union to fulfill its purpose as a resource, as an influence, and as the agent of change on our campus, we need YOU. We all know how good Brandeis students are at complaining. But your concerns will not be heard if they are not brought to the right people. We cannot revolutionize the system without your input and your ideas. Together, we can embrace the challenge of changeÑto be proactive, reactive, and simply active.