Welcome back to another edition of the Voice’s biweekly GUSA News Briefs! The GUSA Senate convened for their second meeting of the semester on Jan. 26 and the meeting was not without contention or copious legislation. Here’s what you need to know:
This week’s meeting was legislation-heavy, with senators introducing 10 pieces of legislation, voting on four of them, and passing three of those four. The executive team also provided updates on their work.
Executive team updates
GUSA Executive President Ethan Henshaw (CAS ’26) and Vice President Darius Wagner (CAS ’27) have been hard at work hiring directors to their executive staff, including filling their communications team. They have also begun meeting with university officials about building a swing on campus, the accessibility of affinity housing, and the possibility of establishing dedicated mental health days for students. They have also met with the dining committee in order to address the ongoing issues with the Epis Grubhub system. Finally, they announced that they were invited to join the search committee for a new librarian as Lauinger Library undergoes significant renovations.
Passed Legislation: Three whole pieces!!
1. A RESOLUTION to DEMAND Transparency in University Investments
- What will happen: This legislation demands that the university disclose the share of its investment holdings that are not public. This share is somewhere close to 90%, a figure that is reached by subtracting the publicly available investments from the size of the total endowment, Senator Meriam Ahmad (SFS ’26) told the Voice. Much of this part of the endowment is held in private equity and in hedge funds and is not subject to Georgetown’s existing Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) policy, according to Ahmad. The Act urges that the Committee on Socially Responsible Investing (CISR) work to make sure the SRI policy is applied to all investments.
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- This legislation passes on the heels of a similar resolution by the Georgetown University Law Center Student Bar Association.
- Why should I care? Over the last year, student protests around the country demanded that universities divest their endowments from companies that are based in or do business with the Israeli government, due to Israel’s decimation of Gaza. At Georgetown, Students for Justice in Palestine put out a community statement last spring demanding that the university divest its publicly available holdings and disclose its privately held ones. The resolution that GUSA passed, however, was expressly apolitical, as was both written in the text and reiterated throughout the debate on it. Senators repeatedly made clear throughout the debate that the resolution was not calling for any kind of divestment, rather was calling on the university to consistently apply its SRI policy to all holdings.
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- The resolution’s introduction also stirred a brief moment of spirited debate over abortion when Senator John DiPierri (SFS ’25) noted that this legislation was “the most pro-life bill we’ve ever passed, as human dignity includes the unborn” referring to the mention of “dignity” in the SRI policy. In response, Senator Olivia Mason (CAS ’26) noted that abortion is political and that the act was intended to be expressly apolitical.
- Georgetown, unlike other schools throughout the country, already has an SRI policy and has previously divested its holdings relating to fossil fuels.
- Otherwise notable information about this legislation: The resolution was introduced through an irregular procedure called “speaker’s discretion” meaning it could skip the normal introduction process through the Policy and Advocacy Committee, something that some Senators, including Senator Sam Lovell (CAS ’25), bemoaned. In response, other Senators noted that it was likely the CISR committee would be meeting in early February—the committee typically meets twice a year, once in the fall and once in late January or early February—and thus it was necessary to expedite the legislative process.
2. An ACT to Add Course Syllabi to the Course Evaluation Records
- What will happen: The legislation urges professors to include their course syllabi with the course evaluation records so that before registering for classes, students have the chance to view those syllabi. It also pushes professors to keep the syllabi updated on their GU Experience profiles. While the act doesn’t have a formal enforcement mechanism, it does help to elevate a common frustration among students, namely that it’s difficult to find course syllabi ahead of time.
- Why should I care? A lack of access to course syllabi before registration can make it feel like you’re choosing your courses blind. Not to mention that since professors place such a premium on being prepared for class, it feels as though they could return the favor by providing access to the syllabus ahead of registration.
3. An ACT to AMEND the Bylaws to Confer Upon the Senate of the Georgetown University Student Association the Ability to Recognize Individuals of Distinguished Character and Service
- What will happen: GUSA Senators will be able to nominate a student annually who they think deserves recognition for their “distinguished contributions to student life and campus welfare.” If two-thirds of the GUSA Senate votes in favor of the nominating petition, GUSA will bestow a certificate of recognition on the student. Per the bylaw amendment, GUSA Senators are unable to nominate themselves.
- Why should I care? Whether it is the students who went on hunger strike for living wages for facilities workers in 2008 or the students who organized the gender inclusive housing referendum last year, student activism has always been an integral part of pushing this community forward. Under this act, members of our community who demand better from the university will get public recognition for their hard work and dedication. Plus, who knows, maybe you’re someone who might be recognized by GUSA some day.
Editor’s note: Meriam Ahmad is a staff writer for the Voice.
