As the Epi’s Ignite queue began forming and frenetic freshmen filed into Lau 2 for a “productive” Sunday study session, the Georgetown University Student Association (GUSA) met for its 7th Meeting of the session to discuss updates on past legislation, propose new legislation, and clarify election timelines. But what actually happens inside a Senate meeting, and why should students care? The Voice breaks down how GUSA’s fortnightly Senate meetings work and what the decisions mean for us.
Executive updates
Ahead of the upcoming GUSA elections in October, president Darius Wagner (CAS ’27) said that any members interested in running for GUSA presidency can reach out to him for more information on the role, and explained what campaigning looks like.
Additionally, three staff members in the Center for Student Engagement (CSE) have left recently, including its former director Patrick Ledesma. Wagner shared that GUSA liaisons would communicate to the clubs they work with regarding CSE’s staffing, and Erika Cohen-Derr, the Associate Vice President in Student Affairs, will advise the GUSA executive in the interim.
Wagner said the GUSA executive is planning to meet with Georgetown’s Chief Operating Officer David Green to discuss two issues. Firstly, GUSA aims to discuss President Peñalver’s Hoya Faster initiative, focused on removing administrative burdens. The other issue to be discussed is re-negotiating the Just Employment Policy (JEP).
This petition comes a year after Georgetown planned to terminate its contracts with Georgetown University Transportation Shuttle (GUTS) drivers and outsource to third-party contractor Abe’s Transportation. Following student activism, Georgetown announced that GUTS drivers could remain student employees, while the contractor took over management, infrastructure, and equipment for the GUTS program. Now, the petition calls for Georgetown to raise campus workers’ minimum wage, provide accommodations during inclement weather, and for the university to stop workplace surveillance.
In other news, Wagner said the executive is working to improve the GUTS bus tracking system by integrating it into a reliable app form. The current bus tracking system is available as a website or through an app called TransLoc, which is currently out of order.
Finally, the GUSA executive is planning a fundraiser for Medstar program Safe Babies Safe Moms, with more details to come next week, according to Wagner.
Speaker Updates
GUSA will be hosting its fall elections from October 7th-21st, and voting is set to conclude on the 23rd. Senate races will begin on the 14th, with 7 freshmen and 4 at-large seats up for grabs. Info sessions for those interested in the Senate will be held soon, with more details to come on GUSA socials!
An application for Executive Officer will be available soon per GUSA bylaws. Speaker of the Senate Cameran Lane (CAS ’28) said that Storm Dahlberry (MSB ’29) is currently at the top of the short list after serving as an aide for the past semester.
Elections
James Nichols-Worley (CAS ’27) was voted in to serve as Vice Chair of the Ethics and Oversight Committee. The Committee’s main functions include working to monitor the attendance of Senators and Officers, preparing conflict and mediation plans among members, and enforcing GUSA bylaws.
Other Updates
Zadie Weaver (CAS ’28), the Policy and Advocacy Committee (PAC) Chair, and Ignacio Loaiza Sandoval (CAS ’28) met with Joseph Ferrera and Aubrey Guthrie regarding passed legislation to construct a memorial of the College Burial Ground. Ferrera is the Senior Vice President for Strategic Engagement and Senior Advisor to the president at Georgetown, and Guthrie is the Director of Presidential Communications and Community Engagement.
The act calls for a memorial for a burial ground that was formerly College Ground, a segregated cemetery that held the graves of free and enslaved Black Georgetown residents. A fraction of the buried bodies were removed in 1953 for the university’s expansion, but construction of Pedro Arrupe, S.J. Hall found human remains that were left unaccounted for and currently sit beneath the Reiss Science Building and Arrupe Hall.
Weaver said that she plans to meet with President Peñalver and create a memorial committee including other student leaders in the coming weeks. The memorial will plan to be erected in April, ten years after Georgetown publicly apologized for its sale of 272 enslaved individuals in 1838.
In addition, PAC’s dining subcommittee will meet with dining providers in the coming weeks as Georgetown’s contract with its current catering services provider Aramark is set to expire in 2027. GCWR has urged Georgetown not to resign with Aramark, citing its alleged exploitation of incarcerated workers.
Passed Legislation
- An ACT to AMEND the Bylaws to Specify How Senators May Resign
- What will happen? The amendment grants Senators the ability to resign their seats with one week’s notice by informing both the Ways and Means Committee and Election Commission Chair.
- Why should I care? The bill was passed to correct an absence of specificity in current bylaws, which lack the language to address resignations from the Senate.
- An ACT to Reform SNAPs
- What will happen? The act allows GUSA to work with the Office of Neighborhood Life to reconsider proactive Student Neighborhood Assistance Program (SNAP) shutdowns and propose a system for students to get permission from their neighbors to host events.
- Why should I care? The SNAP team proactively identifies and responds to student houses that “may raise concerns” to enforce campus and neighborhood safety. Students who live in off-campus housing could face potential “SNAPsing” for excessive noise or disruptive gatherings, even when they have gotten permission from neighbors, according to Senator Sienna Lipton (CAS’ 27).
