SGA Meeting 11/6
Absent: Alice Fischer, Aksheyeta Suryanarayan, Saba Quadir, Lily Scott.
What should YJ’s weekly address be called?: … : o, “The Word” (working on it)
Announcements
Courtney Pinkerton ’12: There will be a Travel Safetea COPS tea Thursday the 17th in front of Canaday. This is an advance invitation.
Priya Saxena ’12: The Honor Board is having an open community meeting Nov 17th before Miss Representation. There will be stress balls. The art club and the honor board are hosting an event about respecting space in Arnecliffe coming up. There’s going to a conflict managing workshop on Sunday the 13th, which some of you may have received an email from Vanessa Christman about. If you’re interested in going please contact Vanessa.
Mae Carlson ’12: Elizabeth Olecki made Mawrk Notes for this month. Please come up and get a copy to post somewhere – especially dorm presidents.
YJ ’12: This Wednesday there’s a Writing for Graduate School event in the writing center from 1pm to 2pm. They’ll talk about the process of applying to graduate school and getting published and there will be dessert. This Friday to Sunday is the Seven Sisters Conference. We have a 12 member delegation. We received about 40 applications – which was a great turn out. We’re going to use hash tag seven sisters 2011 and be tweeting about the event while we’re there. November 15th is the last community forum where we have the chance to talk about what we want to see change at Bryn Mawr. Assembly members should/must go. It was a lot of fun last time. It will be 2:30pm to 4pm. November 17th is the Miss Representation movie screening in Thomas Great Hall at 7:00 pm. It’s about how women are portrayed in the media and what that means for women’s leadership in reality and the relevance of women’s colleges these days. It’s gotten a lot of good feedback from critics. The event is open to TriCo faculty staff and students
Your Two Cents
Sarah Lovegren ’14: Civic engagement office wanted me to poll you guys to see if there would be interest in weekend and trips over breaks.
Irene Shin ’13: Can you give us specific examples of trips?
Sarah Lovegren ’14: They were thinking about having a trip to Haiti. In the past the CEO has had to partner with other places to sponsor trips, but they want to do their own.
Emily Kirchner ’12: What was the administration’s reason for turning that down?
Sarah Lovegren ’14: The decision was that they would evaluate it again after they received student input.
Post Office Discussion:
YJ ’12: Yi Wang had an idea for a plenary resolution concerning the post office last semester that could still possibly be a plenary resolution next semester. But we wanted to have a discussion with assembly first get idea for what the process is now.
Valencia Powell (Manager of Office Services: Copy Center & Post Office): We have four carriers who arrive at the post office at 8-8:30. We sort and label the packages, and put numbers on packages, and create receipts to be placed in the mailbox. We have to scan so we can tell whether we got package at the college then we label them and put them on the shelf. Between 10:30 and 11 UPS comes and leaves all of their packages and we go through the same process. We sort all the letter mail for students, faculty, and staff – everything marked 101 North Merion Avenue comes through that post office. After UPS comes and we get that straightened out then we go to placing mail in the mailboxes and answering the window. The window opens at 10 so you can get packages and stamps. Fed Ex comes later in the afternoon. We receive flowers and Fed Ex packages 2—3 times a day. During the normal year, everything is fine but at the beginning of the semester the post office is small. We received 6,000 packages last year and had to see that all got where they were supposed to be. This is a reminder to put your box number if you’re getting mail or if someone’s sending you mail. It takes time to locate your box number and takes less time when the box number is already on there. Don’t use your nicknames because those names aren’t on file. When we go to look it up during the normal year it’s smooth but at the beginning of the first semester it’s a lot. At the beginning of the second semester it’s not as bad. We close at 3:30 in the afternoon. If anyone has flower delivery, knock on the back door for flowers because we don’t want them to die.
Jerry Berenson: I’m the Chief Administration Officer. Last year the post office received 6000 packages which is at least 3 or 4 times as many as we had 2 or 3 hears ago. The post office is staffed for the regular year. We get students to work and work over time, but it’s hard when you have an operation that has that kind of peak period. The reason for the huge increase is because people stopped buying books at bookstore and started buying them from Amazon, which is half the reason we outsourced the bookstore. We understand that Amazon is cheaper, and we did introduce a rental policy and included an option for electronic book sales. We outsourced because Follett has the technology and scale to invest in a nationwide rental policy.
Val Powell: I realize many of you have your cell phones and can track packages. The package might here but there might not be a slip in your mailbox. It might have been delivered but still has to be processed. It has to be scanned and put on shelf and you have to get your notification in order to pick it up.
Emily Kirchner ’12: Thanks for everything you do in the post office. Is there the same volume of packages at the beginning of the semester in the winter or is it mostly in the first semester?
Val Powell: There’s more in second semester than regular year, but it’s always more in the first semester.
Blair Smith ’12: What’s the plenary resolution?
Yi Wang ’14: The plenary resolution I would propose would deal with how we solve those problems mentioned especially in peak days. I talked with the manager of the post office and one of the members. We have a lack of storage space and lack time to process packages. My resolution would contain the following points 1.) Explain working procedures to all students so that they understand the difficulties that post office is facing so they will not get frustrated 2.) Try to find a time to extend the hours 3.) Try to find substitute storage space. There is the physical problem of the lack of space in the building 4.) Find email notification system. That is to say that after the package is on shelf, instead of printing out a notification, students would receive an email. 5.) Hold meeting like this to inform students of the problem of packages not getting picked up.
Adelyn Kishbaugh ’12: Email is a good idea in theory, but it’s too much extra work for post office because already so busy.
Jerry Berenson: We would have to investigate if we could find a program to do it.
Yi Wang ‘14: Penn has one, but it’s a huge university so they to have email. My dean that the post office doesn’t connect to same system so it does not have access to Virtual Bryn Mawr. It would be more work to email.
Natalie Zamora ’14: Library has an emailing technique to tell you when a movie is ready from Swat, for example.
Jerry Berenson: Our information services department would have to get a program and get programmers to work at the college and a write program that would share the interface with college email system. There’s a long list of projects that they’re working on.
Irene Shin ‘13: It wouldn’t solve the problem of the increase during peak hours
Mae Carlson ’12: Have you considered hiring more student workers who could stay later? If there is overflow from the dining hall, working in the post office could be one of the jobs for freshman.
Jerry Berenson: We need more people before school starts, but freshman are already here. It’s something we could talk about with transition of student employment to the human resources department. It’s a good idea. If dinging services has a sufficient number of students, there’s no reason we can’t make the post office a part of possible jobs for freshman since they’re here a week early.
Emily Kirchner ’12: Have you done any student polling about how many people want to mailroom system to be adjusted?
Yi Wang ‘14: I haven’t done a specific survey, but I did collect 75 signatures.
Emily Kirchner ’12: Out of 1,300 students.
YJ ’12: 75 signatures is all you need for a plenary resolution and since that’s what she was planning on doing there was no reason for her to do more.
Lee McClenon: What short-term solutions are you looking for and how would you like SGA to help you with this?
YJ ’12: They’re here to ask for suggestions and explain how the post office works.
Jerry Berenson: We’re always looking for ways to improve things. We added second computer and second scanner and two storage containers for large packages. Packages were stored in the basement of Merion and we had to go all the way over there and back, so the storage containers helped to speed things up. We’re always looking for ways to improve hours and student employment options.
Sarah Lovegren ’14: Would you take volunteers during peak hours?
Jerry Berenson: We’re happy to pay you. There’s a certain amount of training. It’s hard to take people off the street. The real volume starts before school starts.
Jess Martzall ’12: The freshman idea doesn’t work because they come to do customs week. They have a full schedule they can’t work those weeks. Having some kind of system with student employment over the summer that would allow people to come in early would be helpful.
Kendra Kelly ‘13: If you have set job, you’re allowed to move in early.
Blair Smith ‘12: I would recommend the same thing.
Emma Rosenblum ’14: I know that there are other jobs where you can come back early to work, would that be at all feasible for mailroom employees?
Jerry Berenson: That’s a great idea. We will pursue it.
Val Powell: We can’t have but so many students. The normal people who work there and the students would make it crowed.
Jerry Berenson: We didn’t used to get as many packages. When the mailroom was built, this was a much smaller college no one was ordering from Amazon. A real problem is the physical space.
Aya Martin Seaver ’13: I have two questions. First, if the campus center is being re-envisioned as a space, is there any interest in reshaping the mailroom?
Jerry Berenson: We’ve looked at it, but where? With out eliminating the mailboxes, there’s no room to expand.
Aya Martin Seaver ‘13: Is the student activities office already claimed?
Jerry Berenson: The reorganization of spaces is not contiguous. There are a lot of different needs. Val’s office is in Taylor, not here, so we have put dibs on that space. There’s also a need another conference room.
Aya Martin Seaver ‘13: When the hours of the library were being changed the administration felt they needed to see that there was student support. Is this being brought to SGA because admin feel they need to hear from students before they change the hours?
Jerry Berenson: We haven’t considered hours and we’re not sure how we would staff it other than it’s staffed now. The library is mostly student employees, but we would be reluctant not to have a regular staff member in the post office while it’s open.
Val Powell: When the students from last year returned, I asked if they would be willing to come back in the evening just in the beginning of the semester and they said no, they didn’t have time, they had to study, and do things for their classes.
YJ ’12: Thanks to Jerry, Val, and Yi for coming.
Plenary Resolution Update
Priya Saxena ‘12: The Bi-Co liaison resolution passed. There hasn’t been a need for a Bi-Co liaison yet, but Jacob at Haverford and I have been in touch quite a bit this semester. It’s been going well. Thank you for passing it.
YJ ’12: The reorganization of BMCS, the addition of a res-co fund, and the change of the Board of Trustees rep to an appointed position have all be changed in the constitution.
Composting Research and Development at Bryn Mawr
Daniele Arad-Neeman ‘14, Karen Leitner ‘14, and Nora Schmidt ‘12
Daniele Arad-Neeman ‘14: We’re looking seeing what would be most efficient in terms of money and labor for composting.
Karen Leitner ’14: We’re considering on campus and off campus options. We have been looking into machines, which would bypass Merion Township zoning laws, since it would be a vessel.
Nora Schmidt ’12: We have been talking to Philly Compost and other areas we can transport our waste to. We’re looking to reorganize our contract with trash facilities. We’re having a three day trial the week after next of composting. It will be at Erdman and Haffner so we can see the weight and the volume of the compost we produce.
Karen Leitner ‘14: Our goal is to get numbers. We did one day in Erdman before. We want to get a better gage for what kind of system would work on campus.
Daniele Arad-Neeman ’14: If you want to help its’ just three days and would only take an hour two hours. Come talk to Karen after the meeting. We want to know what you think and will keep you updated on how the trial goes. Any questions?
Lee McClenon ’14: Is the composting program aimed at post consumer waste or is it going to be moved into the kitchen?
Daniele Arad-Neeman ’14: We’re looking at both of these things. It’s about how many people we have sorting things. We don’t want to create more work for dining hall employees.
Adelyn Kishbaugh ’12: Will you pass a around a sheet with days and times to sign up?
Daniele Arad-Neeman ’14: We have a google doc, which is in an activites email. You can sign up there or come talk to Karen and sign up now.
Student Curriculum Committee
Sharan Mehta ’12 and Sarah Theobald ’12
Sarah Theobald ’12: We had a forum last Wednesday to discuss the requirements that just came into place this year and we wanted to give you the information we shared at that forum, as well as the minutes from forum which will be posted on the SGA blog. The new requirements are called modes of inquiry and apply to the class of 2015 and beyond. They try to suggest that it’s a requirement that gets people to go beyond in their own education in the classroom and will help students practice ways of thinking that will be useful after after BMC.
Inquiry into the past involves studying cultures, people, and institutions on their own terms while avoiding looking at past through the lens of the present. Scientific investigation applies to typical science courses but it’s more about learning by doing. Most of these classes have labs, but not all of them. This requirement involves more than the things that happen in Park. Critical interpretation encompasses courses that study works and objects and through close reading. Professor Gallup-Díaz has a course on pirates. This year, since it is a critical interpretation course, he’s re-imagined it. All documentss are from that time period and are written by pirates or about pirates. This is a great example of what’s happening with new curriculum and how faculty are interacting with it. Cross cultural analysis involves looking at patterns of behavior across space – not an explicit comparison between the two. Students must now take one course in each of the requirements to graduate, as well as E-Sem – an 8-10 person seminar which involves close reading and textual analysis, focused discussion, and the development of cogent writing. Students must have satisfactory score on quantitative assessment they take over the summer, must have 8 units physical education, and have 2 units of a foreign language.
Irene Shin ’13: This is happening now?
Sarah Theobald ’12: It was voted on last spring and applies to 2015 and every class after.
Irene Shin ’13: Why did they pass this?
Sarah Theobald ’12: The curriculum committee was in process of revising the graduation requirements for three years in order to encourage a liberal arts experience and think about how Bryn Mawr fits into the world at this time, especially after the middle states assessment. They considered eliminating all the requirements like Amherst and Brown, or having a really stringent set of courses that everyone would take. Neither would be spirit of our educational goals. They’re looking for way to make it more about learning, not about facts.
Ali Raeber ’13: I’ve heard every senior now has a capstone project? Does every major now have to do a thesis?
Sarah Theobald ‘12: The capstone project can vary and take a variety of forms – like a Praxis III course or independent research.
Emma Rosenblum ’14: Is this going to stay as is for the next however many years?
Sharan Mehta ‘12: The curriculum could adapt, but this change was made to be permanent.
Sarah Theobald ’12: There are kinks we’re working out. There will be a review when we have data in about 2 years and can see if people being more broad in the things they’re choosing to study and if they are approaching the curriculum differently than they were in the past. Right now, we don’t have a lot of data.
Sharan Mehta ’12: The faculty is really interested in following up on a semester basis with students and having them evaluate the changes.
Elizabeth Held ‘12: The PE requirement is different?
Sarah Theobald ‘12: Wellness is worth more than it once was. You now need 6 PE classes besides wellness and the swim test.
Amanda Beardall ‘12: How does this work within the Tri-Co?
Sarah Theobald ‘12: The requirements have to be fulfilled at BMC. Language requirements could be fulfilled at Haverford. There is a discussion about the ways that Penn classes are taught at language learning center. They’re at night and taught by native speakers. They won’t count. It’s now a work requirement not a proficiency requirement, meaning you can’t test out of it. They’re trying to make it so everyone has to do the work of learning a foreign language.
Nkechi Ampah ’15: In wellness, they told us it was 6 PE classes not including wellness and swim test.
Sarah Theobald ‘12: wellness is two credits so that counts as part of the 8.
Emma Condy ’12: Was there a problem with the language learning center at Penn? I took at class through it and didn’t have a bad experience. Why did it change?
Sarah Theobald ‘12: The language department at BMC doesn’t feel the experience is comparable to the courses taught here. It’s not a problem with learning from a native speaker, and you can still take those classes but it won’t count towards the foreign language requirement
Emma Condy ’12: Maybe they should reconsider the amount of foreign language classes that are offered since there aren’t enough.
Sharan Mehta ’12: There’s a balance between classes you take for your own personal interest, but the changes are looking to create variation in a program of study.
Ali Raeber ’13: Will all courses fall under one of the new modes of inquiry?
Sarah Theobald ’12: The requirements are about teaching a course in a particular way with a particular intention and focus. Not all courses will be able to fall into one of those categories, but it’s ok that not everything has to be categorized.
Natalie Zamora ’14: Were these requirements presented to freshman before they applied?
Sarah Theobald ’12: They were voted on in April and as soon as they were approved they were published.
Elizabeth Held ’12: It was talked about it at accepted students day.
Sarah Theobald ‘12: Admissions was made aware that there were conversations about curricular innovation for at least a year.
Sharan Mehta ‘12: Other things we wanted to touch on were: the curriculum committee has been talking about furthering communication with Haverford regarding the modes of inquiry. The 360 course work for next semester surrounds the issue of sustainable cities. There is now an official family and child studies minor. Community college transfer initiative is in progress right now. There’s a discussion about credit/no-credit. It’s being kept as it is.
Sarah Theobald ’12: If there is anything in particular you would want us to bring up or if you have an idea, you can tell us now or send us in an email.
Big Cheese Hot Topics
YJ ’12: Thank you so much. Before we move on to old and new business, I wanted to review Big Cheese hot topics. We broke up into small groups and talked about what we wanted change. This is the list I came up with:
- Financial wellness of college and financial aid.
- Event spaces
- The community college transfer program.
- Printing
- Equal pay plenary resolution.
- Heating policy
- Green space on campus, trash cans, and a possible mural next to the turf.
Nora Chong ’12: I wanted to suggest talking about diversity in terms of what the admissions department is doing in terms of aggressively recruiting students from various backgrounds and what’s being done to prepare students for the rigorous academic at Bryn Mawr.
Natalie Zamora ‘14: Does anything about classes getting bigger have to do with financial aid?
YJ ’12: That’s a myth. The classes stay the same size each year.
Adelyn Kishbaugh ’12: What’s the relationship of students moving off campus to the finances of the college and what’s the cost/benefit of that?
Aya Seaver Martin ’13: A problem is that there’s a lack of a point person to go to about your specific aid application.
Priya Saxena ’12: You get assigned a counselor, but it’s not presented very well.
Sharan Metha ’12: We should Preident McAuliffe’s office hours and how they could be revised.
Adelyn Kishbaugh ‘12: Will cheese hats make a return?
YJ ’12: I will bring it up, but they might be hard to convince.
Irene Shin ‘13: Why is it called the Big Cheese Forum?
YJ ’12: It’s just a phrase.
Old Business
YJ ’12: The Plenary committee and the E. Board met to plan for spring plenary. Brunch isn’t going to be served at plenary. Erdman will open, and Haffner will be closed. At 12:30 Erdman closes and everyone moves from Erdman to Goodheart. We will advertise that plenary should go from 12:30 to 2. The resolutions will be presented week a before the Sunday of plenary. People will be able to make pledges and there will be an education campaign leading up to plenary.
Sarah Theobald ’12: If plenary is not finished by whatever what is advertised, what will happen?
YJ ’12: We will make it clear that it’s an estimated time.
Sharan Mehta ’12: The ding hall is opening at same time?
YJ’12: Yes, but Haffner not open at all until dinner.