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I believe there are many little things that, when fixed, would together improve our experiences at Columbia. Because I am now a junior, I have had nearly three years to think about what aspects of our daily lives Columbia can work to improve. As I have written about in Spectator, too often, CCSC seems distant—even irrelevant—to many Columbia students. As your Student Services Representative, I will hold office hours to speak with any student about your ideas for how to make Columbia’s student services work better for you. Only by such measures of open communication can we learn from each other and ensure our voices are heard. After all, every one of us makes Columbia home, and every one of us deserves the best experience possible. Here are a few specific issues I will work on as your Student Services Representative:

 

Lawns: I believe the nearly constant closure of the lawns on campus is a tangible reason Columbia has a problem with school spirit. In a Spectator op-ed earlier this semester, I argued that Columbia must foster school traditions. But many possible traditions would involve students being allowed on the majority of the open space on campus. Every time it is beautiful outside and there are red flags on South Lawn, I think about the Frisbee games lost, and the hundreds of students studying in Butler instead of lying under the sun. We have seen the success of dining events such as Surf ‘n Turf as a way to unite campus. More opportunities such as that one will go a long way to improving school spirit. As your Student Services Representative, I’ll work with Columbia Facilities—and with administrators who have already been working hard on this issue—to improve our access to the green spaces on our campus.

 

CPS and Mental Health: Mental health is a serious and urgent issue on our campus. I will work with both administrators and students to search for ways student services can help us better care for one another. Currently, there is no anonymous way to notify an administrator or psychologist if you have a friend whose mental health you are worried about. Wait times to make appointments at CPS are far too long—often more than two weeks. Additionally, Nightline is currently only open until 3:00am. I will pursue keeping Nightline open until CPS opens in the morning; additionally, I will look into Columbia hiring a mental health professional who is available for emergency counseling overnight, in addition to the students who currently staff Nightline. I will also bring student organizations and the Columbia Mental Health Task Force to the table for these important conversations.

 

Internet Reliability: This semester, Internet connections on campus have often been unreliable. This has especially been a problem in Butler. As your Student Services Rep, I will work with CUIT to ensure the Internet on campus is reliable. Additionally, certain residence halls, including Woodbridge Hall—where I live this year—have unreliable or nonexistent cell phone service. I will work with Columbia Housing to ensure every Columbia student can answer a phone call in their room.

 

Staff Appreciation Week: I will work to bring back staff appreciation week, which was successful in November 2015 but has not happened since. This consisted of students giving “Columbia Appreciates You” stickers to the hard-working members of our community in Dining, Housing, Facilities, Public Safety, and Mail Services. Then students held a luncheon to thank such individuals for their hard work. Such efforts allow us to recognize the importance of one another and honor them accordingly, which are essential in building and celebrating our community.

 

Environment and Energy: In addition to having no air conditioning, many of the older residence halls on campus (McBain, Ruggles, Watt, Woodbridge, River, Wien, and Harmony) are often too hot during the winter. I will work with Columbia Housing to ensure the University does not waste energy overheating buildings. Additionally, many recycling bins on campus are not properly labeled and are often filled with trash, which means even the recyclables in those cans will be thrown out. I will work with Housing to ensure recyclables are actually being recycled. 

 

Club Recognition: Currently, the relationship between student clubs and groups that are recognized by the GBB (Barnard) and the ABC (Columbia) is often unclear. I have experienced this firsthand as the head of Third Wheel Improv, which is recognized by the GBB. For example, Barnard clubs are not allowed to table at the Columbia Activities Fair, and vice versa. Because nearly all of our clubs include both Columbia and Barnard students, these policies can make leading student groups unnecessarily complicated. As your Student Services Rep for CCSC, I will work with our fellow students at Barnard—along with the administrations of both schools—to ensure Columbia students are comfortable as members of Barnard clubs, and vice versa. I have already been working with both Barnard and Columbia administrators on this issue, and I will further these relationships as your Student Services Rep.

 

Space: Many Columbia clubs have trouble reserving adequate spaces on campus for meetings and rehearsals. This is especially difficult for GBB-recognized clubs, which cannot reserve Columbia residence hall lounges. As we all know, space on our campus is limited, and some classrooms are underutilized. For example, small student groups have no problem meeting in Hamilton classrooms, while performing arts groups often need auditoriums or larger spaces. As your Student Services Rep, I will work with University Events Management to improve access to the spaces we do have on campus and to prioritize the needs of individual student groups.

 

Dining: As your Student Services Rep, I will work to find ways to mitigate crowding in the dining halls, and to ensure the dining app and website accurately announce available food at the dining halls.

Bring back Staff Appreciation Week

 

Keep Nightline open all night

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Expand access to lawns on campus

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A transparent CCSC

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