Over the past two weeks Plattsburgh State’s Student Association saw the passage of the upcoming budget that allocates over 1 million dollars across various clubs, organizations and programs affiliated with the SA. Along with Wednesday night’s budgetary approval was the passage during the previous week’s Senate meeting of resolutions proposed by President Vrinda Kumar to express congratulations toward the achievement of the women’s hockey team in their championship victory, as well as the appreciation for custodial staff.
The second resolution of the semester, written and presented by Kumar, seeks to convey the appreciation for the College Custodial Staff and to establish a Custodial Staff Appreciation Day on Thursday, April 20. The resolution begins by highlighting the “continuous efforts of the custodial staff (who) are often overlooked and underappreciated.”
A theme consistent with President Vrinda’s advocating during her time as President. The resolution continues to commend the custodial staff where, “the facilities on campus have remained in superb condition.” and concluding, “the Student Association encourages all campus organizations, faculty, staff and Students to recognize their custodial staff members.” The resolution was passed unanimously within the Senate.
The third resolution, again written and presented by Kumar expresses the Student Association’s congratulations to the Plattsburgh women’s ice hockey team for winning the NCAA DIII National Championship. The resolution details the 4-3 overtime victory against Adrian College to win the fourth straight victory and sixth overall Championship victory. “The Student Association, and the student body as a whole, is incredibly proud of the women’s hockey team and expresses great pride in the recognition and honor that the team has brought to SUNY Plattsburgh.”
The resolution was approved unanimously and President Vrinda intends to present the team a framed copy of the resolution.
This past Wednesday, the Student Association deliberated on and proceeded to approve the Student Association’s upcoming budget. President Vrinda expressed her gratitude for the work the members of the Finance Board put into drawing up the proposal, specifically pointing to Vice President of Finance Julia Verdon who heads the committee. Kumar additional emphasized the “extremely fast” deliberation by the Senate during the approval process.
This represents the culmination of work undertaken by the financial board who navigated the difficulties in managing the universal budget cuts that PSUC as implemented to combat the growing difficulties in maintaining a sustainable fiscal policy to combat the growing problem of decreases in enrollment.
Kumar commented that “everyone’s budget was cut.” Yet she remains optimist as she emphasized that all representatives of the campus’ clubs and organizations’ voices were heard. The enrollment problem, as described by SA advisor and Vice President of Student Affairs Brian Hartman, originates from the decrease in populations within regions where PSUC historically draws students from.
This demographic change has resulted in a deficit in students across all stages of education on a stage wide region. PSUC has taken steps in combating this trend, increasing enrollment programs aimed at attracting international students as well as expanding the opportunities to pursue an online education. Despite all these initiatives SUNY Plattsburgh required pragmatic and immediate action to balance budgetary concerns.
Email Kyle Welling at news@cardinalpointsonline.com
