By Kassondra Granata
CCSU’s Vance Hall and eight Finance Committee recommendations were discussed at last week’s lengthy SGA meeting.
Dr. Laura Tordenti, the vice president of Student Affairs and Dr. Richard Bachoo, the chief administrative officer, spoke during the student affairs report about the recent decision to put the Vance renovations on hold.
“We just can’t afford to do the whole building this summer,” Tordenti said. “We don’t have the money. We would do the whole building if we could.”
There was concern expressed at last week’s Inter Residence Council (IRC) meeting from the Vance Executive Board. The hall said that they were disappointed and “misled” by the administration that their building would be finished this year. A member of the board said that the decision to put the renovations on hold would deter their return to live in Vance Hall in the fall.
Tordenti said that the new food service building will commence construction and a representative will be at the next IRC meeting to ask questions and suggestions of the general council. Sen. Simms Sonet asked Tordenti if the administration knew that the student body thought that Vance would be done by the summer.
“This is actually the first time hearing that students thought that,” Tordenti said.
Bachoo agreed with Tordenti and said that he was not aware that students expected that all renovations were to be completed.
“It is a huge project to think that it would be finished so quickly,” Bachoo said. Bachoo said that CCSU will be doing as many renovations as they can. He said that a goal is to complete two floors in Vance this summer.
“We are trying to get a floor done and by Christmastime we will get more work done,” Bachoo said. “We are not going to give you false hope. We can’t get all of it done this summer; it is impossible.”
According to Bachoo, University President Jack Miller said that CCSU will not shut down a residence hall until a new residence hall is built. Bachoo said that last week a team will be putting the new residence hall back online for selection through the summer into the fall.
During Committee Reports, the SGA allocated $250 for the Muslim Student Association to go toward their trip to North Carolina. The senate approved the PRIDE line-item change and approved the neuroscience base budget request for $200. The senate allocated Deuces Wild $400 for printing and refreshments and allocated the Biology Club $5000 for their conference trip.
The senate voted down on denying the Design Club’s contingency request and denied the Accounting Society’s contingency request.
An original motion to allocate $1750 to TGFI for a trip was changed by Sen. Ryan Baldassario to reduce the allocation to only $830, striking out the allocation of hotels. Sen. Bobby Berriault tried to amend the motion to give $300 to the group but that amendment failed. The motion to allocate TGFI $830 passed.
