As part of The Daily’s ASSU coverage, we will be posting highlights from each week’s Senate meeting.

• In his ASSU Executives update, Vice President Logan Richard ’15 reported that the Social Impact Recruitment and Networking Fair was well attended and the executives are looking forward to more opportunities in partnership with the Haas Center. “We had 278 students registered and 60 people in attendance representing 50 social impact organizations,” said postgraduate public service assistant director at the Haas Center for Public Service Leslie Garvin. “It was hugely successful – standing room only!”
• ASSU Senate Chair Ben Holston ’15 announced that he is going abroad this winter quarter. He will announce a proxy to serve in his place during his absence who must be “approved by a majority vote of the Senate.” The proxy will not hold the position as Senate Chair. Victoria Kalumbi ’15 will also be going abroad next quarter, but as the current by-laws stand, she is prohibited from doing so. According to ASSU by-laws, first-year senators can only go abroad during the spring quarter. A bill will be proposed to amend this by-law.
• Communications Committee Chair Luka Fatuesi ’17 announced that applications for the Senate Associates Program are due this Friday. Students from all class years are encouraged to apply. The application to apply can be found at tinyurl.com/senateassociate.
• Student Life Committee Chair Anthony Ghosn ’16 announced that his committee is exploring the possibility of surveying the student body via email to ask them questions centering around sexual assault. He also reported that his committee is working to expand financial aid services for international students.
• Senate Treasurer Eric Theis ’16 warned the Senate that current rate of allocating funds will cause them to exceed their soft cap $90,000 by week six. “We need to dramatically slow down the rate that we are spending,” Theis said. Parliamentarian John-Lancaster Finley ’15 reassured the Senate that each quarter is usually “front-loaded and back-loaded” with funding requests.
• The majority of the Senate meeting was devoted to the reconsideration of Kappa Alpha Theta’s funding request, which had been voted on and approved by the Senate last week. Jackson Beard ’17, Appropriations Committee Chair, who had voted in favor of the request at the appropriations’ initial vote, moved to reconsider that vote. The motion passed 4-3, sending the request to Senate for a re-vote and giving Kappa Alpha Theta two days notice to prepare a defense of its funding request. “We felt that the discussion that happened last week wasn’t sufficient,” Beard said. “We wanted to expand the issue to a broader Greek life. I don’t think anyone on appropriations intended for Theta to have their funding revoked. We just wanted the Greek community to be aware that this is a discussion we are having.” After much debate and input from Greek student members, the Senate voted unanimously to approve Theta’s funding for its philanthropy event Theta Breakers. Discussion about developing a set of criteria or guidelines for allocating funds to Greek organizations will continue next Tuesday at the Senate’s next meeting.