The Graduate Student Council (GSC) announced dates for upcoming information sessions on finding off-campus graduate housing and approved the appointment of a new Nominations Commission (NomCom) at its first meeting of the quarter. The council also discussed if the NomCom had the authority to nominate graduate students’ spouses to the Graduate Housing Advisory Committee (GHAC).
GSC Co-Chair and Ph.D. candidate in microbiology and immunology Terence Theisen announced that the council would be updated on parking and a project for new graduate housing on Feb. 1. On the same day, the GSC will also hold an information sessions for students searching for off-campus housing.
The GSC approved a bill to appoint a new NomCom, which will be tasked with nominating student representatives to University committees.
Outgoing NomCom co-chair and Ph.D. candidate in the civil and environmental engineering department Kate Gasparro informed the council that the GHAC has asked NomCom if it would consider nominating spouses who are not students to its committee. The GHAC is currently structured to include representatives from singles, couples and family housing on-campus and one representative for off-campus students.
Gasparro noted that she has heard spouses have their own distinct concerns about housing.
However, GSC member and Ph.D. candidate in Iberian and Latin American Cultures Gabriela Badica has noticed that, at open houses, housing staff will write down any feedback, including from spouses. Badica is also community associate, which is roughly equivalent to an undergraduate residential associate.
The GSC will consider allowing the Constitutional Council to deliberate on the NomCom’s authority to nominate non-students.
Due to Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the GSC Funding Committee’s weekly meeting has been moved to Jan. 17 at 7 p.m.
The Thai Student Organization (TSA) and the Graduate Students of Applied Physics had funding for events approved. The latter group will be organizing a colloquium “Programming: Medium for Clarifying Ideas,” featuring MIT professor Gerry Sussman on Jan. 17, while the TSA will hold a welcome back party this upcoming Saturday.
Finally, Sean Means ’18 clarified for the council that open office hours with Stanford administrators are for graduate students as well. A schedule of office hours may be found at http://assu.stanford.edu/senate-business/.
Contact Miguel Samano at msamano ‘at’ stanford.edu.