Senators held off on voting to propose an amendment to the University’s alcohol policy, after discussing plans to expand opioid overdose prevention with representatives of the Office of Substance Use Programs, Education and Resources (SUPER) during Tuesday’s Senate meeting. 

Although Senate Chair Alain Pérez ’23 stressed the importance of bringing the Resolution to Change Alcohol Policy to vote soon due to its direct impact on student life, senators ultimately agreed to delay the vote in favor of revising the broad requests within the bill. Senators proposed drafting additional resolutions to address separate aspects of the alcohol policy and to establish a working group to consider Greek life reform in the context of the controversial new policies.

Senators also punted a vote on a bill to implement a new program that aims to facilitate closer working relationships between senators and student advocacy groups.

Ralph Castro, director of SUPER, opened up a dialogue about strengthening on-campus drug prevention efforts. Senators and SUPER members began devising plans to work together to increase the frequency of Narcan trainings, which began in 2019, as well as expand the availability of Narcan and test strips. Narcan is an emergency treatment for opioid overdoses that can prevent fatalities if administered quickly enough.

Senators also talked to Residential and Dining Enterprises (R&DE) representatives about the logistics surrounding some common student concerns, such as housing and dining over breaks and reintroducing late-night dining hours. Executive Director of Dining Eric Montell said R&DE is working to reopen TAP on the weekends and extend late-night dining hours across campus, which has been difficult due to extensive staffing shortages.