PSGA Blog Number 18: More Spending, New Yearbook Service, and Culture Shock Updates

The PSGA met on Wednesday, April 8 and approved several funds proposals resulting in a total of $6,850 to be taken from the general reserves. The Senate also said they were working to reallocate funds to alleviate the Culture Shock deficit created by Major Events Coordinator Jeff Levin’s underestimation of expenses, saying they would rather use the general reserves as a last resort.

Students of Caribbean Ancestry were permitted $3,000 from the general reserves to fund performer Ricky Blaze to perform at the club’s fashion show on April 18 in the dining hall. SOCA said they approached Levin earlier this year to try and secure Blaze as a Culture Shock act, and were turned down as Levin said it did not satisfy an audience on campus. They also said they approached General Programming Coordinator Becky Sellinger, but were denied because of the GPC’s depleted funds.

Levin said he spoke with SOCA about securing Ricky Blaze for Culture Shock, but never secured the act. “We took a meeting the [day after they suggested Blaze], I gave them $2,000 to find me an artist, and [SOCA] never got back to me,” said Levin.

Senator Alexander Rossin said the PSGA has been paying for Levin’s mistakes all semester, and suggested that funding the artist might be problematic. According to Chair of the Senate Russell Zambito, SOCA was one of the only clubs recognized by the PSGA that has made efforts at fundraising to further fund its events.

The Office of Student Life was also given $3,000 to fund new furniture in the commuter lounge in Campus Center North from Butler Woodcrafters, the same vendor that provides all furniture in the campus residences. The Senate also allotted $850 to WPSR radio station to fund Pre-Shock, which will include headliner, Dufus, moving lights for one of the three stages, and large puppets.

The PSGA also agreed to reimburse funds taken from the Public Art Committee to decrease the Culture Shock deficit earlier this month. The funds were originally taken under the understanding that the committee would not be using them.

PSGA President Joe Matoske said the committee planned on using the money to implement new murals around campus and to provide other artists with stipends for their work. To help replace the lost funds, 10 senators agreed to forfeit their senator initiatives of nearly $300 to fund the Culture Shock deficit.

The Senate approved further changes to the future PSGA Constitution proposed by the Steering Committee; specifically adding changes to the MEC and GPC positions. Additions included having the MEC and GPC maintain records of official contract offers, submitting weekly reports to the future Student Activities Coordinator and the Legislative Branch, and placing disclaimers on their e-mails stating they are not binding contracts. They also voted in favor of the Steering Committee’s proposal to remove lines adding powers to the Judicial Board from the constitution’s removal from office proposition.

In his executive report, Levin said he was going over his budget to find funds that can be eliminated to reduce the Culture Shock deficit, and that he was in favor of reimbursing the Public Art Committee after their funds were taken from them. According to Levin, Murphy’s Law, Drake, and The Hood Internet were among the final acts to be confirmed for this year’s Culture Shock, and The Source magazine would also be in attendance in producing a two-page spread covering Drake’s performance. Levin launched his official Culture Shock website earlier this week.

Levin said Red Bull would be setting up tents at Culture Shock and may also participate in his tentative plans for a liquor tent. When asked why he moved forward with the plans for a liquor tent after the Senate expressed its displeasure towards it, Levin said the consumption of liquor would be monitored, limiting two shots per person for the entire two-day festival. Levin also said he would be implementing a media services tent in which major media outlets could interview artists.

CoCOaS Kevin Collymore announced that he was running for PSGA President, and helped propose a yearbook service to become active next year. The Senate passed his proposal with the understanding that the costs of the service would be minimal and only for those who wished to pay for it. Senator Dennis O’Brien of Fort Awesome said the service involved no risk, and the PSGA has approved larger sums of money before with higher risk initiatives.

Senator Kylie Jane Wakefield of Humanities said she understood that some students might be afraid of the fee, but thought the yearbook would be a cherished tradition at Purchase.

Editor in Chief of The Brick, Amber van Natten attended the meeting to voice concerns of the Senate’s recent disapproval of Matoske’s proposal to place security at the gates of the campus between Thursday and Sunday evenings. Putting much of the blame on off-campus visitors, she said Purchase students might be disillusioned to think they “live in a bubble,” despite the high-crime areas surrounding the campus. “As senators, you should be protecting the student body and that’s not happening,” she said.

Matoske said the security additions were a College issue and would possibly be discussed at the next Civic Actions Committee meeting.

Matoske said he attended a Service Board meeting in collaboration with John Esser and discussed implementing a media service space on campus. Matoske also reported that the College Senate met and discussed revisions to the security camera policy, saying the committee was not completely in favor of all the changes made.

According to his executive report, Matoske said Purchase College President Thomas Schwarz held a Strategic Planning address and “discussed the future of Purchase as a school that will be more designed to allow interdisciplinary studies and collaborative learning.”

In her executive report, Sellinger said last week’s Zombie Prom was a success, attracting an estimated 500 students to the event. She also said she and Jay Alt helped draft the amendment to the constitution that was passed by the Senate regarding the GPC and MEC positions.