The most recent Student Government Association (SGA) General Assembly meeting took place on Sept. 27 and highlighted many topics including a new bike program for campus, postponement of the “Muhlenbonfire” event, the new club president support group and ended with the approval of new clubs.
“Six groups came to SGA under the newly formatted club approval system where a group of potential clubs presented to SGA at once,” explained Emma Ash ‘24. “Each club was given ten minutes — five minutes for the pitch and five for questions and vote.”
The six groups that presented before the SGA board include Analog Photography, Coloring on Chew Street, Berg Women in Business, Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), Challah for Hunger and Chabad.
The Analog Photography Club was the first club approval of the night. Lorenzo Antigua ‘24 and Emilio Ramirez ‘24 touched on the importance of photography and its ability to capture the essence of life. The club’s mission statement is to educate students about how to use analog photography and develop film. The students requested $3500 for the club to purchase film cameras and bulk film to provide for their potential new members. There is a large expected turnout for the Analog Photography Club, with over 100 sign-ups during the Student Club Fair. The club was approved with a unanimous vote.
Coloring on Chew Street was the next club to be presented by Jem Berney ‘26, Jade Gambino ‘26 and Bailey Jones ‘26. The club’s mission statement was to create a safe space for students to express their creativity through coloring. Berney highlighted the importance that all students are welcomed, even the worst artist, because the club aims for creating an inclusive environment. Coloring on Chew Street plans to be involved in the upcoming Fahy Fall Festival on Oct. 14 to hand out coloring pages to attendees. They requested $400 from SGA for general supplies with plans to fundraise for the rest of the expenses. The student leaders have plans to collaborate with enACT to make coloring books from recycled materials. The club was approved with a unanimous vote.
Next was ‘Berg Women in Business, pitched by Abigail Scheidel ‘24. The goal of the club is to empower and support women pursuing careers in the business field. The students touched on business being a primarily male-dominated field, so ‘Berg Women in Business would serve as a support group for female-identifying students and their business endeavors. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEI&B) Chair Bethany Qian ‘25 mentioned that they previously attended meetings before when the club was under a different board. They stopped attending the meetings because they felt the space was neither inclusive nor welcoming. Following this, Qian asked the students how they would make the space more inclusive. The students responded that they will “partner with Dr. Nagey in the business department” and will “meet more weekly” to plan club activities. The club was approved with a unanimous vote.
HOSA was then presented by Rikaya Cheaves ‘27. HOSA is a global student-led pre-professional organization that is endorsed by the United States Department of Education. The club aims to empower and support young aspiring health professionals. The club will offer community awards for the College, scholarships, skill-building and shadowing medical professionals. The costs were determined to be varied depending on the locations and specificities of the events. Treasurer Evan Lipman ‘24 posed a question about how the club will differ from current health honors programs at the College. In response, the students explained that costs will range for the competitions. The club was approved with a varied vote.
Challah for Hunger, also known as MAZON (“food” or “substance” in Hebrew), was then pitched by Sophie Yellis ‘25. MAZON aims to develop community around the baking of challah, an early Jewish tradition and raise money to aid with hunger disparities. There was a chapter for this club in the past that was since disaffiliated, so Yellis’ goal was to reinstate a new chapter beginning this semester. The club was approved with a unanimous vote.
The last organization to be presented was Chabad by Sam Nulman ‘24. He had a group of participants in the assembly audience to support him in the pitch. Chabad was recently unable to maintain their off-campus location due to financial struggles. Nulman stated that Chabad would need a few thousand dollars to support their endeavors. The money from SGA would go to Sabbath meals and speakers. Chabad would not need any other support other than financial as the Religious and Spiritual Life is closely involved with Chabad. SGA representatives expressed confusion about the difference between Chabad and Hillel on campus. Nulman responded that Hillel has a student board and a director that provides programming, while Chabad is a family with home-made meals. Chabad plans to collaborate with Hillel to involve more students on campus. Chabad was approved with a varied vote.
A general applause from the audience and board of representatives concluded the meeting to celebrate the success of the new club approval process.
Additional reporting by Emma Ash ‘24, Lena Bromberg ‘25 and Felice Picchietti Cragin ‘25.
