By Jackson Chadwick
President Karine Kanj gaveled in the Student Government Association (SGA) Thursday afternoon, which, within just a short few minutes, passed a resolution recommending to the Suffolk administration that the upcoming general election day, and subsequent general election days, should be school holidays (for students and faculty).
The resolution was sponsored by Senators Meagan Dyer, Kostas Loukos, and Sabrina Liu, who all read the text of the resolution aloud to the rest of the student body. The authors of the resolution noted the importance and need for civic engagement among college students.
The resolution was the first passed this academic year, noted President Kanj. Vice President Lukas Phipps explained how resolutions typically take a longer time to pass the SGA, but how he was glad this moved forward without hassle.
Other topics of discussion at the meeting included the Suffolk CARES pantry. Present at the meeting were Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students Ann Coyne, and Janelle Grady of the Student Affairs Office who led a presentation on the responsibilities of the Student Affairs office, and provided information about the CARES pantry.
Grady noted that there has been a “197% increase in Suffolk CARES pantry usage” from the first to the second year of its operation. She encouraged students to donate items to the pantry, particularly non-perishable foods, as they have longer shelf dates. Just last year alone, about 22,000 items were donated to the pantry.