The General Assembly on Sept. 18 began with a conversation with Dean of Students Kyle Farley on the topic of recent staff cuts made after an external audit. The briefing was followed by a conversation about the Student Activity Zone being a student-exclusive space, which sparked a discussion.

The Student Government also proposed three new amendments to the Constitution concerning the Board of Appeals. Junior Class Representative Kelly Murphy’s proposals were critiqued by the current BoA. Finally, the Student Government announced several new initiatives, including changing the number of shuttles and times to the Corniche and Yas Mall in order to meet student demand.

Dean of Students Kyle Farley addressed concerns surrounding the departure of Deputy Dean of Students Donna Eddleman last year, saying that she is now working in the United States. Her departure came amid a review of the Student Life Department that found it to be top-heavy and in need of greater lower-level staffing. Associate Dean of Students Ken Grcich also adjusted roles at the university, taking over many of the roles held by Donna Eddleman in previous years.

After opening the floor for questions, Dean Farley listened to the concerns of Student Government Treasurer Cyril Cuda and others about the children using equipment in the Student Activity Zone. Dean Farley characterized the zone as a shared space akin to the dining hall. However, after multiple students voiced concerns, the Dean appeared to reconsider his position. Junior Kate Melville-Rea suggested that the children of staff be allowed to use Student Activity Zone equipment in exchange for student usage of the outdoor faculty pool.

The Dean of Students also announced plans for town halls for each class in the coming days.

After the Dean of Students left, Junior Class Representative Kelly Murphy introduced Keeping Up with Kelly, described as a fun and constructive way to update various discrepancies in the current Constitution. After the proposal of three amendments relating to the BoA to be voted on at the next GA, members of the BoA, led by Chief Vladislav Maksimov, disagreed. A statement was read by Maksimov concerning the potential flaws with the proposed amendments, focusing particularly on the amendments concerning the use of the word independently and Murphy’s proposal to have the GA overturn BoA decisions by a two-thirds majority. Murphy appeared flummoxed after the BoA’s remarks, exclaiming, “Why couldn’t you have said that in the email?” referring to an email asking for comments sent to the BoA last week by Murphy.

Lastly, Student Government touched briefly on various issues. The Information Technology Department is currently in transition and looking for new equipment vendors. Student Government is reviewing the prospect of having Student Interest Groups use trolleys on a semester-long basis. Student Government's new Officer of Communications Hafsa Ahmed also announced the return of the Student Government Snapchat account to cover events on campus.