The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Student Association (SA) meeting on Oct. 27, began with a guest speaker, Wisconsin State Senator Brad Pfaff. 

Senator Pfaff began his time on the floor with a speech about education and his time in the UW-System. “Education is key,” said Pfaff. “It is about our future, it is about making sure that we have a workforce and an economy to work for all of us. Education is the best way to do that.” 

Brad Pfaff spoke about his thoughts on specific issues, such as making higher education more accessible and affordable, keeping broadband universal and ubiquitous, and a more affordable transportation system. He did not provide any specific plans to obtain these goals, but he did say that he was more than welcome to host students at his office for questions and discussion. 

SA vice president K.C. Kayo then opened the floor to the senators for a discussion. Senator Ryan Sperling asked Senator Pfaff 

“Climate change is a very real threat for us in Wisconsin, and as someone who is invested in that, we know that shifting away from fossil fuels is one of the best ways to combat climate change, and biking is one of the best ways to replace cars and fossil fuels. So what do you think about the current biking infrastructure that Wisconsin has, and what are you doing to make Wisconsin cities more accessible to bicycles?” 

“We have to do more,” said Pfaff. “We have to do more even when it comes to housing development policy. We have houses in cul de sacs that don’t even have sidewalks. To say anything about making a bike path like that, this is an all-hands-on project.” Pfaff said that projects like bike paths are the job of the community and that he values the formidability of communities to come together and create change. 

College of Science and Health Senator Sarah Fleegal asked Pfaff what he was planning on doing to support family farms and assist new farmers in entering the industry in Wisconsin. 

“Number one, we want to increase farmer profitability. How do we do that? We create new markets. I’m all for local and national markets.” Pfaff says he would like to connect farmers with new vendors that will help sustain them, such as the cafeterias of large businesses like Gunderson. He says that connecting farmers with markets is difficult because while the farming industry and the markets are large, the essential middlemen are not as abundant as necessary for the connections between the two to be equal. Therefore Pfaff wants to increase the connections between farmers and businesses like packagers and distributors. 

For more information on the question and answer session, contact president K.C. Kayo. 

After the discussion with Senator Pfaff, vice president Kayo invited University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Student Body President Will Scheder to the floor to speak on a proposal. President Scheder began his presentation by addressing the lack of a collective student body to represent the UW-System. 

help the system and the United States as a whole, and wants to bring everybody together utilizing a system-wide student representation body. “I think it’s important to organize to give our voice a presence as well,” said Scheder. 

President Scheder said that beginning in 1950 there was a UW-System body, called the United Council of UW Students, but it was disbanded due to a complication with funding in 2013. This council is responsible for implementing State Law 36095, which states that university student bodies have the right to assemble and govern without administration intervention, a law that is unique to Wisconsin. 

President Scheder said that the ideal correspondence method for the group would be virtual monthly meetings, and one in-person meeting a semester. To make this plan a reality, president Scheder would need a representative from each of the UW-System schools and grants for funding. In the future, Scheder says he hopes to get a law repealed that restricts such a committee from utilizing student segregated fees. 

Vice president Kayo then opened the floor to committee members to give reports. UWL anticipates the addition of a dance minor for the 2022-2023 school year. Senators Sperling and Ericson spoke to say that the Joint Committee on Environmental Sustainability (JCES) met with Vice-Chancellor of Administration and Finance Bob Hetzel about the possibility of adding new bike infrastructure on campus in the upcoming terms. Organizational committee member representative of the Campus Activities Board (CAB) says that CAB will begin hiring for four new event planner positions beginning Monday Nov, 1. 

The committee members voted to appoint a new Chief Justice of the Student Court. Nominated by president Jared Zwettler, Ellie O’Brien was sworn in as the new Chief Justice after the committee passed a resolution to waive the two-week rumination rule. 

During the discussion portion of the event, senator Felix Estrella spoke to the room to address the delivery of a sexual assault warning to the campus body on Oct. 7. He said that he, and the president of the Latin American Student Association Jonathan Idarraga, had been in contact with Chief of Police Allen Hill to discuss the language used. “People really felt, regarding the email that was sent on Oct. 7, that the tips in there were very victim shaming,” said Estrella. “He (Chief Hill) said he would be willing to work with us a little bit or change something as long as it is within compliance with the Clery Act.” 

In accordance with the Clery Act, according to vice president Kayo, campus-wide alerts are required to include prevention tips, but the student body and government have the agency to decide the nature and delicacy of that language. 

It was at this point that Senator Hose spoke to address that the UWL Violence Prevention Specialist Blythe McConaughey was invested in the event. “And She would like to emphasize to the student government that she wasn’t in contact with the police department when they sent this out,” said Hose. “And as someone who deals with a lot of people who have dealt with sexual assault, she feels that she needs to be involved.”