On Wednesday, April 20, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Student Association (SA) met and discussed a resolution to create a new sustainability committee.

Disability Services Advisor Chris Coppess joined SA to give a presentation on the ACCESS Center. The center provides services and academic accommodations to students with disabilities. The center promotes access and coordinates with instructors to provide alternate testing locations and various accommodations based on individual needs. 

 Coppess talked about the ACCESS Center’s staff and some of their different roles and the things they work on around campus. He said that their most important job is to help get new students acclimated to campus and provide them with the accommodations they need to feel comfortable. Coppess also said that he will be leaving UWL after this year, as he accepted another position at a different school. 

Director Kyle Burke then gave his report to SA. He said that the election results had been processed and Grant Mathu (president) and Siri Flores (vice-president) won the election.  

SA discussed resolutions to dissolve the current Green Fund Committee, create a new committee called the Green Advisory Committee, and approve bylaws for the new committee. 

 One senator asked why it was necessary to create a whole new advisory committee, and Senator Andrew Ericson, who serves as the Green Fund coordinator, said that the committee has failed to meet many of its goals.  

 The general consensus was that creating a new committee would be the best option moving forward. “SA should house some sort of sustainability-related committee, but maybe the Green Fund Committee wasn’t the best bet,” said Senator Ericson. 

 SA went on to discuss the three resolutions and approve some adjustments, and the votes on these resolutions are set to occur in the next meeting.  

 The Green Fund coordinators joined SA to give a presentation on a resolution to approve funding for a green bike program and to allocate the funds to add a sustainability program manager. 

 The resolution to fund a green bike program would work towards providing $4,400 per year for the next three years to go towards supplies, tools, scrap metal pick-ups, and bike mechanic pay. The aim of this resolution is to broaden sustainability initiatives by recycling metal scraps and giving students an inexpensive means of transportation that also reduces automobile congestion. 

 The last resolution was to allocate funds for a new role, sustainability program manager, which is a position that would be oriented around student-focused and campus-wide sustainability initiatives. The new position would include the role of considering UWL’s carbon footprint, water usage, and electrical consumption in order to develop sustainable solutions. 

 SA did not vote on these resolutions, and the vote will occur in next week’s meeting.