This past week Student Association met for the second time this semester. During this meeting, they touched on recurring topics such as the student fee, gen. ed. requirements and filling the position of vice president.

Lauren Mason who had the role of vice president prior is leaving due to her health. During the last meeting, she stated, “I’m going to take a moment to say thank you and goodbye, at the end of last semester I got sick, and it was a difficult decision, but my family and I thought it was the best decision.” Mason put in her resignation, and it is effective Feb. 2.

Both Jacob Schimmel, President of Student Association and Mason appointed Weston Floerke, the Chief of Staff. If Floerke does fill this position, they would start an application process to fill the Chief of Staff position. As president, Schimmel has the jurisdiction to appoint a new candidate and present it to the Senate for them to vote on.

Schimmel chose Floerke because he has been a part of Student Association for a while. He knows the process and has been a leader. Schimmel stated, “Weston has been someone who has been involved in student government for a long time. And he’ll need the ability to facilitate things in a matter that’s very professional and impartial, and I think that that is absolutely critical in the role of the vice president.”

Floerke stated, “I’m not a political science major, I’m a biology major. So, I really don’t have any of my own political aspirations or agenda. I’m just somebody who is passionate about student government, passionate about this school—I love this school—andpassionate about this city.” He also wants to continue to learn more about diversity organizations and continue to be a resource for others.

This week the Senate voted on whether Floerke would become Vice President. It didn’t pass, although it was very close. They needed two-thirds of the people to vote yes in order for it to pass.

A few reasons why Floerke did not get appointed were that some of the senators didn’t like the president appointing someone without the senators having a say. Other senators were concerned about the student body not having a say in this position. They wanted to include the student body, especially since they voted for Mason and Schimmel.

In the meantime, the role of vice president will go to Colin Giles. Giles has filled this position before. He is the Senate’s president pro tempore. However, it will not stay that way, Student Association still needs to officially fill the position. The Student Association will continue to talk about what will happen next and how to move forward.