USG discusses Lawnparties budget, wellness

The Undergraduate Student Government senate discussed spring Lawnparties budget and student wellness during their weekly meeting on Feb. 21.

Social Committee chairRachel Park '18 said that the requested funding for the spring Lawnparties is $82,000.

“This is in line with what we’ve spent in the past,” Treasurer Hunter Dong ’17 said.

$79,000 was spent on Lawnparties in the fall, according to Park.

“The headliner is bringing their own opener,” Park noted, “We’re paying for the two as a package.”

Park also added that the headliner act will be starting at 5 p.m. instead of the usual 4 p.m., due to the artists’ traveling schedule.

USG president Aleksandra Czulack ’17 said that she will be including a new “Wellness” tab in weekly USG emails. The tab will provide access to information regarding mental or physical well-being, Czulack explained.

"It's coming from conversations I've had with the Princeton Perspective Project, Mental Health Initiatives Board, also with University Student Life Committee," Czulack said.

Czulack added that the Lawnparties website, the USG website, or the Mindful Princeton website could be used as a forum for wellness information.

"The only issue we've seen is getting someone to be on top of it constantly...IT committee is moving more in the direction of apps," former MHIB board co-chair and U-Council chair Naimah Hakim '16 said.

Mental Health Initiatives Board co-chairs Sarah Sakha ’18 explained that eight out of 20 applicants to the board were accepted after an interview process.

“We went of off the originality of their policy ideas, and they'll be pursuing those individually, and in groups,”Sakha explained.

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Sakha added that the amount of time that the potential members could invest into the board was also a factor in selection.

Sakha is an Associate Opinions Editor for The Daily Princetonian.

“I think it’s amazing that you got 20 applications, this is something students really care about,” U-Councilor Miranda Rosen ’18 said.

Czulack also noted that she had met with Dave Leach of Campus Recreation in the past week to discuss the use of Resoltz, an app to help students maintain healthy habits.

Academics Committee chair Shannon Osaka '17 said that the survey about the academic calendar change possibilities will be available via email on Mar. 1.

Osaka noted that the USG general education committee is meeting this year, making it crucial to get plenty of student responses.

“We need to reach out in every possible way, and we're talking to [Vice Provost for Institutional Research at the University] Jed Marsh to see if we can have an infographic in the 'Prince',” she said.

Osaka said that the survey will inform a particular option for calendar change, which would then get discussed in open houses with faculty as well as students.

Director of Communications Katie Cion '18 said her committee is working on posting weekly member profiles and general updates on Facebook. Cion said she wants to encourage USG members to share the page and any videos to make sure that the information reaches the greatest possible audience.

In addition, Cion noted that the team is investigating the possibility of a feedback mechanism online for students to submit comments.

The senate also approved appointments to the new treasury committee.

“I needed a good mix of realism and ambition,” Dong explained regarding selections.

He noted that the applicants tended to be male economics or ORFE majors.

Dong said that the committee members could help out by looking at project board funds, collecting receipts from USG or student organizations, as well as conducting research regarding how other schools spend their funds.

One of the members of the committee could be trained to be the next treasurer, Dong explained.

Projects board funding was granted to the Princeton campus farmers’ market and the 14th annual Fashion Speaks show.

The farmers’ market will be held for five consecutive weeks in Firestone Plaza, and it is sponsored by the Graduate Student Government and campus dining. Katie Wolf, an event organizer, said that the market aims to target as many groups in the town and campus community as possible to spread greater awareness of sustainable food production.

This year’s market will feature more vendors and more farmers, Wolf said.

Nora McLaughlin '16 and Nora Buck '16, student representatives for the Fashion Speaks, said the professional-grade Fashion Speaks show is held every April in honor of Autism Awareness Month, and proceeds benefit Eden Autism Services.

Service in Style is the largest student fundraising group on campus, the representatives noted, adding that over $19,000 was raised last year.