The Undergraduate Student Government (USG) Senate convened for its second meeting of the spring semester on Sunday, Feb. 18, confirming approval of its largest budget in recent history and unveiling a pilot to add early morning shuttle service between Princeton station and Princeton Junction.
Commencing the session, USG President Avi Attar ’25 presented his President’s Report, highlighting a successful social at Saturday’s men’s basketball game against Yale and increased funding for local arts experiences.
The second budget vote, presented by Treasurer Uma Fox ’26, was unanimously approved by the Senate. The budget, totaling $656,047.21, includes rollover and restricted funds.
According to the USG Senate Constitution, the budget must be approved across two consecutive votes. With this second successful vote, the USG budget was passed.
The USG budget has been increasing for the last five semesters. The current budget is the highest out of all past budgets reported on the USG website.
Attar emphasized the responsibility that came with a larger budget, urging members to carefully consider and plan experiences for the student body.
“Students have given [activities] fees to us, and we are charged with taking those fees and not only representing them but also making an experience for them that is wonderful and contributes to our community and advances the values of USG and [the] University,” Attar said.
In May 2023, the USG more than doubled the student activities fee from $45.50 to $95.50.
Attar also provided clarification on the public comment process for Senate meetings, explaining that students will be able to submit comments virtually in the future through a link in the USG newsletter.
Shivansh Bansal ’27 — the first public commenter of the semester — suggested that Wawa should accept dining points, emphasizing the convenience it would offer students. This idea was recently a point of discussion leading up to the December 2023 USG elections. U-Councilor Isabella Shutt ’24 explained that dining points are intended for local businesses, not chains like Wawa. U-Councilor Daniel Shaw ’25 added that the system aims for students to go out and enjoy food, while Wawa typically serves students in a quick in-and-out manner.
Following this, the Senate confirmed Projects Board funding allocations, with the Muslim Student Association (MSA) and Pehchaan Club, a Pakistani affinity group, receiving unanimous approval for funding for upcoming Ramadan events.
A request by Envision, a technology-focused student group, passed with nine abstentions. The request secured $4,500 from USG and $1,500 from ODUS for a tech-ethics conference scheduled for March 29–30. The event would be open to club members and students from local schools.
2027 Senator Sid Shah ’27 and U-Councilor Leyton Watts ’26 then outlined their plans for bolstering student interest in athletics.
“We had wonderful event last night,” Attar said in reference to a well-attended USG-sponsored social at this weekend's Yale basketball game.
Both Shah and Watts expressed their desire to continue increasing student attendance at games, a hope also shared by Attar last week.
U-Councilor Anuj Krishnan ’27 and Council of the Princeton University Community (CPUC) Executive Committee Representative Aishwarya Swamidurai ’26 then presented a collaboration between USG and Transportation and Parking Services (TPS) to add more shuttle trips between Princeton station and Princeton Junction in the early morning during certain periods of the year. Currently, the earliest Dinky departure on the weekends is after 9 a.m., preventing students from catching morning flights at Newark Liberty International Airport.
TPS will pilot the new schedule on March 9 and 10 — the start of spring break — and will monitor its uptake to determine if the schedule should be extended to future reading week and exam periods. The pilot will use TigerTransit vehicles to provide additional shuttle service when the Dinky does not run during early morning hours.
In terms of campus mobility, students can expect bike lanes next fall, with three projects in the pipeline in addition to ongoing efforts to implement bike racks.
USG meetings are open for all students to attend and are held on Sundays from 4 to 5 p.m. in Robertson Hall 016.
Editors' Note: A previous version of this article stated that the USG partnership to increase shuttle service between Princeton and Princeton Junction was with NJ Transit and used rail vehicles. In fact, the partnership is with Transportation and Parking Services (TPS) and uses TigerTransit vehicles. The 'Prince' regrets this error.
Editors' Note: A previous version of this article stated that the budgetary total was $735,862.03. The correct number is $656,047.21. The 'Prince' regrets this error.
Alena Zhang is a staff News writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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