Hey Wellesley,

Welcome back to the President’s Corner under your new College Government (CG) Cabinet! I am Saafia Masoom, your College Government Vice President (CGVP) and acting College Government President (CGP). While the semester is rapidly coming to a close, we are excited to be getting started.

On Monday, April 30, our very first Senate with the new cabinet happened to coincide with the last Senate of the academic year. Senators will be voting electronically on three key items this week. First, EnAct and WeStart have applied for constitution this semester and are seeking Senate approval in order to secure their constituted status. Second, there is a candidate for Senate Policy and Ethics Committee (SPEC) chair up for election, a position which the Senate body is constitutionally obligated to fill in the spring. And finally, a set of proposed changes to the Elections Committee (EC) constitution has been put up to a vote. After much debate and discussion and sending their Senate peers to their respective constituencies and taking feedback again, a group of dedicated Senators managed to revise the constitution comprehensively. The series of line-by-line changes addresses eligibility guidelines for candidates seeking cabinet positions as well as the composition of Elections Committee, which will look radically different from its current structure. With these changes, CG hopes to restore a reliable degree of clarity, transparency and good faith in EC to be a just keeper of the elections process.

Of course, the elephant in the room is that in an unprecedented move, we will begin our fall semester without a College Government President. Above all else, our top priority is finding our new CGP. Before the semester ends, CG will be sending out the exact timeline for elections and eligibility guidelines, if applicable after the senators complete their voting. As announced on Monday, April 30, election day will take place next semester on Thursday, September 20.

In the meantime, our other work does not cease naturally. Hazel Wan Hei Leung ’20, the new Multicultural Affairs Coordinator (MAC), has found ways to engage with the community already by spearheading the design of a survey for our Senators. Ninan Pollack ’20, chair of the Committee for Political and Legislative Awareness (CPLA), and her committee hosted an important discussion regarding bipartisanship. Gina Scorpiniti ’19, Student Bursar, meanwhile presented the CG Treasury End-of-Year Report at the final Senate and is looking to create policy changes to curb overapplying. Maya Nandakumar ’19, Chief Justice, also presented the state of the Honor Code at this Senate and outlined some of the ways she hopes to increase student advocacy. Our new Director of On Campus Affairs (DOOCA) Iletze Porras ’19 is hard at work to make the Last Day of Classes (LDOC) festivities possible. Sarah Sansón Hernandez ’21, Secretary-Treasurer, embraced her role even before turnover and has been a driving force in making cabinet’s first event, “Community Conversation: CG Beyond Elections,” among several other things, possible. As your College Government Vice President and acting College Government President, I have jumped into the final stops of the Student Organizations and Appointments Committee’s (SOAC) listening tour, which aims to get a sense of organizations’  thoughts on the restructuring changes proposed in March.

Ultimately, we all share a strong desire to have our work demonstrate our ongoing value of transparency, inclusivity and engagement. I reiterate the sentiment that I have conveyed at Senate, throughout my campaign this spring and in all the conversations I have had with people over the last few weeks: We need your passion. I envision CG Cabinet as here to guide you and facilitate dialogues, but at the end of the day, change does not happen without you. We must take on this effort together, just as I hope we will come together this fall to elect our new CGP.

It is with great pleasure that we will continue to welcome your feedback, questions and discussion throughout our tenures in CG. There will always be a listening ear somewhere for those who seek one. For now, take care, and best of luck with finals!

With Love,

Saafia