After a very busy first semester, DePauw Student Senate seeks to pass even more white papers this semester.
At their meeting Sunday night, senators discussed seven possible white paper topics to investigate and discuss over the next month. Topics included issues that affect DePauw students who hail from far away, dining options and unofficial quiet areas on campus.
"The student government hit the ground running at the beginning of the academic year...and they're showing that they're getting right back up where they left off," said Sophomore Austin Bonta, director of public relations.
Senator Charles Pierre, a junior, expressed the importance of drafting a white paper regarding issues that primarily affect international students or those who reside in Alaska and Hawaii. The senate hopes to look into housing options during vacations and the possibility of re-opening an international house.
"As people who live in the states, we don't really understand their struggles and I think we should definitely keep that in mind because we want them to enjoy this campus as much as we do," Pierre said.
The issue of dining options also received a great deal of discussion among senators. Among the primary concerns were extending the lunch hour and encouraging the dining services committee to reach out to students for further input.
Unofficial quiet areas on campus received a mixed reaction. The topic struck the senate as a joke initially, but quickly took hold, eventually leading the senate to draft a white paper on the issue.
"You go to the library (Roy O. West) and you go to the café and it's so much more social than say just a few feet back where people are working on exams that they have to do in a half and hour," Bonta said.
The senate hopes — at a minimum — to create signs that read ‘Silence' for the third floor of Roy O. West.
Other issues the senate seeks to address this semester include altering requirements for running for the executive board of DePauw Student Government, relations with Facilities Management and parking fees for faculty.