Derby

Jon Stack describes E-board and Institute activities

Hello RPI! I hope that everyone’s second round of quizzes, exams, and projects went well, and that everyone is able to relax at least a little bit before their work picks up again. Just think, in two weeks we can enjoy Thanksgiving break, and at that point, the semester is almost over. I would like to extend congratulations to the RPI men’s soccer team and their head coach Adam Clinton for winning the Liberty League Championship this past weekend. In a thrilling tournament, RPI beat St. Lawrence on Thursday night, and then defeated Vassar College on Saturday to win the crown. Both matches were very close and were decided by penalty kicks. Best of luck to the team as they compete in the NCAA Tournament beginning Saturday!

In Executive Board news, the Independent Council came to the Board requesting a small subsidy to provide discounted hockey tickets for their Independent Hockey night. Students will be able to buy tickets for $4, or only $3 if they bring a canned good for the Troy Food Pantry. This event will take place on Saturday, November 14. For more information, contact IC President Olivia Sell ’14 (sello@rpi.edu). The Student Life Committee of the Student Senate came in requesting the use of the McNeil Room to stream live election night coverage. This event took place Tuesday November 6, and provided students information regarding the presidential elections and an excellent break from studying. To get involved with similar projects, contact SLC Chair Kyle Keraga (keragk@rpi.edu). Thursday’s E-Board meeting will be very busy with many different groups coming in to present proposals. If interested, our meetings are open to everyone, so stop on by.

To provide updates regarding the Union, the Executive Board will be taking a field trip next month to the University of Vermont. This trip will allow members to observe another student-focused college union, and meet with other administrators and students. The Davis Center at UVM is a very new building, and boasts similar operations to RPI, like a games area, pub, and several restaurants. It should be a great opportunity for us to bring new ideas back to campus. Also, I will be leading a presentation at the Association of College Unions International Regional Conference at SUNY New Paltz on November 10 along with other members of the Executive Board. The focus of our session will be student leadership development within student activities, and the session will provide us the opportunity to share our experiences both as members of student government and as the body at makes all financial decisions here at the Rensselaer Union.

This Friday night will host many exciting events on campus. Union After Dark will run from 8 pm to 1 am in, you guessed it, the Rensselaer Union. There will be many different performances and activities to see. Sheer Idiocy will perform at 8 pm in Mothers Wine Emporium, followed by the comedian Sheng Wang, hosted by UPAC Comedy, at 9:30 pm in the McNeil Room. There will be plenty of free food, a Ben & Jerry’s Vermonster eating contest, billiards and table tennis competitions, music from WRPI, and much more. This event is sponsored by Residential Education, Sodexo, Student Experience, Phalanx, RPI Athletics, and the Resident Student Association; come and check it out! Also, UPAC Cinema will be showing The Dark Knight Rises in conjunction with UPAC Sound. One of the most popular films of the summer, you don’t want to miss seeing this movie for only $2.50. Showtimes are 7 pm, 10 pm, and 1 am.

As always, if you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please contact me via e-mail (pu@rpi.edu), or stop by my office. My official office hours for this semester will be Wednesdays from 5–7 pm, but you can always stop in as long as I am there. Union Executive Board meetings are held every Wednesday night at 8 pm in Union 3606 and are open to the public. If you are interested in getting to know how your student activity fee is managed, stop on by. Enjoy the rest of your week!