During the E-Board’s last meeting, the RPI Dance Team received money to finance their uniforms, the Alpha Delta Phi Society was given a room in the ’87 Gym, and President of the Union Matthew Rand ’19 gave an update on director of the Union candidate interviews.
RPI Dance Team requested $1,055.25 for an additional part of its uniform. The team is going to the National Dance Alliance’s championship and aims to make a good impression and represent RPI with a uniform appearance. It budgeted for the tops last year, but the price increased since then, necessitating a visit to the E-Board. Dance Team Captain Louis Caponi ’20 said that there would be no additional costs to the Union going forward, as any member who damages the uniform has to pay out of pocket for repairs. The Board passed a motion to reallocate $1,055.25 from the club contingencies fund to the Dance Team budget 16-0-0.
The Alpha Delta Phi Society, a Greek organization and “literary society,” according to their website, presented a proposal for their own space in the ’87 Gym. ADPS cultivates “a more artistic and musical environment on a heavily STEM campus,” according to Vice President Andie Dolan ’19. Room 116, which is currently unused, would be allocated to the organization so that it could hold meetings, store materials, and have weekly workshops without needing to reserve space in the Union or transport its supplies regularly.
Some members of the Board were concerned about allocating space to a Greek organization. Alpha Phi Omega currently occupies an office on the third floor of the Union, from which it operates a back test library and lost and found service for the benefit of the community. Member at Large Jared Segal ’19 asked if non-affiliated people can make use of the space. Dolan said that ADPS will hold office hours where students can come in to talk about and improve their writing, run workshops on drawing, and be a space where people can “have a break from STEM.” Historically, she said, ADPS has had up to 20 people attend their events. Representative Brookelyn Parslow ’20 said that ADPS should make an effort to publicize its events and availability online so that students who are interested in a space like this could find out about it. She volunteered to work with ADPS to do this. A motion to assign room 116 of the ’87 Gym to the Alpha Delta Phi Society passed 14-1-0, pending the approval of RPI Athletics, which has authority over the building.
Chairperson of the Union Annual Report Committee Joseph Venusto ’18 shared that the committee is making good progress on the report. He anticipates that a draft of the report will be ready by finals week, which begins on December 18.
Rand said that interviews of two candidates for the director of the Union will continue with E-Board involvement. One occurred on Tuesday, November 7, and another will occur on Friday, November 10. Students participating in the process are required to sign a confidentiality agreement, he said, and the questions created by the Human Resources Interview Committee will be reviewed by the Division of Human Resources. He hopes for a recommendation to come before the Board on Thursday. Additionally, Rand said that interviews for the position of assistant director for student activities have been completed, and he expects a candidate to be proposed on Thursday.
Business Administrator Martha McElligott shared an update on the Union’s finances. She said that the Union’s budget is on target with what was forecasted. Some adjustments were made, however, to return about $150,000 in salary and benefits for unfilled positions.