RPI Rugby receives tournament funds in first Gallagher-run Executive Board

Treasurer and Recruitment Chair of Rensselaer Rugby, Lindsey Gilson ’23G and Anna Cheng ’23G, approached the Executive Board for an additional subsidy for the annual Beast of the East intercollegiate men and women’s rugby tournament. The club requested extra funding for hotel costs toward a second night, among other travelling fees. The motion to give the women’s club $1,047 and the men’s club $975 passed unanimously.

Hailey Becker ’25, Gabby Casey ’26, and Carlos Garcia ’26, representing the Rensselaer Dance Team, presented to the E-Board requesting additional funding towards their trip to Nationals this week in Daytona, Florida. In addition to the participation costs, they will be paying for bussing to and from the airport, flights, transportation in Florida, studio rentals, and hotel costs. The club currently has $932.50 from fundraising, but students will still be expected to pay $1,361 each. The team asked for approximately $10,500, reducing the cost to $500 per person. The E-Board was concerned about the large amount that they requested and questioned the need to use $1,000 for a Yankee Trails bus to the airport rather than using Uber or other company rides. The board wanted to reevaluate the Union’s club and travel contingencies, therefore Vice President for Rules and Special Projects Abigail Golden ’24 motioned to table the request until next meeting, which passed unanimously. The Dance Team will still be attending Nationals this week, despite the fact that this will be rediscussed during their competition.

During business, Marketing and Sales Chair Sanay Tralshawala ’26 presented to the board about possible changes to the Union’s signature red color for marketing. Within the past few years, there have been slight alterations between shades of red, giving the Union an inconsistent look. In addition, there are issues with printing banners because they cannot process certain shades. The board discussed if they wanted to stand out from the Institute shade, #D6001C, or discuss other darker shades like #B70009. Tralshawala encouraged the board to take part in further discussions about solidifying a certain shade for the Union.

This Executive Board meeting was held on March 30. The next Executive Board meeting will be held Thursday, April 6 at 7 pm in the Shelnutt Gallery.