Four students were elected into the Undergraduate Student Government general council and were sworn in at the last general council meeting of the semester on Dec. 14.
The newly elected general council members and their roles are:
Vice President of Finance: Klever Puma
Junior Policy Senator: Ingrid Hoiseth
Senior Policy Senator: Greta Anderson
Transfer Senator: Zoe Schearer
Administrators breakfast
The USG executive board attended an administrator’s breakfast on Dec. 15 to discuss how the university is handling student employment issues and the North Star Promise.
Kate Kapsner, president of USG, explained how there was a certain “grievance” when it came to on-campus student employment.
“There are currently 1700 students in 2500 jobs,” Kapsner said. “It’s a little bit misleading because some of the jobs that are showing in that 2500 are jobs that are not currently active. So orientation leaders and stuff from the summer are shown as jobs that students hold, but they’re not actively holding those jobs now.”
The issue seemed to reside in the lack of communication from employment websites and managers. Students, especially freshmen, were unsure where they were in the job process, according to a survey distributed to freshmen at the beginning of the year.
The executive board presented three recommendations to improve student employment. These recommendations include prioritizing work-study students, incentivizing “less attractive jobs” with higher pay and encouraging student voices to join the strategic planning committee.
St. Thomas will not partake in the North Star Promise scholarship program, according to the executive board.
“We’re so committed to providing really great resources and scholarships to students who are in that income bracket.” Kaspner quotes.
Rob Vischer, president of St. Thomas, wants to encourage students to advocate for the Minnesota State Grant Program, a program that helps the university afford scholarships to low-income students, according to Kapsner.
“Students don’t necessarily fit in any place just because it’s free,” Kaspner said.
Gwynnevere Vang can be reached at vang5129@stthomas.edu.