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Thursday, March 28, 2024
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UB Council of Advocacy and Leadership addresses concerns for fall semester

COAL reaffirmed support for living wage, NFTA's CRAM pass and mental health among other issues

<p>Council of Advocacy and Leadership chair Mike Brown speaks during the organization’s first meeting Wednesday. Topics from increasing graduate stipends to mental health and improved access to transportation were discussed at the meeting.&nbsp;</p>

Council of Advocacy and Leadership chair Mike Brown speaks during the organization’s first meeting Wednesday. Topics from increasing graduate stipends to mental health and improved access to transportation were discussed at the meeting. 

Members of the Council of Advocacy and Leadership met Wednesday night to discuss student concerns such as raising graduate students’ stipends, UB’s Breath Free Policy and providing an NFTA pass for students. 

COAL is made up of the seven student government presidents, the Student-Wide Judiciary Chief Justice Jake Henning and chaired by assembly speaker and UB Council student representative Mike Brown.

Brown, a senior computer science and political science major, led the discussion and fellow members SA President Gunnar Haberl and Graduate Student Association President Jessica Coley discussed other topics, such as mental health awareness and food insecurities. 

Members passed a resolution from the GSA to support a living stipend increase for graduate student teaching, graduate and research assistants. 

Coley said graduate students do not make enough money at UB and are forced to work additional jobs, distracting them from their schoolwork. 

“We’re working crazy hours and get little pay in return,” Coley said. “If all the TAs and GAs stopped working and didn’t come to school, the university would crumble. There are a lot of graduate students that are afraid to be a part of the movement because they don’t want to lose their jobs, especially international students. Some people wear masks or don’t want their pics taken because they fear repercussions.”

Brown offered his support for another shot at a partnership with the Niagara Frontier Transit Authority’s College Riders Accessing Metro program. A pilot conducted in 2011-12 proved beneficial for students but ultimately fell through. He hopes to have a resolution ready for COAL’s next meeting later this semester. 

Haberl discussed numerous topics including extending his mental health and sexual harassment and violence prevention statements to GSA graduate syllabi. 

He also updated the council on his work with Athletics Director Mark Alnutt to clarify issues between students and athletics. 

Athletics used to charge student clubs to have fields lined and then used the same fields for practice, but that will no longer happen. Students reserved athletic spaces and had them taken away for D1 teams to use for practice. Now, there is a full policy handbook for reserving athletic spaces in Alumni Arena and fields across campus. 

Haberl also confirmed that the Recreation Fee and Athletics Fee were in fact two separate budgets and were being used for separate expenditures. 

“I really give a lot of credit to Mark. He actually came up to my office and wanted to talk to me and say hello,” Haberl said. “In the school’s history I don’t think we’ve ever had that kind of relationship with an athletic director. I look forward to working with him more in the future.”

Before adjourning, the council reviewed measures to create an on-campus food pantry and better enforce UB’s Smoke Free Campus policy. 

Max Kalnitz is the senior news editor and can be reached at max.kalnitz@ubspectrum.com and on Twitter @Max_Kalnitz

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