According to Student Body President John Aloszka, “SIC” isn’t just an acronym to represent the new Student Involvement Center. It also stands for, “Slowly, it’s coming.” 

The new Student Involvement Center, championed by Aloszka and Vice President Costello, hit some construction roadblocks, delaying the bulk of the work until Spring Break. Aloszka announced the new timeline of the project during the first Senate meeting of the semester on Friday, Jan. 10. 

The front most part of the Involvement Center, a lounge area featuring a record player and areas for students to collaborate, will open to students in February with a grand opening event held during Homecoming week. The event will involve several other on-campus organizations that students can visit with as they travel throughout the Student Union, using a “passport” to record places they stopped at. 

The rest of the new center will be constructed during Spring Break. Due to a state-level stall, the project was not approved in time for the construction to be completed over winter break, as was intended. In the interest of not disrupting student life, the construction of the involvement offices was slated for Spring Break, when campus would be closed. 

Aloszka’s other ongoing project is creating a resource guide for every student’s Canvas. This guide would appear as if it were another class a student is enrolled in and will include links to resources on campus, like the Counseling Center. It will include a list of questions, such as, “I might be homeless,” or, “I have had a death in the family,” with drop-down information on how UNF can help the student. While a beta version has been made, the project’s graphics and final version are still in progress. 

The Senate continued to outline new projects for the semester during this meeting, including the approval of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Treasurer Kenneth Smith and the Budget and Allocations Committee heard the first set of budget hearings earlier in the day and continue to work to create a balanced budget.

Student Government operates using the Activity and Service Fee that students pay as a part of tuition. Various clubs and organizations request money at the budget hearings, and then the budget will be presented to the Senate for approval, and a public forum will be held on January 30. 

Chief of Staff Ally Schneider and Student Advocate Kylie Feierstein also presented their plans for the semester, including the upcoming Mental Health Awareness week, which will take place the week of January 20. Events during the week include placing door hangers in dorms with information on mental health resources, Golden Hour Yoga 2.0, and food trucks during Market Day. 

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