Last week, the Social Responsibilities Committee (SRC) revealed its decision regarding the Fossil Free Mac proposal that Macalester divest from fossil fuels. The SRC did not pass the proposal on to the Board of Trustees or the president, which would have been the next step towards approving divestment. Additionally, the committee issued a recommendation that…
After a weeks-long process, MCSG passes budget for the 2015-2016 year
In its last meeting of the year this past Tuesday, Macalester College Student Government (MCSG) passed the budget for the 2015-2016 academic year. After weeks of deliberation and reassessment of its contents, the passing of the budget took a mere ten minutes. After the budget was tabled last week, the Financial Advisory Committee (FAC) reconvened…
Appeals and cuts complicate, postpone MCSG budget vote
This week, the proposed 2015-2016 Macalester College Student Government (MCSG) budget moved closer to approval, but ran into more difficulties at its meeting Tuesday night. In the last week, the budget has seen many changes. and has still not been passed. The budgeting process began in March when student organizations were instructed to submit their…
Student assembly passes resolution on staff income inequality
Last Tuesday afternoon, a student assembly called by Macalester Students Against Income Inequality met on the lawn of Old Main to discuss and pass a resolution proposed to MCSG on income inequality at Macalester. The assembly began with Sam Doten ’16 and Nick Michalesko ’17 introducing the issue at the heart of the resolution and…
Sexual assault forum covers Macalester’s response policy; discussion to continue
Last Tuesday, a small gathering of faculty and students came together for a forum on Macalester’s sexual assault response hosted by MCSG. What was supposed to be a two-part event with a panel and Q & A and a series of smaller topic oriented discussions became solely a panel discussion because of the extent of…
Everyday Feminism founder Sandra Kim speaks
Last Wednesday, FIA*STARSA hosted a lecture by Sandra Kim, founder and CEO of the independent website Everyday Feminism. Kim’s lecture focused on the national sexual assault issue and finding inclusive means of combatting it. Kim opened the lecture by expressing her enthusiasm that such a discussion was taking place. She said that all too often…
Macalester applies for grant to install solar panels to Markim Hall
Macalester is once again on the brink of being a solar-powered campus. The college recently applied for funding under a solar panel initiative by the state of Minnesota and Xcel Energy that would cover the costs of adding solar panels to the roof of Markim Hall. Solar panels were one of the original features of…
2015-2016 budget to include money for strategic plan, changing costs
Earlier this month, Vice President for Administration and Finance David Wheaton made public the proposed budget for 2015-2016, following work by the Task Force on Budget group this past fall. During February, the budget was presented to the President’s Council, an open forum, faculty, the Resources and Planning Committee, and MCSG. It will be presented…
Strategic Plan proposes measures to improve campus diversity
In a Strategic Plan that focuses largely on innovation, the diversity section is one section attempting to refocus Macalester’s practices. As the Strategic Planning Committee considered the current state of Macalester, they decided that campus diversity was a topic that needed an intentional focus. The diversity section of the plan encourages Macalester to make measurable…
Entrepreneurship section of Strategic Plan raises questions, discussion
In the month since the release of the draft Strategic Plan, the Macalester community has turned both a hopeful and critical eye on the proposed future goals. The entrepreneurship section, which promotes increased support of social and commercial engagement and innovation, has received much discussion on campus. For Grace Putka ’16, the Student Representative on…