On Sunday, Jan. 30, Student Council met to discuss the possibility of a break term, updates on the moniker change process and last week’s presentations on the construction for new residences.
The College brought up the idea of adding a summer, spring or January as an option for students over college breaks. Details on specifics — such as when the extra term would take place, its relation to credit requirements and how it would affect tuition — are mostly unknown, although Vice President for Academic Affairs Delaney Gallagher ’23 raised that it is likely students would have to pay some additional fees. According to the College’s 2021-25 strategic plan, however, which was announced in September, the increase in costs would be covered by the growing student population as well as increased tuition; 11% of the extra revenue would go towards funding initiatives like a January term.
“There has to be a total revenue increase if you’re going to increase your total costs on this,” Gallagher said.
While some brought up concerns about equity issues regarding the pay barrier, Gallagher suggested that the additional term might be included in the College’s policy of meeting 100% of demonstrated need, with additional payments taking the form of a proportional increase in tuition rather than a flat fee.
The Council also discussed updates to the ongoing moniker change process. A survey of first-year students sent out on Jan. 26 garnered 135 responses,
with 57% of students indicating they feel the current moniker, the “Lords and Ladies,” does not represent them and 43% that it does. Campus Senate is currently in the process of connecting with alumni, who feel left out of the process, and is working with the Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement to write an article for the alumni magazine. Though a survey requesting ideas for new monikers had originally been scheduled for October 2021, the process has been delayed repeatedly.
Gallagher emphasized that the decision to change the moniker is still moving forward. “What I don’t want people to think is that just because this takes longer with alumni, it means that the decision is reversing,” Gallagher said.
Next steps will involve a survey sent to students to gather ideas for a new moniker, which Gallagher hopes will be changed by the end of the semester.
Finally, the Council discussed last week’s presentation by Vice President for Student Affairs Celestino Limas, who gave an overview of plans for campus construction. The building of new residences will start on South campus in the fall, which may affect where students live that semester. Modular housing will also be added to accommodate student overflow, and Bexley Hall will be renovated into a suite-style residence hall to be completed in the fall of 2023.
Other topics addressed include a possible reusable takeout container system for the dining hall, free masks in the Peirce Dining Hall coat room and the recent Spring Involvement Fair, in which only 35 out of nearly 100 clubs participated. Students looking for further information on clubs that were not present should email the Student Life Committee (stulife@kenyon.edu).