Student Council hosted Julie Caruccio, Student Council advisor and assistant vice president for research on the student experience, as their first guest speaker of the year at their meeting Tuesday. Representatives asked Caruccio questions about how Student Council is represented in Board of Visitors proceedings as well as discussed Student Council’s upcoming fall budget.
Additionally, Student Council provided updates about ongoing projects headed by the Chief of Cabinet. such as the expansion of the bus system’s Silver Line, free STI testing and a new leadership development program with Buford Middle School. They also passed their second bill of the semester to approve more Contracted Independent Organizations.
As the Student Council advisor, Caruccio serves as a messenger between Student Council and University administration, conveying updates and information about the organization's activities. In her speech, she first talked about the importance of Student Council in the University community and why their work matters to both students and University administrators.
Caruccio also explained that since the University is a public institution, Student Council must adhere to both federal and Commonwealth laws, and said she plays a role in advising Student Council to ensure their actions comply with legal requirements.
As a researcher on the student experience at the University, Caruccio also emphasized the importance of student self-governance within Student Council and how it ensures the student experience is shaped by the students themselves.
“[Student Council] represents every single student — undergraduate, graduate, continuing professional studies — everybody who goes here,” Caruccio said. “We in [the University administration] really rely on [Student Council] to make sure that you know what your constituents are thinking, and I relay that to the exec so that we understand sort of what's going on and we can make sure that we partner together.”
According to Caruccio, Student Council’s discretion over funding CIOs and other initiatives for students through the Student Activities Fee — a $58 fee included in all students’ tuition and fees — is an important responsibility entrusted to Student Council.
“U.Va. puts our money where our mouth is. When we talk about student self-governance, you guys have control over student money, and that's on purpose. Your delegation for spending the Student Activities Fee comes directly from the Board of Visitors” Caruccio said. “In most schools, [deciding which organizations get to be a new CIO] is a [University administration] decision. Here that is a Student Council decision, and it's important.”
Brian Ng, chair of external affairs for Student Council and second-year College student, raised concerns about Student Council's level of representation during Board of Visitors proceedings, including whether the Board could take power away from Student Council should they have differences of opinion.
“I know that some of my constituents have been concerned about the Board of Visitors and their position on things like free speech and assembly. What do you think would be the best way for us … as a student governing body, to hold the Board of Visitors accountable, to make sure that we're all on the same page, just to maintain [our] relationship?” said Ng.
Cauruccio said that students should not be intimidated by the Board, as it has not and does not currently consider stripping responsibilities from Student Council to limit its scope of governance.
“We haven't been close to [Student Council’s powers being removed] in all of the 25 years I've been here, we are not close to it now,” Caruccio said. “Don't be intimidated by them, but also don't give them more power than they deserve. They're not about to come in and change things for Student Council.”
In a follow-up question, Cody Scarce, College representative and second-year College student, asked Caruccio if there were any updates around the conversations in administration regarding the suspension of admissions and historical tours conducted by the University Guide Service. Caruccio said that Steve Farmer “gave [representatives] all the context [they] need,” but did not elaborate further.
Scarce also asked Caruccio if there was any research done regarding how the student body feels about the students being tried by the University Judiciary Council following their participation in the pro-Palestine encampment that was forcibly cleared May 4. Cauruccio said that she doesn’t have the power to share that information under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, which mandates that information about students’ educational records be kept private.
Representatives also heard a report from Valentina Mendoza Gonzalez, Student Council president and fourth-year College student, who talked about the importance of the fall budget and urged students to learn more about it and ask her questions during office hours.
“It's really important that we work our fall budget to support the mission of Student Council and make sure that we're all on the same teams … and efficiently spend our budgets and give grants to … the students that we help.” Mendoza Gonalez said.
Andreas Masiakos, chair of the representative body and fourth-year College Student, said the fall budget will be on the docket for voting at Student Council’s General Body meeting next Tuesday. As the Student Council constitution requires them to table budget legislation once before voting to pass it, he said the goal is to pass it within the next two weeks.
Looking at ongoing Student Council projects, Jada Benefield, Student Council chief of cabinet and third-year College student, said the student life agency is currently working on adding more buses to the Silver Line and that many students have been using it. She also said the safety and wellness agency will offer free STI testing for students starting next month — a program that Student Council has operated for years that has seen major success — and that the legislative affairs agency is working to provide more voter registration opportunities.
The legislative affairs agency is also launching a new initiative in collaboration with Buford Middle School to create a leadership development program, allowing students to engage with University student leaders and gain new leadership skills.
During the legislative session, Student Council unanimously passed legislation to approve new CIOs from the record-high summer round of applications. The approved CIOs included Hoos Listening, The Childhood Cancer Project and The Arts Students Society, among others.
Student Council will convene Tuesday for its next General Body meeting.
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