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Syracuse University’s Student Association passed two bills granting funding for the annual Rip the Runway fashion show and Coming Out Day – Chalk the Quad LGBTQ+ celebration during its Monday meeting. The assembly also discussed updates to its Grocery Trolley service and assembly representative elections.

SA’s bylaws require proposed bills to be presented at meetings but not voted on until the following meeting. On Monday, SA suspended these rules for the bills presented due to the time-sensitive nature of the events, as Rip the Runway is expected to be held on Oct. 5 and Chalk the Quad is set for Oct. 11., SA Speaker Kennedy Williams said.

Luwam Ghebremicael, SA’s director of multicultural affairs, presented the bill requesting $900 for the Rip the Runway fashion show. SA voted on the funding early to ensure ample time to purchase and ship the outfit designs needed, she said.

This year, the show will be a collaboration between the African Student Union and the Fashion and Design Society at SU, featuring clothing designed by Obioma Fashion, a United States-based African clothing company, Ghebremicael said. The event occurs annually in the fall semester and typically sees around 200-300 attendees.

“It is [focused] around the African diaspora, trying to highlight the culture and the clothing through vendors that are from the U.S. who try to collaborate with Western and African clothing design,” Ghebremicael said.

Obioma Fashion, founded by designer Emeka Anyadiegwu, has agreed to rent 12 pieces to ASU and FDSSU for its fashion show. The clothes were designed in the U.S. and made in Nigeria, Ghebremicael said.

“This event will also bridge a gap between the (SA) Cabinet’s multicultural affairs and everybody in the multicultural region of organizations on campus,” Ghebremicael said.

The association also approved funds for the LGBTQ+ Resource Center for its Coming Out Day – Chalk the Quad event under the suspended rules. Tommy DaSilva, the association’s director of LGBTQ student affairs, presented the bill.

DaSilva said any leftover chalk from the event could be stored and reused by other registered student organizations in the future as part of SA’s expanded Lending Closet initiative, which establishes a communal base of supplies for RSO events.

During their weekly executive report, SA President German Nolivos and Vice President Reed Granger discussed the Grocery Trolley initiative before providing updates on SA’s election week. Granger said the assembly is working with university administration to reintroduce grocery store transportation service for students despite new guidelines barring the use of trolleys for off-campus travel. SA previously funded a grocery run initiative using SU trolleys, but the university now only allows off-campus trolley travel for trips to La Casita Cultural Center and the Nancy Cantor Warehouse, they said.

“The Parking and Transportation Services have had a change in rules where trolleys are not able to go off campus … but, we did figure out contracts with an outside vendor for grocery buses,” Granger said. “I’m very thankful that we’re able to get this back up and running.”

Nolivos then urged SA to remain active during SA’s assembly representative elections this week. He said that, this year, the number of students on the ballot could fill all of SA’s assembly seats.

Students can vote for assembly members this week through a link sent to their SU emails and posted on the association’s Instagram.

Published on September 24, 2024 at 12:13 am

Contact Anna: aclevitt@syr.edu