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The Somerville Fire Department has extinguished a fire that happened earlier this morning at 57 Holland St, just outside of Davis Square.
Five fire trucks, two ambulances and four police cars responded to the scene, and Holland Street has since been closed to traffic from Davis Square onwards. The fire appears to be contained, and at this time it the damage sustained to the three-story building is unknown.
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The TCU Senate is hearing fully seven resolutions tonight in its last session before the end of the year. Senators will consider whether to recommend renewed inclusion of students in the working group for the Critical Studies in Disparities and Diasporas program. The Senate will also vote on a resolution in support of integrating research resource aggregator Project Lever into the Tufts community.
Other resolutions up for vote include: supporting a late-night Boston shuttle to circumvent the T’s closing hours, encouraging Tufts Dining Services to use cage-free eggs in the dining halls, pushing for a designated space in Curtis Hall for entrepreneurial groups and students, re-vitalizing the movement for a kosher kitchen addition to Tufts Dining Services and requesting that the Office of Residential Life and Learning publish annual reports on the housing lottery to give students an idea of what options will be available with their numbers.
This is the last Senate session of the year, so make sure to come and make your voice heard if you have issues for the Senate!
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The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate passed two resolutions against the Committee on Student Life (CSL)’s controversial decision on the nondiscrimination policy yesterday. The decision, which allowed the University Chaplain to give student religious groups (SRGs) “justifiable departures” from the university’s nondiscrimination policy, was a subject of hot debate last semester, with several senators volunteering to sacrifice their jobs to pass a resolution condemning the decision.
The first resolution, submitted by TCU Judiciary Chair Adam Sax, a senior, as well as Senate Vice President Meredith Goldberg and sophomore Senator Andrew Núñez, complained of “an irresolvable rift in the spirit of the TCU Constitution” caused by the exception of SRGs from the nondiscrimination policy. Citing the university’s mission statement and the “Pachyderm” student handbook, the submitters claimed that the changes to the constitution rendered it both contrary to existing university policy and internally inconsistent. The resolution passed with only one dissenting vote, coming from Senator Stefan Schwarz, a senior.
The second resolution, submitted by Senate President Wyatt Cadley, claimed that “an effective and sustainable nondiscrimination policy must be absolute.” Unlike the first resolution, which claimed that the CSL’s decision was an invalid policy, this resolution would affirm the Senate’s belief that the decision was an act of bad policy, according to Cadley.
Debate on the latter resolution lasted for nearly an hour. Students and senators contended over whether SRGs ought to be able to make discrimination against others a matter of explicit policy and whether the Senate has the power to refuse to fund such groups despite their recognition by the Judiciary. After three calls to question, the resolution passed by roll call, with Schwarz again casting the only dissenting vote.
The body also unanimously passed a minor resolution supporting the usage of Brown and Brew as performance space after closing time. The space is intended to be used for gatherings of over 40 students, allowing performance groups to have larger crowds without needing to hire extra staff for security. Though the idea had been under consideration for some time, it had not been accepted due to concerns about the potential for damage to the food equipment. The resolution suggested a security gate might be installed to avoid accidents without the ongoing cost of staff.
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The Tufts Community Union Senate began its meeting last night with a question−and−answer session with Dean of Undergraduate and Graduate Students John Barker. Barker spoke about the need for an extended orientation experience for freshmen that would address issues like wellness, international immersion and civility.
Barker also asked the Senate about its support of a separate body of students who would give perspective on large campus changes and issues. Some senators questioned the need for a representative student group that would essentially mimic a Senate without budgetary powers.
The Senate unanimously passed a resolution in support of need−blind admissions, though it admitted that a need−blindpolicy is likely unfeasible for the university at this time.
The Anime Brigade and the science fiction and fantasy cinema club Beyond the Light were allocated $135 of a $195 request for their first ever Dragon Ball, a dance event. The Tufts Queer Straight Alliance received $1296.90 to send representatives to a conference. The body allocated $698 to the Tufts chapter of Amnesty International for a letter−writingcampaign, an invitation to an off−campus speaker and Jamnesty, a live music event featuring Tufts bands. In addition, the Brasil Club was allocated $483.46 for their Carnaval event.
Following the vandalism incident at last spring’s Tufts Dance Collective performance, the Senate distributed $840 to the group for pizza, to be served to performers backstage. The funds come as part of a larger process of reforms intended to avoid future incidents at the show.
Student musical theatre group Torn Ticket II received $2,500 to purchase three new microphones for its performers.
The body gave $1,056 to the University Wind Ensemble to send the group on its winter trip, which occurs every three years.
Finally, the Tufts Global China Connection received $11,432,24 to fund their annual China−U.S. Symposium, aweekend−long event that will include a variety of speakers.
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The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate opened session last night with an open forum address on behalf of a student who hopes to open a used book distribution business on campus. While the company has agreed to a profit-sharing arrangement between itself and Tufts, the question remains whether the business would violate the Tufts University Bookstore’s non-competition clause in its contract with the university.
Senators Jessie Serrino, a sophomore, and Ethan Finkelstein, a freshman, won approval to lobby the administration for an extension of the pass/fail deadline. Although the university’s Educational Policy Committee supports extending the deadline to the class drop deadline for freshmen, some members of the committee are considering giving the extension to all students, Serrino said.
Senator and freshman Brain Tesser’s project to push for outdoor benches and study areas also passed.
The body also approved a project by Senator Janna Karatas, a freshman, to attach the Senate’s name to a planned appreciation dinner for janitorial and dining services personnel.
Tufts Canon, a student-written literary journal, received a supplementary funds allocation of $10,000 after a much-debated vote. The funds will cover the journal’s publication through spring of 2013. The group’s request was large because of a high number of submissions this semester, three times the response they received last semester. As a result, the Canon will be publishing a double-sized edition, reducing the number of colors to save in printing costs.
Several senators debated the investment, suggesting that the body should allocate a smaller amount and base next semester’s funding on the community’s response to the double-edition. Others pointed out that the Canon’s staff was using a bulk order deal to save money in the long run. The allocation eventually passed 13-7-2.
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The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate last night passed a resolution in support of the implementation of additional safety measures at the intersection of Packard Avenue and Powderhouse Boulevard.
The resolution, which passed unanimously, comes in response to an incident on Nov. 8 in which a Tufts student was struck by a motor vehicle at that intersection and hospitalized.
Citing students’ concerns alongside a 2007 public safety report by the City of Somerville, the resolution calls for the university to work with government officials to “take immediate action in advocating for further pedestrian safety measures placed at the intersection of Packard Avenue and Powderhouse Boulevard in Somerville, which would force drivers to reduce speed and come to a full stop at the intersection.” The resolution will also be forwarded to Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone and Director of Community Relations Barbara Rubel.
Senators debated multiple points at length, arguing over whether the resolution should include more specific suggestions for how the government should improve the intersection. The original language included mention of four−way traffic lights, crossing buttons at crosswalks and creating a “raised intersection” to deter drivers from crossing too quickly. The body eventually decided that the city’s engineers would be better equipped to make such suggestions.
The Tufts Anthropology Collective received $458 in New Group Funding to defray the costs of attending two documentary screenings and a museum. The allocation was scaled down from the group’s $580 request, as the Allocations Board (ALBO) felt that buying tickets for up to 15 attendees was unjustified for a 10−member group.
The TCU Judiciary was allocated $397.50, the entire budget of the Tufts Judicial Advocates, a group that seeks to advise students going through the Tufts judicial system. Though the group has existed for many years, they were cut from last year’s budget when it was decided that they were not a cohesive enough group to warrant funding.
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