SGA holds administrative forum during club representative meeting
- Bella Grimaldi
- Apr 11
- 4 min read
By Bella Grimaldi Asst. News Editor SGA held its biannual Administrative Forum for students to raise concerns about the University’s executive offices on April 8. The administrators in attendance included President Nancy Niemi; Meg Nowak Borrego, vice president of Student Affairs; Sarah Gallegos, executive director of Student Experience and Career Development; Kim Dexter, assistant vice president of Human Resources and Equal Opportunity; Glenn Cochran, associate dean of students; Ann McDonald, chief of staff and general counsel; Kristen Porter-Utley, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs; Michael Newmark, director of Dining Services; Harry Singh, Framingham State Police Department Sergeant; Eric Gustafson, vice president of Development and Alumni Relations; Lorretta Holloway, vice president of Student Success; Robert Totino, vice president of Finance, Technology, and Administration; Iris Godes, vice president of Enrollment Management; and Jeffrey Coleman, vice president for Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement. The event was moderated by Student Trustee Jeremy McDonald. McDonald opened the meeting and asked what the proposed changes in tuition and fees for the upcoming year in the areas of housing, tuition, and meal plans are. According to Totino, the proposed change in tuition and fees for next academic year is approximately a 2.9% increase, or about $781. This is approximately $301 for academic costs, $290 for the average dorm, and $190 for an average meal plan. He said the increase for the previous year was 2.5%, or approximately $660.
According to Totino, the upcoming year’s increase is higher than the previous year’s due to the “large increases” in labor costs and a rise in payroll.
He said his office will have to work with the Board of Trustees at the end of April for a Finance Committee Meeting.
The Board of Trustees will be voting on this increase in early May, according to Totino.
Sophomore Paige Rainville, art club president, asked about accessibility to the May Hall basement studios and fallout shelter located in the basement.
Rainville said the broken elevator in May Hall has made the basement inaccessible for students who use wheelchairs and walking aids and made it harder for students to join the art club.
She said she brought her concerns to SGA and was told accessibility to the basement wouldn’t be “feasible.”
Totino said, “Our director of Facilities, Danny Giard, has looked at May Hall to see if there are any alternatives to help students reach the ground floor or certain areas of May Hall, and I know they tried to bring a consultant to look at it - it's not conducive to do that.”
Totino added, “I'm asking my staff to start taking inventory of buildings so that we can see what the useful lives are of these mechanical operations, roofs, electrical systems, plumbing systems, the elevators - things like that.”
He said the Facilities team is working closely with Nowak Borrego’s office to notify students as quickly as possible to find ways for them to access club spaces, classes, and studios.
Totino said he will work with his team and follow up with Rainville to see what can be done for the rest of the semester. Sophomore Khoa Bùi, SGA treasurer, asked, “Is there any current or future possibility of a scholarship program for international students like myself?” Godes said selecting international students for scholarships is “tricky” because scholarships are based on financial need, which is determined by FAFSA. According to Godes, international students aren’t eligible to complete FAFSA. She said, “Your names don’t come up when we’re looking for students who qualify for scholarships.” Gustafson said many of FSU’s scholarships are funded by donors to the University, and they sort of set the criteria for which the scholarship is awarded.” He added he would be willing to start working with donors to build scholarship funds for international students. Sophomore Adnan Sajid asked about having more Halal food options available for Muslim students. According to Newmark, Dining Services began offering Halal options two years ago. He said Halal hamburgers and chicken are always available, on request, at the grill station in the Dining Commons. Halal hamburgers are also available on request at the Ram’s Den Grille. He said Dining Services is looking to add Halal chicken to the new Kalamata station. Dining Services has expanded all catering on campus to incorporate Halal options, according to Newmark. He added Dining Services is working with the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement to incorporate more food options for Arab Heritage Month. Junior Cristian Acuna, president of Brother2Brother, asked about the possibility of extending the gym hours and opening Sandella’s on the weekends. Newmark said extending Sandella’s hours of operation is “always on the table” and a topic he has discussed with Totino. He added opening Sandella’s on the weekends last spring semester found some success. According to Newmark, Dining Services has previously offered additional catering on weekends for students. This programming is also always under review by Dining Services. In response to Acuna’s question about extending the gym hours, Nowak Borrego said, “One of the things that the institution is doing is looking at how we distribute work-study money to campus offices, and I think the improved plan for the future - meaning next year - may allow for us to do that. But we really can’t do that until our students are here and working at the fitness center.” She added student workers would have to be staffed for more hours in order for the gym to be open beyond 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Nowak Borrego said she is conducting a “weekend survey” to see what students are doing on the weekend and what services the University should provide. She said it “is a way to tell us when we should be doing this. If we have a lot of students here on Friday night, then Friday night might be the night we want to keep Sandella’s” open.