Members of the Campus Life Council unanimously passed a resolution calling for a letter to be sent to the Office of Student Affairs asking for the creation of a University sponsored gender relations center and approved the drafting of a separate letter requesting the reimplementation of transportation services for students with temporary injuries during their meeting on Monday.
The proposed gender relations center would replace the existing student-sponsored Women's Resource Center. It will educate both male and female Notre Dame students on important women's issues, including rape, said Emily Chin, chief of staff in the Office of Student Body President and a member of the CLC.
The name, Chin said, speaks of the proposed center's broader purpose.
"We wanted to not limit it to women," she said. "We want to open it to anyone on campus and educate males and females."
During the meeting, members also continued a debate focused on on-campus transportation for students with temporary disabilities. The Office for Students with Disabilities has traditionally provided limited transportation using golf carts for injured students. The policy, however, was discontinued due to budget cuts.
Members passed a resolution supporting the reinstatement of these or equivalent services and a temporary task force formed to address the issue will draft a letter to the Office of Student Affairs outlining CLC's stance and presenting research they compiled.
The task force includes Charlie Ebersol, Student Union Board Manager, David Moss, assistant vice president of Student Affairs, and Chin. The three reported that between seven and 10 students sustain injuries that limit their ability to walk each month, according to University Health Services. CLC members also considered asking each residence hall to donate money to fund the reinstatement of services.
"We're hoping to get this done before the real snow comes down," Chin said.
In other CLC news:
u The Senior Privileges Task Force updated the Council on progress toward establishing reserved parking for on-campus seniors. The group said that while Bill Kirk, associate vice president of Student Affairs, expressed interest in the proposal, members of Notre Dame Security Police were concerned about their ability to enforce it.
"Given the fact that NDSP has reservations about it we're still working out the details," said Jeremy Lao, student body vice president.
u Members continued a previous discussion on the quality of landscaping on the University's grounds. Wyatt Maxwell, a member of CLC, said that he believed the appearance of landscaping around campus has deteriorated this year. CLC targeted eight areas that they consider merit the most attention and will present their findings in a letter to the Office of Student Affairs. Representatives also plan to meet with Landscaping Services to discuss the issue.
