Members of Campus Life Council (CLC) discussed reopening the Campus Bike Shop, innovations in The Shirt Project and the new academic focus of the First Year Orientation (FYO) program Monday.
Student body president emeritus Pat McCormick requested a vote on a resolution supporting the continuation of the Campus Bike Shop. CLC voted unanimously in support of the resolution.
Senior Paul Baranay, vice president of The Shirt Committee, presented the new design of this year's Shirt. He said the student-run committee chose to highlight Notre Dame's past with a more complex design than in past years.
"[The design] captures the tradition of Notre Dame, its past players and rising players, along with several accomplishments," Baranay said. "The front [of The Shirt] is a throwback to a "Shake Down the Thunder" design of the 90's with Knute Rockne's face.
Baranay said the choice of partnering with the Alta Gracia brand this year was novel, but kept in line with The Shirt's original mission.
"They were a great company with a history of success and a benefit of living wages for their workers in the Dominican Republic," he said. "The shirt itself provides charity for students and organizations that need it."
Sophomore Alex Doctor, a member of the Student Campus Orientation Committee, then spoke to CLC members about refocusing the FYO program. The goal of
FYO is to foster the social, spiritual and academic development of each student, she said.
"We really want to develop the academic portion, which hasn't been as focused on in the past," she said. "The challenge we see in the FYO process is that the dorms and staff are focused on the social aspect and sometimes forget that they're preparing freshmen for an academic journey."
Doctor said the team also worked with the First Undergraduate Experience in Leadership (FUEL) program to institute a series of training sessions for FYO staff.
These meetings are meant to start conversation on cultural competency and inclusion, she said.
"We're really hoping through these meetings to emphasize this feeling of cultural competency, inclusion, a new type of event, diversity with events," she said. "By the time FYO comes around, we'll have a new, more inclusive process."
The Orientation Committee will meet with each of the dorms separately to ensure programming with purpose, Doctor said.
"We're trying to make it a University-wide effort this year," she said.
CLC postponed a discussion on the Town Hall meetings held in response to racial harassment on campus until next week. McCormick said members will discuss a resolution thanking the University for their work in stopping discrimination on campus.
"We've been incredibly grateful in student government for the work of the Office of Student Affairs, which was strongly represented at the Town Hall meetings.
There's a real sense that this is an opportunity for conflict transformation," he said. "Particularly as we move forward, it is a major point of the new administration, and we will honor that accordingly."
