The student senate met Wednesday for its first meeting of the spring 2026 semester. The session was brief and resulted in the approval of senate letter SL 2526-01, which called on the Office of Sustainability to provide student body president Jerry Vielhauer information related to recycling on campus.
“We are writing on behalf of the Student Senate to request information regarding the availability of recycling options on campus,” the statement read. “This information will allow us to assess the costs and benefits of a potential resolution to expand recycling access for students.”
The letter, jointly sponsored by Dunne Hall senator Kyle Lauckner and Ryan Hall senator Elena Rossen, pointed to specific instances of environmentally unsustainable practices on campus such as the use of non-reusable items like water bottles and soda cans. The letter continued to claim that due to busy schedules, students often rely on companies like Amazon to ship products to their dorms, which in turn creates packaging waste negatively impacting the environment.
“Before proposing any changes or contacting other campus organizations, we seek to gather as much information as we can on the issue to assess the feasibility and the necessity of a plan,” the statement read. “As such, we kindly ask if you might be able to provide the Student Body President with information … which he will then share with the Student Senate.”
Prior to the vote, Lauckner and Rossen both argued in favor of the letter’s merits. More specifically, Lauckner emphasized that it would be a useful first step in elevating the conversation around sustainability on campus.
“The letter [serves] as a useful tool to give the Office of Sustainability room to describe some of the efforts they've been doing,” he said. “I don't know about you, but sometimes it doesn't feel like I'm hearing about all the great things that they're doing. This is a way to give them the floor and share it in a non-hostile manner … I hope you all support it.”
Rossen concurred with Lauckner that as the representation of the student body tasked with promoting student voices on campus, it was important that the student senate approve the letter.
“I would like to just continue with that,” she said following Lauckner’s remarks. “We want to promote sustainability at the senate, where it's supposed to be the voice for students on campus. So we're just kind of adding a bridge in order to … let students know about their work.”
The senate voted and the motion passed unanimously. This concluded general orders and opened the floor for announcements, including Walsh Hall’s signature Mr. ND event, set for Thursday, Jan. 15. It will run from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Washington Hall, and tickets are $5.
“In addition to Mr. ND, O'Neill is throwing Miss ND in a couple of weeks on January 29, and we're currently looking for girls dorm volunteers,” he said. “If you know anybody, you can let me know.”
