The 51st legislature of the Student Government Association (SGA) funded $345 for “For the Kids Week,” an event organized by Camp Kesem, Emory Miracle and Kappa Sigma fraternity, and recognized “Thankserving” as an annual SGA initiative at Monday night’s legislative session. SGA tabled a funding request bill for Emory African Student Association (ASA)’s 2018 “Taste of Africa” event for the second consecutive week due to confusion over the amount of funding requested by the group.

Bill 51sl49, which passed unanimously, provides funding for the first “For the Kids Week.” The multi-day charity event is set for Feb. 26 to March 3 and raises funds for Camp Kesem and Emory Miracle.

The bill was submitted by Kappa Sigma Philanthropy Chair Neil Kumar (19B), Camp Kesem Fundraising Gala Coordinator Vijay Joshi (17Ox, 19C), Emory Miracle Co-president Emma Cole (17Ox, 19C) and SGA Freshman Representative Austin Graham (21C). The money that the groups received from SGA will go toward offsetting the cost of fundraising events, including dunk tanks and donuts at Wonderful Wednesday and Blue Donkey coffee for a Feb. 27 sale. The groups are hoping to raise between $1,200 to $1,500.

“Any help we get from student organizations … increases the amount of money we are able to give to the philanthropic causes rather than fund the events,” Joshi said.

The legislature also unanimously passed Bill 51sl48, which recognizes “Thankserving” as an annual SGA initiative to be executed by the SGA vice president of student experience. The bill was submitted by SGA Junior Representative Maddy Zapata (19C), Harry Teplow (18C), Frances Connor (19C) and SGA Vice President of Student Experience Daniella Moreno-Kaste (19C).

Thankserving’s collaboration with Campus Kitchen and the Emory Panhellenic Council will provide food and volunteers to make this a zero cost event,” the bill reads.

Teplow said he had been formulating an idea for an event where Emory students serve Emory Dining staff but did enact the plan until last semester.

“The idea [behind the event] is to foster a more mutually respected relationship between students and dining staff,” Teplow said.

Zapata and Connor will take over planning duties next year with the vice president of student experience set to serve that leadership role in the years after. The pair said they want to cement the event’s status as an annual affair.

“It’s an event that brings many parts of the community together,” Zapata said.

The bill proposes a tentative event date of Nov. 16 from 3 to 5 p.m. because that is when most Emory Dining staff members are able to attend the event.

SGA tabled Bill 51sl46 after it remained unclear how much funding the ASA was requesting from SGA. Before the Monday night meeting, bill sponsor and ASA President Clementina Nyarko (18C) emailed SGA representatives to tell them that ASA had received $2,971 in funding from other sources but did not specify a reduction in funding from their original $8,000 request. Nyarko and bill co-sponsor ASA Treasurer Onyi Ohamadike (16Ox, 18C) did not attend the meeting. Bill co-sponsor ASA Sophomore Representative Ngozi Ugboh (20C) was at the meeting but unable to answer legislator’s questions regarding funding.

College Council (CC) denied earlier in February the ASA funding request after representatives from ASA did not attend their scheduled supplementary budget request hearing.

ASA is hoping to receive about $500 to $1,000 from the Graduate Student Government Association (GSGA), according to SGA Executive Vice President Natasha Armstrong (18B).

The annual “Taste of Africa” event, scheduled for April 6 at the Fox Theatre in Downtown Atlanta “unites people of different backgrounds in the Emory community, and orchestrates a call to action concerning Africa while raising awareness about the continent,” according to the bill.

The legislature previously expressed concern over the low percentage of Emory students projected to attend the public event. Of 400 estimated attendees, ASA projected that 120 would be Emory undergraduates, 90 graduate students, 100 non-Emory students, 40 Emory affiliates (faculty, staff and administrators) and 50 Atlanta community members, according to ASA’s presentation last week.

If SGA grants the full $8,000 in funding, it would be the largest amount of funding for any single event this year.

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Editor-at-Large | aokluge@emory.edu
Alex Klugerman is a senior from Rockville Maryland in the Goizueta Business School, majoring in Business Administration with concentrations in Marketing, Strategy Management Consulting and Film & Media Management. On the Wheel, he’s previously served as News Editor, Associate Editor and Interim Emory Life Editor. For his coverage of the Migos booking scam, he was selected as a finalist for the Society of Professional Journalist in the Breaking News Reporting category in the 2017 Region 3 Mark of Excellence Awards. He also placed first in the 2017 Georgia College Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest in the category Best News Article Based on Investigative Reporting. Currently, he is involved in the Wheel’s fundraising and planning efforts to commemorate its 100th Anniversary. Outside of the Wheel, Klugerman has interned with CNN in their Mobile + TV Apps product management division and enjoys cycling and travel.