Ohio University Student Senate held a vote of no confidence to remove Vice President Isaac Davis in an executive session Wednesday.
During the executive session, 22 of 32 voting members voted to remove Davis because he was not fit to remain in office, according to a Student Senate statement. Current Senate members will be nominated to fill the vacancy during Senate’s next meeting Feb. 28.
The first bill the Senate passed was introduced by the Governmental Affairs Commission. The bill would allow Senate to support an Athens City Council ordinance to suspend parking fees from Dec. 15 to Jan. 12, 2025.
Dan Gordillo, governmental affairs commissioner, said he wanted to support the initiative introduced to City Council by Councilmember Solvieg Spjeldnes to foster a relationship with city officials.
“This piece of legislation that City Councilmember Spjeldnes put forward is catered for students here at Ohio University,” Gordillo said. “The days of the legislation is our winter break, which I assure you is no coincidence”
The next bill discussed would support the affordability of printed material for students and would prohibit professors from forbidding the use of electronic devices to take notes in class.
“This bill aims to decrease the required payments for printing by reducing the amount of assignments and worksheets, which instructors can require students to print physical copies of,” Academic Affairs Commissioner Dylan Demonte said.
University Life Commissioner Olivia Kaiser was the secondary sponsor for the bill and mentioned personal experience of not using electronics in a class to take notes.
“Technology must be embraced in the classroom as we are in a digital age, and many spend thousands of dollars in technology to learn, they should be allowed to learn in the way that fits best for them,” Kaiser said.
The Senate voted and proceeded to pass this bill as well.
The final bill presented to Senate on Wednesday would allow Student Senate to support the improvement of public transportation within the city of Athens.
“There's no doubt in my mind that every student who has been on campus for a significant amount of time has dealt with transportation issues while living in Athens, which is something that can be easily addressed by Athens public transit,” Caden Hibbs, environmental affairs commissioner, said.
Hibbs also provided the Senate with some student testimonies to demonstrate the impact the bill would have on the OU community. After hearing the testimonies, the Senate voted, passing the bill.
