The first Senate meeting of the summer semester saw the approval of 53 new Cabinet members, ranging from agency chairs to presidential advisers.
Student Body President Ashton Charles touted the qualifications of each of the 53 candidates, all of whom were eventually approved. A Q-and-A session, which sometimes resembled a debate, preceded the vote for each candidate.
The Senate approved Zack Goldstein as the new chairman for Accent Speakers Bureau, but not without 15 minutes of discussion over the issue of access to VIP tickets for Accent-sponsored events.
VIP tickets to Accent-sponsored events are made available to senators and Accent staffers on a first-come, first-serve basis, according to Senate secretary Glenda Frederick.
Student Alliance Sen. Alan Yanuck, representative for the Keys Residential Complex, pressed Goldstein about the issue of fairness.
“Many of the people who voted for me have said that these tickets are not a good idea,” Yanuck said. “No students are more important than any other students.”
Safety was Goldstein’s primary concern.
“Knowing who’s sitting closest to the speaker helps us,” he said.
Although security has always been a concern, U.S. Sen. John Kerry’s 2007 appearance at UF, during which a UF student was Tasered by university police, underscored event organizers’ need to know who is sitting close to the speakers, Goldstein said.
Kyle Calhoun, newly appointed Student Government Productions chair, proposed the creation of an Accent and SGP fan club that would hold a lottery for members to win the VIP tickets.
Calhoun said he would meet with lottery winners before the event to screen potentially dangerous guests.
In addition to approving Cabinet appointments and arguing about VIP tickets, the Senate passed a resolution honoring Thomas Hollister, a UF electrical engineering student who was recently killed when a tree fell on his car while driving in the Panhandle.
