Senate Meeting

Senate Meeting called to order

1. Regular meeting of the senate, Monday October 26, 2026, 10:00 a.m., Alumni Center. President Arguijo presided. Secretary Morgan recorded.

2. Invocation

3. Pledge of Allegiance

4. Roll Call

   1. Present: President Arguijo, Vice President Keeling, Secretary Morgan, PR Chair Nunez, Senator Do, Senator Johnston, Senator Ju, Senator (Phena) Kayode, Senator Masem, Senator Ortiz, Senator Sherman.

   2. Absent: Treasurer Edwards, Senator Gonzalez, Senator (Phosa) Kayode, Senator Landry, Senator Nguyen.

Approval of the Minutes

1. Senator Do motioned to approve the minutes of the October 19 meeting and Senator Ju seconded. The room voted by a show of hands.

2. The minutes of the October 19 meeting have passed.

Financial Report

1. President Arguijo presented. Treasurer Edwards is now officially Treasurer.

2. There are no changes beyond the bills and receipts already added. The university allocation for the semester is $49,364.59, of which $34,367.00 is spent or committed and $15,148.89 is available: $10,148.89 in the operating budget and $5,000.00 in the leadership fund, none of which has been spent.

3. The difference from the last report is the $375.00 allocation for Bill 2628.

Business

1. Bill 2632: Impact Through Prayer

   1. President Arguijo presented the bill, her capstone project as an ASC Scholar. The purpose of the bill is to fund two Bible studies with Vagabond Missions for their boys' and girls' prayer group, on October 29 and November 5. Each student will receive supplies to make a rosary and a goodie bag of hygiene products and snacks; many of the teens who attend are inner-city students who need help financially. They are asking for $100.00 in total, and any unused funds will be returned to SGA.

   2. PR Chair Nunez asked how many goodie bags there will be. President Arguijo said Vagabond Missions hopes for six girls and six boys, so she made 12 bags.

   3. Senator Ju asked whether the bill meets the rule that a bill come two weeks before its event, since the dates are October 29 and November 5. President Arguijo said the two-week rule is for events, because an event should not be promoted before it has funding, and a capstone project is different.

   4. PR Chair Nunez asked whether the rule applies to every bill. President Arguijo said it does not: a purchase such as the bike racks has no event date to be two weeks ahead of. The rule was adopted last year and is not in the constitution, and the senate can add it to the constitution to make it official.

   5. Senator Masem motioned to approve and Senator Johnston seconded.

   6. Voting via roll call (including online votes), 11 for, 0 against, 0 abstain, 1 no ballot: Senator Do for, Senator Gonzalez for, Senator Johnston for, Senator Ju for, Senator (Phena) Kayode for, Senator (Phosa) Kayode for, Senator Landry no ballot, Senator Masem for, Senator Nguyen for, PR Chair Nunez for, Senator Ortiz for, Senator Sherman for.

   7. Bill 2632 has passed.

2. Bill 2629: Letters of Love

   1. The purpose of the bill, written by Vice President Keeling, is to make the Newman Letters of Love Club an official club of Newman University. The club has met all requirements in the SGA constitution and bylaws.

   2. Grace Long and Katie Wilson presented the club. Grace said it is tied to the Letters of Love Global organization, which has clubs at high schools and universities across the country. Members meet to make handwritten cards for hospitalized children with life-threatening illnesses; the club sends the cards to Letters of Love Global, which sends them on to children in hospitals in the area.

   3. Senator (Phena) Kayode asked when the club meets. Grace said the club plans to meet every month, with themed sessions such as Valentine's Day or Christmas cards.

   4. President Arguijo asked who is on the executive board. Grace said herself, Katie and two other students, one of them Senator Ju.

   5. Vice President Keeling said the Club Relations Committee has approved the club and the paperwork for its business office account is done, with $200.00 allotted. The senate still votes on the club so its approval is recorded on the website.

   6. Senator (Phena) Kayode motioned to approve and Senator Do seconded.

   7. Voting via roll call (including online votes), 10 for, 0 against, 1 abstain, 1 no ballot: Senator Do for, Senator Gonzalez for, Senator Johnston for, Senator Ju abstain, Senator (Phena) Kayode for, Senator (Phosa) Kayode for, Senator Landry no ballot, Senator Masem for, Senator Nguyen for, PR Chair Nunez for, Senator Ortiz for, Senator Sherman for.

   8. Bill 2629 has passed. Letters of Love is an official club.

3. Bill 2630: Art Club

   1. The purpose of the bill, written by Vice President Keeling, is to make the Newman University Art Club an official club of Newman University. The club has met all requirements in the SGA constitution and bylaws.

   2. Senator Ortiz, the club's PR chair, presented the club. She said its president, AJ, founded it because Newman had no art club. Members learned about two weeks ago that the club was not official, and she thanked the Club Relations Committee for making it official with its own account.

   3. Vice President Keeling clarified that the club was approved last year, but its paperwork was never filled out, so she completed it along with the Letters of Love paperwork. The club spent a small amount without an account, so it is allotted the remainder of its allocation, and it will now have its own account.

   4. Senator Do motioned to approve and Senator Ju seconded.

   5. Voting via roll call (including online votes), 10 for, 0 against, 1 abstain, 1 no ballot: Senator Do for, Senator Gonzalez for, Senator Johnston for, Senator Ju for, Senator (Phena) Kayode for, Senator (Phosa) Kayode for, Senator Landry no ballot, Senator Masem for, Senator Nguyen for, PR Chair Nunez for, Senator Ortiz abstain, Senator Sherman for.

   6. Bill 2630 has passed. Art Club is an official club.

4. Constitution and Bylaw Changes

   1. President Arguijo presented the changes proposed by the Constitution Amendment Committee. The senate will vote on them next week. Both the list of changes and the official document are on the Drive, and members should send any other changes before the vote.

   2. Constitution

      1. "Voting spreadsheet" becomes the official website, under Senators and on page 12.

      2. Page 9: a student may not run for more than one executive position at the same time, but an executive candidate may run for a senate seat at the same time. The exception "unless approved by the advisor first" is removed.

      3. Page 13: both senator scholarships stay as written: $25.00 per semester ($50.00 a year) for every senator, plus $100.00 toward the graduation fee for senators who have served five consecutive semesters.

      4. In the stipend section, Senate Leader becomes Chief Justice.

   3. Bylaws

      1. Page 2: "students" becomes "candidates", and a repeated "must" is removed.

      2. PR Chair: the intent-to-run form and advisor approval are replaced by what SGA already does. Candidates must contact the executive board before the deadline and before campaigning, are notified of their approval, and must present to the senate. Item six keeps the requirement that candidates be full-time students and drops the exception attached to it.

      3. Chief Justice: the same change; the intent-to-run form is replaced by contacting the executive board for approval.

      4. Page 6: grammar corrections.

      5. Clubs: the limit of no more than three senior-status members is replaced by a requirement of at least one non-senior member, so the club can continue. Many current clubs are mostly seniors.

      6. Confidentiality agreement: SGA has not been signing it from the start of the year. It will be signed when needed, such as for an ethics meeting that must stay confidential.

5. Bill 2631: Pumpkin Painting Event

   1. President Arguijo presented the bill for the Psychology Club and Art Club, written by Nathan Atwater. The purpose of the bill is to let students express their artistic abilities and creative spirit through pumpkin painting. The clubs will buy 12 sets of five mini pumpkins from Walmart at $3.28 a set, 60 pumpkins for $39.36. They are asking for $42.00 in total, to cover tax and price changes.

   2. Senator Ju motioned to approve and Senator Masem seconded.

   3. Voting via roll call (including online votes), 10 for, 0 against, 1 abstain, 1 no ballot: Senator Do for, Senator Gonzalez for, Senator Johnston for, Senator Ju for, Senator (Phena) Kayode for, Senator (Phosa) Kayode for, Senator Landry no ballot, Senator Masem for, Senator Nguyen for, PR Chair Nunez for, Senator Ortiz abstain, Senator Sherman for.

   4. Bill 2631 has passed.

Call to audience

1. Grace and Katie of Letters of Love attended. Grace said to keep up the good work.

Committee Information and Updates

1. Constitution

   1. President Arguijo said the committee met this morning and made the changes presented under Business. She will make them official and correct the grammar, and the senate will vote next week.

2. Ethics

   1. The committee has not met yet. An issue with how the website shows excused and unexcused absences is being fixed first, so that everyone works from the same record. The committee will then meet to decide whether it needs to meet with anyone.

3. Clubs

   1. Vice President Keeling and Senator Do met last week with the student starting a film club. He has an executive team and has written a constitution, but has not answered her first, second or third email. A meeting is coming soon; if Vice President Keeling is in class, it may be held with Treasurer Edwards, as last time.

4. Security and Grounds

   1. Secretary Morgan said the committee meets next week.

5. Jet Resource Hub

   1. President Arguijo said the committee is still looking into a donation. It will then write a bill to restock the Jet Resource Hub and plan the Chick-fil-A event, which it wants to hold in November so it can be promoted before the end of the semester.

Advisor Updates

1. Dean Chambers was absent and had sent word that she had no updates.

2. Katherine Reynoso attended. She said she was taking notes and would also get the minutes from the website.

Executive Updates

1. President Arguijo, Vice President Keeling, Secretary Morgan, Treasurer Edwards and PR Chair Nunez had no updates.

2. Chief Justice

   1. No one else ran for Chief Justice, so Senator Masem is the new Chief Justice. He joins the executive board and will contact senators so the meetings with them can continue.

New Business

1. Jet Refuel Station

   1. Vice President Keeling said SGA will buy cups for the Jet Refuel Station from Sam's Club, which is cheaper and more convenient; the station has not had cups for a while. Members who oppose this should tell the executive team.

2. Pickleball

   1. PR Chair Nunez said ASA, HALO and Campus Ministry are holding a pickleball event at Chicken N Pickle on Thursday from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., free to all students.

3. Wichita Accord Town Hall

   1. Secretary Morgan said the Newman Institute for AI and the Common Good is holding the Wichita Accord Town Hall this evening at 5:30 p.m. in the conference center in Dugan Library: a public forum where students and members of the community discuss the advances in AI. Few students have RSVP'd so far, and the Institute wants students represented.

Adjournment

1. Before adjournment, President Arguijo announced the week's events: dodgeball at 7:00 p.m. on Monday; women's soccer at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday; the Psychology Club and Art Club bake sale and pumpkin painting at 1:00 p.m. and Chicken N Pickle from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Thursday; the blood drive from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Friday; and Halloween on Saturday. She asked members to be safe on Halloween and, since they represent Newman, not to wear Newman merchandise if they go out.

2. Senator (Phena) Kayode motioned to adjourn and Senator Ju seconded. The vote was by a show of hands.

3. Meeting adjourned.