Gosman student faculty advocates for an improved weight room

■ The student petition to renovate the Gosman general weight room has reached a large audience of students, faculty, and alumni.

By ANNA MARTIN JUSTICE EDITOR

Brandeis students have been exercising in a gym filled with unsafe and broken equipment.

On Feb. 21, personal trainers in the Gosman weight room at the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center released a petition to the Brandeis community, calling for refurbishment of the space.

This petition states that the weight room needs new equipment and renovations. It lists examples of features that need to be improved or replaced and provides solutions to each problem.

As of April 24, the petition has 670 signatures from Brandeis students, faculty, and alumni. The organizers of this project have been spreading the word around campus, through placement of posters, social media, and word of mouth.

“As a personal trainer I’ve worked at Brandeis for around two or so years. At this point, when you end up using the common weight room area, you notice that a lot of the equipment is very old,” personal trainer Mo Re Kim ’24 said in an April 20 Zoom interview with the Justice.

Kim confirmed with Fitness Coordinator Kat Page that the equipment in the weight room has been there for 10-20 years. All equipment exhibits signs of wear and tear and should be replaced after this amount of time if heavy maintenance is not performed.

“You have a hundred pound load, and it breaks, and you go flying forward. That’s not the most ideal situation,” Kim said. He explained that the equipment does break, and this unreliable equipment can become a health hazard as well as a significant liability for all students and staff that utilize this campus resource. white, disabled, or queer students and faculty,” the student wrote.

Kim noted that it is not just students who use the gym facility; it is common to see professors and other Brandeis faculty members in the space as well. He explained that the condition of the weight room is a community issue, not just something that affects a small portion of the University population.

The ultimate goal of this project is to completely replace all equipment in the Gosman weight room. The organizers would also love to move equipment to other parts of campus, making working out more accessible.

They have received funding to revamp the gym located in the Village, which will allow community members to complete full body workouts at times when the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center is closed.

“We are hoping to get details finalized and switch out all weight room equipment by the end of the fall 2023 semester. If not, by the end of the spring 2024 semester,” Kim said.

The organizers of this project are hoping to receive the funds they require for this renovation from the Community Emergency and Enhancement Fund. The petition has been put into place so that if the organizers do not receive enough funding, they will be able to request further funding from the University with the support of the community.

“The Student Union is also getting involved. Right now, there are discussions with the director of Athletics and the future Student Union President, Noah Risley ’24, so that they can see if they can potentially start a fundraiser during the 75th anniversary of the University,” Kim said.

The team is determined to find the funding that they need to create a safe weight room for all who wish to use it.

The survey also asked questions about areas of interest for future programming to improve DEI on campus. Respondents provided suggestions like continuing support for ICC club events, facilitating discussion panels and teach-ins, creating compulsory DEI courses, and improving inclusive hiring and recruitment efforts. A complete report of the survey with recommendations for further practices will be released in the near future.

The town hall concluded with a brief Q&A session, which discussed questions about how the five constituent offices planned to work together to ensure cohesive planning and implementation, as well as evaluating metrics for DEI and critical work for the upcoming academic year.

One attendee posed a question suggesting that DEI initiatives may cause white cisgender male students to feel uncomfortable from experiencing a loss of opportunity and asked how ODEI planned to address this possibility.

Representatives from each constituent office took different approaches to answering the question. Tabor from OEO emphasized that everyone belongs to some protected category and can come to OEO if they believe they have experienced discrimination and harassment. Cancino provided a similar response, suggesting that while the GSC centers marginalized communities like LGBTQ+ students and staff, they welcome conversations with anyone, including people who may be encountering these diverse identities for the first time. Greenstein emphasized that Ombuds values differences and the understanding that everyone has something to contribute. “DEI would love to work itself out of a job. That day will come when we all accept each other, and [when] our differences are welcomed here,” he said.

McNeal from the Office of DEI Education and Learning Initiatives clarified the misconceptions in the attendee’s question. “The notion that focusing on DEI empowers people of color or those at the margins at the expense of those who are part of the dominant culture is an illusion,” he said. “Diversity does not mean eliminating white cisgender men. They are included in that picture. What we are doing … is making sure those groups of people who have been on the margin, who have been disempowered, who have been oppressed, and who are experiencing unnoticed and unnamed aggressions on a regular basis, have an opportunity to have that remedied.”

Bitsóí concluded the event by emphasizing the importance of DEI at Brandeis and in the larger community, stating: “When you creatwe an environment for the most underserved, for the most underrepresented … if you create a successful and supportive environment for those people, then you create a successful environment for all.”

Why have there been so many Student Union elections?

■ Brandeis students constantly get emails about Student Union elections. Why are there so many and what do they accomplish?

By ANNA MARTIN JUSTICE EDITOR

The Brandeis Student Union is made up of five executive branches: the Executive Board, the Allocations Board, the Senate, the Treasury, and the Judiciary. The Student Union serves as the student government, as well as community organizers and student advocates. The students elected must follow the Undergraduate Constitution during the time they spend serving. The Bylaws define all Union operations and are carefully maintained by the Student Union Senate.

The Student Union plays a large role on the Brandeis campus, as they are the point of contact for community members with complaints and concerns. They are also in charge of club funding, which has a big impact on all students because it determines each club’s budget.

All Student Union positions are open for election annually. The Union is constitutionally required to hold four elections every academic year. These elections include one in the fall, one in the winter, and two in the spring. If not all positions are filled after each election, the Union is required to hold another election for all seats available within 15 days of the previous election.

Holding extra elections ensures that the Student Union is complete, providing the community with a full student government.

“Usually, we have an info session two days before the candidate bios are sent to the student body. These sessions are led by the

Chief of Elections, where all rules and questions are answered and discussed,” Student Union Secretary Carol Kornworcel ’26 told the Justice in an April 23 interview.

Once the biographies of all students running for positions are released to the student body over email, there is a week of campaigning before the ballot opens.

The biographies sent out by Student Union usually contain a photograph of the candidate and a short paragraph detailing what they hope to accomplish if they are chosen to serve a term in office.

This campaigning is often seen in the forms of social media marketing and in-person office hours, where students are invited to meet and talk with these potential student representatives.

Many students create Instagram pages to share personal information and campaign platforms in the hopes of connecting with voters.

“According to the most recent election report from the March Presidential election, about 36% of the Brandeis undergraduates voted in that election,” Student Union President Peyton Gillespie ’25 said.

The Student Union heavily relies on the involvement of students, as they are required to both run for and fill all positions as well as vote for the candidates that they support.

“I encourage anyone with ideas, concerns, or the like to run for Student Union — people running for office also ensures that we have less seats to fill and thus conduct less elections. I also encourage students to speak with candidates, read candidate bios, and vote for those candidates you believe to best represent your needs,” Gillespie said.