By Todd Kleiboer | Co-Editor

At the first Student Government Association meeting of the fall semester, the new Dean of Students Dr. Thomas Newsom spoke about plans and initiatives his office had for the fall semester, and five new senators were confirmed.

To start, Newsom said that he was excited for his first entire semester at A&M-Commerce after coming late in the spring of 2018 and that he “felt like a freshman again.”

One of his initiatives was to streamline the student forums started last semester.

“I want you [the students] to have a voice and to feel like you have a voice,” Newsome said.

Another initiative was to increase engagement between students, faculty and staff outside of normal class time by hosting events that invite faculty and staff to attend.

One such event is Leave Your Legacy on Sept. 6, and Newsom said that the number of faculty accepting invites was a promising start to this initiative.

Newsom also spoke about the “branding” of the Rayburn Students Center and other buildings, and this would mean that the university would focus on creating student-friendly spaces with the help of outside companies.

Campus projects were also brought up by Newsom such as the resurfacing of the MRC’s MAC Court, the hammock grove, the completion of the Cain Sports Complex tennis courts in October or November, the groundbreaking of the sand volleyball courts at Cain, and the MRC expansion.

When asked by SGA President Addison Jones about concerns involving diversity among TAMUC staff, Newsom said that he had discussed the issue with Chief Diversity Officer Dr. Edward Romero and that it would be addressed.

After Newsom was finished, Matthew Wintz, Joshua Vernon, Austin Egolf, Angelica Basile and Jayla Linton were interviewed for senator positions, and after deliberations, all five were welcomed into the Senate.

Officer positions were also confirmed by Vice-President Brayan Dicante: Maryam Siddiqui as secretary, Bryan Jackson as treasurer, Grace Slayter as vice-chair and Alejandra Salcedo as parliamentarian.