On the evening of Monday, Feb. 1, Student Assembly (SA) President Saphire Ruiz ’22 gave their State of the College address via a Livestream from the SA Facebook account. The purpose of the address was to list the Assembly’s priorities for the spring semester.

First, Ruiz acknowledged that this was the first SA president address in several years and hoped to use the speech “as a chance to connect with everyone in the Hamilton community.”

Ruiz stated that the Student Assembly is responsible for supporting and advocating for students, particularly given that the COVID-19 pandemic has added an extra layer of challenges to the semester. To uphold these responsibilities, SA created the Mental Health & COVID-19 [Student] Task Force. SA originally established this task force to ensure and increase student representation in the administrative offices so that students were more incorporated in major discussions about campus life. The Task Force hopes that through their work, the College will make COVID-19-related decisions that are truly beneficial to students. In addition to Ruiz, Spring 2021 Student Assembly Vice President Kavya Crasta ’21, SA committee chairs, several student mental health advocates, and other student representatives also serve on the Task Force

One of the primary themes of the address was the condemnation of the Hamilton administration’s lack of transparency. Ruiz said in their address that they aspire to lead an SA that represents the interests of every member of the student body. They urged the College to put an end to student feelings of being “seen not heard” by authentically supporting students and student organizations and not having relationships that solely “[benefit] the image and perception of Hamilton.” Ruiz hopes that the Assembly can set an example of this type of administrative transparency and accessibility through reforms such as publishing committee notes and instituting written testimonies for the public comment period.

Furthering this sentiment, Ruiz spoke on the creation of the Audit and Action Council. This student-led council was established in response to the creation of the College’s Advisory Council. While the council’s goal was to fight for racial justice on campus, Ruiz believed the council could not achieve this goal due to a lack of student representation on the council (with only ever two student representatives and no representation from active student organizations). Ruiz, Crasta, and Fall 2021 Student Assembly Vice President Eric Stenzel ’23 have felt “locked out of decision-making at this institution.” Additionally, Crasta pointed out in an email that marginalized students are often the ones whose voices are intentionally silenced and ignored.

Ruiz ended on a hopeful note. They called the College to action regarding social change and stated that they truly believe the Hamilton community can create an inclusive environment with the voices and efforts of all students.