Graduate and Professional Student Assembly Meeting

Monday, September 29, 2025

• Term:
  2025-2026
• Assembly/Committee: Graduate and Professional Student Assembly
• Date & Time:
  Mon, Sep 29, 2025 - 5:00pm
  to
  6:30pm
• Location:
  401 Physical Sciences Building/Zoom
• Agenda:

  Call to Order Roll Call Approval of the September 29, 2025 Meeting Minutes Reports of Officers and Committee Updates Executive Committee Operations and Staffing Committee Appropriations Committee Communications Committee Finance Commission Student Advocacy Committee Programming Board Faculty Teaching, Advising, and Mentorship Award Committee Special Grants Committee Graduate School Presentation Presentation — Office of Graduate Student Life (OGSL) Janna Lamey, Associate Dean for Graduate Student Life Olivia Hopewell, Graduate Student Life Advisor Appointments and Nominations Call for nominations for Voting Member Vacancies Master of Engineering Representative (one seat) Master of Industrial and Labor Relations Representative (one seat) Physical Sciences Representative (one seat) Resolutions Resolution 1: GPSA FY26 Internal Budget (Vote scheduled for September 29) Sponsor: Siim Samuel Sepp, Vice President of Finance and Appropriations New Business Open Forum Adjournment The GPSA invites all members to gather at the Big Red Barn for drinks and conversation immediately following the meeting. First round on us!

  GPSA Agenda 9_29_2025 (1).pdf (110.65 KB)
• Meeting Packet:
  GPSA Agenda 9_29_2025 (2)-combined.pdf (440.27 KB)
• Audio Recording:
• Minutes:

  Cornell Graduate and Professional Student Assembly

  Minutes of the September 29th, 2025 Meeting

  5:00 PM – 6:30 PM

  401 Physical Sciences Building | Zoom

  
   

  I. Call to Order

    a. M. Matthews called the meeting to order at 5:03 p.m.

      i. Members Present: V. Baruah, A. Basquiat, N. Brennan, P. Caruso, J. Chobirko, A. Garcia-Ortiz, I. Gatimi, A. George, M. Hassler, Y. Khaled, C. King, A. Koyyada, Z. Liu, Z. Lynch, C. Meffert, T. Nguyen, M. Ortiz, S. Raimondi, K. Rohrbaugh, S. Sepp, I. Smith, Y. Wu

      ii. Members Absent: B. Candelaria, A. Cardenas, C. Chappel, E. Gallant

      iii. Also Present: J. Withers, J. Lamey, O. Hopewell, D. Freeman

  
   

  II. Approval of the September 8th Meeting Minutes

    a. J. Chobirko moved to amend the minutes to correct typos from "$70" to "$750" (IV.e.i) and "Faculty Teaching, Advising, and Mentorship" to "Faculty Advising, Teaching, and Mentorship" (IV.h)

    b. The amendment passed by unanimous consent

    c. J. Chobirko moved to adopt the minutes. Minutes approved as amended by unanimous consent

  
   

  III. Reports of Officers and Committee Updates

    a. Executive Committee

      i. N. Brennan reported discussion in the Executive Committee on there being only one graduate representative being on the Code of Conduct Committee. There will be a second one added from the Business School

      ii. P. Caruso took a point of information to ask on the process by which this representative was chosen

      iii. N. Brennan replied that he was not informed on the selection process, but that it is probably similar to how other committee members not outlined in the Code of Conduct were selected

    b. Operations and Staffing Committee

      i. Z. Lynch reported that the membership survey was sent out and initial committee assignments were sent out as well, with follow-up surveys to come to Voting Members who haven't completed the initial survey

    c. Appropriations Committee

      i. S. Sepp announced that an internal GPSA budget will come to a vote in this meeting and that byline funding applications close tomorrow (September 30th, 2025) with continuing outreach to less-responsive organizations

    d. Communications Committee

      i. A. Garcia-Ortiz announced that the first communique has gone out

      ii. Notable on the first communique is that applications for the Student Parent Fund are open

    e. Finance Commission

      i. A. Koyyada shared that virtually all funding tier appeals are processed

    f. Student Advocacy Committee

      i. I. Gatimi announced that the committee is working on two resolutions: TCAT Access for All and Representation in Student Codes Advisory Boards. She also shared that the committee welcomes feedback and help from anyone interested

    g. Programming Board

      i. P. Caruso announced that he is applying to book Barton Hall for the Graduate Student Gala, which would increase the event capacity from 500 to 900 if successful

    h. Faculty Teaching, Advising, and Mentorship Award Committee

      i. J. Chobirko announced that he will contact interested members and encouraged members to continue to nominate potential awardees

    i. Special Grants Committee

      i. J. Chobirko announced that the committee met last week to see what ideas people had and that relevant information on proposals / applications was sent out in the communique

    j. Diversity and International Students Committee

      i. A. George announced that the first DISC meeting of the year focused on recruitment and goal setting will be tomorrow. DISC will also meet with the Office of Global Meeting later in the week to discuss potential collaboration

    k. Graduate School

      i. None

  IV. Presentation

    a. Presentation on Office of Graduate Student Life (OGSL)

      i. Janna Lamey, Associate Dean for Graduate Student Life and Olivia Hopewell, Graduate Student Life gave an overview of their office, its purpose, and its goals for holistic, student-focused advising for graduate students

  
  
   

  GPSA-Minutes-092925.pdf (207.81 KB)