Correction: Changes have been made to the story to better reflect the contents of the meeting.

During the Oct. 24 Student government meeting, senators discussed the future of the W.I.N.G.S. shuttle system as well as making a major change to how organizations can receive funding.

The W.I.N.G.S., or “When in Need Go Shuttle," is one of the many transit options available to students who attend SEMO. The W.I.N.G.S. shuttle stops at stores like Wal-Mart and Target, allowing students who do not have a vehicle to shop when needed. It runs regularly during the fall and spring semester, and its schedule during breaks was discussed at the meeting.

During the fall semester of 2021, W.I.N.G.S. shuttle service was used 1,900 times by students and so far this semester, has seen use 2,964 times by students. SGA President Joel Philpott said he was informed by the SEMO faculty in charge of the shuttle that some students, especially international students, need the shuttle year-round.

SGA approved $720 to keep the shuttle running over winter break. This money will allow the service to run on three days: Dec. 23, Jan. 6 and 13 from 12 to 6 p.m.

SGA also passed a resolution that will change the way student organizations can make funding requests. Previously, student organizations were required to attend an additional senate meeting and have a member sign off to acknowledge they attended for the full duration of the meeting. SGA Treasurer Heather Hoffman said that this step was a barrier in the way of receiving funding.

“We didn’t follow this by-law last year, like at all. We are not really doing it this year,” Hoffman said. “We already have kind of a lot of barriers to obtain funding and this is one that we didn’t think was necessary.”

The resolution made it official that students now only have to appear before the SGA senate to make the request, making it easier for organizations to receive funding.

Finally, two funding requests were heard and approved. The first was for students Elizabeth Brennecke and Tyler Helm for the amount of $461 to go toward hotel costs for the Central Illinois National Association for Teachers of Singing (NATS) Conference and Student Auditions. The second was a $1,092.50 reimbursement for the student organization Model United Nations Southeast for train tickets to a Nov. 19 conference in Chicago.

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