Name: Raisa Flor
Bio: Raisa is the current Chief Policy Representative on GSSC. In the past, she has served as Chief of Campus Life and Chief of Communications. She is also an active member of the GSSC Mental Health Committee, co-authoring GSSC’s Addendum on Mental Health at Columbia. Raisa is passionate about fighting for first generation and low-income students and is currently co-chair of the CU Food Bank.
If elected VP of Policy, Raisa will leverage her experience to continue to improve the state of mental health at Columbia as well as fight for the diverse needs of the all GS student.
Platform: Mental Health
I will work specifically to increase access to CPS resources by advocating for hiring more clinicians, having clinicians available on-call 24 hours a day, and replacing the current telephone triage scheduling system at CPS, which requires students to self-report their level of need.
For these changes to happen, I will push for the school to seek funding opportunities that do not involve raising students’ health fees, such as fundraising on behalf of mental health and co-sharing mental health clinicians with individual schools at Columbia in a similar model to the one that is currently adopted with the Columbia Alumni Association.
Finally, I will advocate for having incoming community members and student leaders go through suicide prevention training, and GSSC will host semesterly mental health workshops within GS, where students would engage with student leaders to brainstorm ideas for increasing health and wellness at GS.
Increasing Student Spaces
With the Manhattanville expansion project underway, I will advocate for health services to be consolidating in Uris Hall, allowing students to preserve their privacy when walking in for an appointment with a mental health clinician, as opposed to having to walk directly into CPS.
I will also fight for space such as resources centers for student populations that have been identified as at-risk on the SAC analysis of suicide cases at Columbia: LGBTQ+ students, people of color and student veterans. All of our Ivy league peer institutions have LGBTQ+ student centers and many universities around the country have POC and student veteran centers. Furthermore, I will advocate for these spaces to include mental health programming and to have clinicians on-site for a determined timeslot during the week.
I will also advocate for commuter spaces and a daycare on campus. These two initiatives are especially important to the GS student population, whose majority of students live off campus, and who are more likely to have families. In the meantime, I would like to continue the work of the current GSSC Family and Working Students representative in trying to make available to GS students the 100 Emergency Hour Babysitter Care program offered by the Benefits Department at Columbia University.
Beginning-of-the-semester Assistance Fund
A third major point of impact upon the mental health of our students are finances. Under my purview as GSSC VP of Policy, I will advocate for the creation of a beginning-of-the-semester special fund, with the purpose of assisting students particularly after they have paid their tuition and are sometimes left with little money for rent, commute, school books, and even food. I envision this fund as being offered by the school’s administration, mimicking the current Dean’s Student Assistance Fund, which is a one-time grant awarded to students who have any unanticipated emergency expenses throughout the semester.
Expanding Resources for Students with Disabilities
In the 2015 Student Quality of Life Survey conducted at Columbia University disabled students reported being .7 points less satisfied than their able-bodied peers. Columbia’s campus is currently not entirely accessible and our Office of Disability Services has the lowest ratio of student caseload per caseload worker among Ivy League Institutions. As VP of Policy, I will make it my priority to ensure that ODS expands its staff while also working to increase campus accessibility and awareness to students with disabilities.
Increasing Transparency and Ensuring Accountability
CCSC, SGA, and ESC release yearly reports on policy initiatives, events and budgets. I will work to ensure that GSSC also releases a yearly report, therefore increasing transparency and ensuring accountability, as well as serving as reference to future GSSC representatives.
Name: Yona Kornsgold
Bio: My name is Yona Kornsgold and I am a sophomore in GS/JTS (Jewish Theological Seminary) studying Political Science and Jewish Law. I sit on the GSSC Policy Committee, while serving as your Student Services Representative. Additionally, I am working with CCSC and ESC on granting GS students swipe access to residence halls. I also serve as the Vice-Chair of the Student Governing Board, which allocates funds to student groups.
Platform: INCLUSION OF GS INTO COLUMBIA COMMUNITY
If there is one thing that I am sure of it is that you belong at Columbia and are a valuable member of this community. As your Vice President of Policy, I will:
⁃ Fight for swipe access for GSers into CC/SEAS residence halls. In just two months, I have worked with other councils to survey the student body on this issue. Currently, I am working with other councils and governing boards to pass resolutions calling for the administration to grant us swipe access. I will see through these efforts to grant us easier access to student clubs, Counseling and Psychological Services (CPS) and friends.
⁃ Ensure that the space we have on campus is properly utilized. As the Student Governing Board (SGB) Vice-Chair I have worked to expand space for groups on campus and to support an initiative for LGBTQ space. I will work with other councils, the senate and governing boards to establish space for identity groups, while opening up more classrooms at night for student groups.
⁃ Work on getting GS integrated into the CU/Barnard Housing Exchange, including Special Interest Communities. Currently, we cannot live in Casa Latina, Q House, and other spaces intended to build community.
MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS
This has been a difficult year for our community. We are overworked and stressed. Yet, together we can create a community that promotes wellness and sheds the stigma surrounding mental health. As your Vice President of Policy, I will:
⁃ Work diligently to combat food insecurity. As the SGB Vice-Chair, I collaborated with the CU Food Bank to receive $6,000 of funding, and am helping them become a recognized group. I will continue to support the CU Food Bank to ensure they have proper funding and support from student councils, while helping expand their mission to textbooks, clothing and more.
⁃ Push for academic policy revisions. Excessive academic requirements play a crucial role in Columbia’s stressful environment. I will work with the Office of the Dean of Students to prevent students from having more than two exams in a 24-hour period.
⁃ Expand hiring and access to CPS and the Office of Disability Services, while working to lower wait times.
⁃ Keep the issue alive! We must keep talking and programming about mental health to get rid of the negative stigma!
TRANSPARENCY
I believe we can implement new policies to make the GSSC Policy Committee more transparent and effective. As your Vice President of Policy, I will:
⁃ Expand our communication with List College Student Council, and work with Science Po and City University of Hong Kong students to ensure their voices are heard through the creation of their own councils or a representative position on council.
⁃ Submit a resolution at the first council meeting promoting transparency by publicizing resolutions and survey results, and live-streaming council meetings. These initiatives will help us better understand students’ needs, work with other councils and create institutional memory that will benefit future councils.