Students can say goodbye to physical Student Government Association newsletters in the bathrooms and common areas of their dorms and apartments. Senators will still be writing and delivering newsletters to students, but they will be sent via email, effective immediately.

Vice president of community relations Katy Hendricks announced the change in Thursday’s senate meeting, adding that “higher-ups” at Biola were excited about another aspect of the school’s communication to students going digital.

President Sierra McCoy also laid out her plans for the upcoming semester, and encouraged her fellow SGA members to do the same. Later, McCoy revealed her agenda for the semester, which included plans for a strengthened partnership with Alumni Relations on various projects.

SUTTER, INTERN STEP DOWN

Senior vice president Katherine Davis confirmed that Bluff senator Lauren Sutter and a first year intern have left SGA, but did not comment publicly on the nature of the departures.

Davis said she will start the process of hiring a replacement senator for Sutter in the coming days, and said an application for the position will be posted on SGA’s website within the next week. It is unknown at this time whether McCoy will seek someone to fill the other position, one of three interns who report to her.

A vote will be held in the coming weeks to formally confirm a parliamentarian. The senator who fills the role will remind their colleagues about proper SGA procedure and help them follow it during the course of senate meetings. Sutter served informally in the position last fall.

MCCOY, ALUMNI TO DISCUSS SCHOOL-WIDE SENIOR SEMINAR

McCoy revealed that she met with director of alumni outreach and engagement Don Bernstein about the possibility of developing a mandatory senior seminar for students in order to better prepare them for post-graduate life. The seminar would be modeled after the first-year seminar, which is required for all Biola freshmen, and would build upon classes and materials already in place across several majors.

McCoy also expressed a desire to revamp SGA’s training process, which she said had “fallen apart” over previous years. McCoy claimed, and several senators agreed, that SGA members have not been well trained for their roles and often feel overwhelmed at first.