Liz Hornyak: On this week’s episode, EMU’s Student Government signs a resolution that will help EMU students, and Terrill Johnson-Oatman becomes a new senator. An EMU freshman has received the first Gen. G scholarship, the Girl Scouts Heart of Michigan hosts, “Helping Your Girl Thrive During COVID-19”, and Eli Savit, Washtenaw County’s prosecutor, announces that his office will no longer be prosecuting consensual sex work. I am your host Liz Hornyak and this is the Eastern Echo Podcast.
On Jan. 26, EMU’s Student Government held a Zoom meeting to discuss Resolution 107-04 and appoint a new student senator.
Resolution 107-04 is meant to allocate $5,000 of the Student Government’s budget to pay for bus passes with the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority. Resolution 107-04 was written by Senator Chinedu Ifemeje, and its purpose is to allocate $5,000 of the Student Government’s budget to pay for bus passes with the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority. This would allow students without vehicles to access groceries, healthcare, and other essential needs.
Student Government voted unanimously to pass the resolution. The date for when passes will be available has yet to be determined. Once passes are available, students will be able to get them at Service EMU, located at the Student Center.
Another issue that was discussed was the application of a new student senator. EMU freshman Terrill Johnson-Oatman expressed that as senator, he wants to make COVID-19 information more accessible to students that live in Michigan or out of state. After his speech, the Student Government unanimously voted Johnson-Oatman in. The Student Government’s next meeting will be on Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 6:30 via Zoom.
EMU freshman Joaquin Pizana was one of the 11 students nationally to win the Gen. G $10,000 Foundation Scholarship. This scholarship fund was created to support people of color, women, and low-income students with interests in gaming, content creation, journalism, entrepreneurship, and sports.
“Gen. G wanted to make sure to find students who not only love playing games but are also able to enrich the culture and enterprise around games (...)“ said Chris Park, CEO of Gen. G Esports. “It is important for us to continue to invest in these students as we believe our scholarship recipients will strengthen the diversity and representation that gaming needs to reach its full potential."
On Jan. 21, the Girl Scouts Heart of Michigan held a Zoom meeting entitled “Helping Your Girl Thrive During COVID-19” for Girl Scout members and their families. 48 people attended and discussed what parents, as well as scouts, what the girls could do to remain healthy. Dr. Patti Criswell from Western Michigan University served as one of the panelists and offered advice to the parents.
“The very best thing that you can do for your kid, is monitor your own stress. They need a lot of reassurance right now, but they need a lot of skills too.” Criswell said.
On Jan. 14 Eli Savit, Washtenaw County’s lead prosecutor, announced on Facebook that his office will no longer be charging cases involving consensual sex work. Savit wrote that he believes criminalization of sex work increases violence and coercion, and that criminalizing sex work makes it very unlikely that sex workers will report serious crimes. Savit also wrote that his office will continue to prosecute trafficking, sexual assault, and the victimization of children.
Reporting: Tyler Gaw, Emma Henri, Catherine Lietz
Script: Jasmine Boyd
Host: Liz Hornyak
Produced: Ethan Meyers
