On Jan. 26, the Dartmouth Student Government Senate met for its third weekly meeting of the winter term. Led by student body president Chukwuka Odigbo ’25, the Senate debated a slate of new Dartmouth Dining projects related to automation and voted to establish a Greek Life task force.
School House senator JJ Dega ’26 provided updates on the DSG Dining Advisory Group’s meeting on Jan. 23 with Dartmouth Dining director Jon Plodzik.
According to Odigbo, Dartmouth Dining will be transitioning its Courtyard Cafe location to a “virtual order[ing]” system — rather than in-person ordering — by March. Odgibo said he would have liked the opportunity to give “student feedback” before the transition was “already set to go.”
“We would have appreciated knowing about it in the planning phase,” he said.
Dega explained that Plodzik had also “floated the idea” of turning Collis Market into a cashier-less storefront — with check-outs automated — and extending the market’s hours. Collis Market is currently open every day from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and 12 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends. Plodzik’s proposal, meanwhile, would expand its hours to 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 1 a.m. on weekends.
“Oh my God, why is there such a push towards automation?” Odigbo responded.
According to Dega, Plodzik said cashier jobs at Collis Market would transition to “loading and unloading the supplies.”
Non-voting representative Mary Sherrard ’28 said that she “like[d]” the idea, citing the proposal’s extended late-night hours. However, representative Daniel Pruder ’27 argued that automation would only add “a few hours extra” and could pose additional technical challenges. For example, Pruder noted that the “fully automated” East Wheelock snack bar has been closed for the past week for reasons unknown to him.
Pruder said he “could support” the changes to Collis Market if Dartmouth Dining could assure its automation concepts were “perfected.”
South House senator Senate Shaw ’28 said he believed some students may react negatively to the automation of Collis Market, given their opposition to the hand scanners installed at the Class of 1953 Commons.
Allen House senator Tamia Kelly ’27 added that a “vicious cycle” of automation will cut jobs. Technological changes in the workplace need to be part of a “bigger conversation” between DSG and Dartmouth Dining, she added.
In an email statement to The Dartmouth, Plodzik wrote there was “no contract or agreement” to automate Collis Market but that “many schools, airports and marketplaces have something similar.”
“The technology allowing an individual to select items without waiting in line or being limited to service hours of a location is attractive to those of us interested in improving services,” he wrote. “I like to explore all options to do so.”
Later in the meeting, Dega and student body vice president Jon Pazen ’25 called for a vote on their proposal for a Greek Life task force — which would provide “advocacy work” for “a wide variety of student perspectives” on Greek Life, he said. Pazen is currently president of the Interfraternity Council, and both he and Dega serve on the Greek Leadership Council.
According to Dega, one of the task force’s “main aims” would be to change the Alcohol Management Policy — a College statute for holding events where alcohol is served — that is up for review this year. Additionally, the task force will make recommendations for “risk reduction practices” and a “new tier system for registration events.” The current tier system has categories for member-only events, for 40 - 150 people and for events with over 150 people. The task force would also comment on the “structure [of] Greek life organizations” such as the Greek Leadership Council, he said.
Dega said the task force would “theoretically” look into whether a judicial council through the Interfraternity Council and Inter-Sorority Council, as peer institutions have, is a “better model” for mediating chapter violations rather than “going straight to the Committee on Standards.”
The Senate approved the formation of the task force by a vote of 17-0-3.
On the rest of its docket, the Senate voted 21-0-0 to earmark $5,000 dollars of the DSG budget for IdeaLab mental health projects and 18-0-2 to earmark $2,000 for a two-week trial period of opening Hinman Mail on Saturdays.
During the session, the Senate also unanimously confirmed Vani Miglani ’28 and Honiely Aviles ’28 as non-voting DSG representatives.
DSG Senate meetings occur weekly on Sundays at 7 p.m. in Collis 101 and are open to all students.
