Civic Committee of Italian-Americans fight for approval at SGA meeting

The Civic Committee of Italian-Americans’ application for recognition as an official student club was rejected by SGA on Sept. 29.

SGA President Daizja Hollman said the Civic Committee of Italian-Americans would be better off going through another club instead. 

“I think we felt like it was similar to the International Club,” Hollman explained. “And we wanted to give them the opportunity to go through them first because their funding and just overall structure — especially considering that the majority of the members were commuters — just for their sake we feel like it would be less on them if they just went through International Club because their premises were very similar, so we decided to not approve them just to be safe.” 

Sam Conforti, a junior, proposed the club and felt somewhat defeated after the decision. 

“I was just a little frustrated, but I mean it’s their decision, so there’s not much power in my hands to change anything, so I just had to kind of accept the decision to some extent,” Conforti said. 

However, Conforti said he doesn’t plan on giving up and will try to get approval from the Office of Equity and Inclusion. 

“They [SGA members] were asking me if I had responsibility to handle the club, and the way it was phrased, it was kind of like a backhanded question almost, I felt like,” Conforti said. “And I mean, I feel like they’re kind of like fire in my fuel — I want this club passed to some extent.” 

During the meeting, SGA also approved $381.67 to cover food for the Weigand Center for Professional Excellence “Which Fork Do I Use?” event occurring on Oct. 11, which is an etiquette dinner that teaches students proper table manners for professional settings. They also approved up to $500 to add plates for a bigger event, according to Hollman.

In addition, SGA swore in new members, discussed upcoming events, and approved $30 for Sigma Lambda Gamma’s “Distress Gammas Event.”

Since the meeting, SGA has made a plan to pass the club, according to Conforti.