Two new ad hoc senate committees will be will be created at Wednesday’s Government of the Student Body meeting at 7 p.m. in the Campanile Room of the Memorial Union.

Tony Luken, GSB speaker of the senate, will create the Senate Committee on Diversity and the Senate Committee on Government Relations to address growing concerns over diversity and Iowa State’s increasing tuition.

According to GSB bylaws, Luken has the authority as speaker of the senate to create and appoint members to senate ad hoc committees.

The executive branch currently has government relations and diversity committees headed by executive cabinet directors.

“I’m sure the cabinet will do a great job, but at the same time the senate wants to give its support and offer its opinion on these issues,” Luken said.

Leia Guccione, engineering senator, said any time an ad hoc committee is formed, it’s a way for the senate to “test the waters” of important student concerns in which the senate wishes to be actively involved.

“It’s Tony’s way of being a leader and to use these committees as a way to motivate and inspire,” Guccione said.

She said in the past the executive branch had been the primary rallying point for GSB, and the senate would like to show through these senate committees that it can rally GSB just as well. Guccione said the senate would like to increase its presence.

Luken said the senate government relations committee would look into starting the United Students of Iowa program at Iowa State.

He said the program and the committee would work with the three Regents universities to pool efforts in lobbying the General Assembly with students’ concerns over tuition.

The program and committee would help to make sure the Legislature puts a priority on higher education funding, he said.

“Through this committee, the senate will show its commitment to this issue,” Luken said.

He said he is not asking senate approval to form a special senate committee because the issues of diversity and tuition are so important to students that “we need to get the ball rolling now.”

In other business, the new president of GSB, Mike Banasiak, will give his first State of the Student Body address at Wednesday’s meeting.

Banasiak said he will give more of a series of announcements rather than an address because the executives have been focusing more time on getting organized rather than coming through with implementing initiatives.

The senate will vote on recommendations from Banasiak to re-seat Dean of Students Pete Englin and associate Dean of Students Vernon Wall as GSB executive and senate advisers for next year as well.