Student Government to host multicultural town hall

Iowa+State+University+Student+Government+conducting+their+second+multicultural+town+hall+on+Nov.+15.

By Victoria Reyna-Rodriguez

Iowa State University Student Government conducting their second multicultural town hall on Nov. 15.

Katherine Kealey

Iowa State University Student Government will host the third multicultural town hall 7 p.m. on Thursday in the Memorial Union 

Beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the Cardinal Room, all students are welcomed to join for food and mingling. Iowa State University Catering will be making the food, and it is paid by Vice President of Student Affairs Toyia Younger and the Student Affairs Office. The menu will include gyro bites, tortilla roll ups, bao and vegetable pakora. 

At 7:05 p.m., mediators will be introduced, followed by an open discussion between students and representatives from Student Government. Diversity Director Alyannah Buhman, a senior majoring in criminal justice, planned discussion topics which consist of the Iowa State Police Department and the recent traffic study, mental health and food insecurity. 

“A big topic, even in Student Government, has been mental health,” Buhman said. “So I really want to have those conversations about where our students’ mental health is at. If they know about the resources on and off campus or different things they would like to see regarding mental health.”

Students will also have the opportunity to pose questions or topics they feel need to be addressed, similar to the town halls in the fall semester. The event will officially conclude at 8:30 pm.

Buhman said she hopes for the second spring semester town hall to take place in April. The town halls began as part of a senate bill which requires the Student Government to host one every semester. But after the successes of the first one, the Diversity and Equity Committee among other committees arranged for an additional one.  

“I know there was a mixture of feelings [after the second], so I am hoping at this town hall to reiterate the point that Student Government is here to listen,” Buhman said. “We are not here to take away from any of their experiences.”