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Syracuse University’s Student Association announced it will work with SU’s Barnes Center at The Arch to make contraceptive resources more accessible and improve overall student wellness during its Monday meeting.

SA Vice President Yasmin Nayrouz said the Barnes Center has been “resistant” to the idea of introducing contraceptive vending machines, citing concerns about monitoring expiration dates and restocking. She also discussed the Barnes Center’s ongoing student wellness efforts following the release of the results from its fall 2023 health and wellness survey.

“(The vending machines) are still a possibility,” Nayrouz said. “There are just a number of steps that need to be taken behind the scenes before anything happens.”

In January, SUNY Upstate Medical University unveiled its emergency contraceptive vending machine after they “soft-launched” the initiative in December 2023. The machine holds contraceptive products and other pharmaceuticals, such as My Way — a 1.5 mg emergency contraceptive tablet, pregnancy tests, acetaminophen, Advil and Benadryl.

While the Barnes Center has not yet decided whether it will move forward with an idea to provide contraceptive vending machines, Nayrouz said students can receive emergency contraceptives through the Barnes Center pharmacy at a lower cost because they subsidize them, making them more accessible to students.

SA President William Treloar and Nayrouz said they met with Cory Wallack, SU’s associate vice president of student health and wellness, to discuss the university’s ongoing mental health efforts.

Last fall, the Barnes Center issued a survey to all undergraduate SU students in an attempt to gauge their mental and emotional well-being on campus. It then shared the data with the deans of each SU college, who were tasked with making changes within their individual colleges, Nayrouz said.

“Sense of belonging was where we struggled the most last semester,” Nayrouz said.

The survey revealed that large lectures particularly left a large number of students feeling isolated and out of place, Nayrouz said.

Nayrouz said the Barnes Center’s Together We Thrive program was created in response to the results of the survey. The series features six 90-minute virtual sessions where students are led in a small group by trained instructors to build skills in mindfulness practices, navigating challenging situations, reducing stress and strengthening compassion, according to the university’s website.

According to the website, Together We Thrive was inspired by the University of Washington’s Be REAL model which began as a 2017 to 2018 study analyzing students’ transition into college, but eventually grew into a wellness program. Together We Thrive was first offered to SU students in fall 2023.

“Together We Thrive is already being offered to those on academic probation, first generation students and those who went on medical leave to help them transition back to university life,” Nayrouz said.

During the meeting, SA also voted to approve revisions to its constitution, including a new logo and a change to its name, which were first presented during its Feb. 26 meeting. Under the new constitution, SA would be called the “Student Government Association,” or SGA.

SA Speaker Kennedy Williams said while under this assembly, the revisions will also need to be approved by 10% of the general student body and the new assembly following its spring elections in April.

Other Business:

• SA’s Board of Elections chair, Otto Sutton, alerted the assembly that petitions to run for next year’s SA were due on March 4 at midnight. The election period will begin on April 1 and close on April 5, he said.
• SA unanimously voted to approve funding for the International Festival — an annual
  event held in the Schine Student Center where SU cultural student organizations showcase food, dance and traditions held by their respective cultures.
• SA Comptroller Dylan France and the Finance Board reported a “record high” in semester allocation requests. More than 60 were processed in their last review, she said.
• Cydney Johnson, vice president of community engagement and government relations at SU, will speak at SA’s first meeting back on campus after its spring recess, Williams said.

Correction: A previous version of this article stated that the Barnes Center fully subsidizes contraceptives. This is incorrect. The Barnes Center offers them at a lower cost because they subsidize them. The Daily Orange regrets this error.

Published on March 5, 2024 at 2:05 am

Contact Duncan: di@syr.edu