Student Association President Mackenzie Mertikas and Vice President Sameeha Saied will meet with representatives from the Barnes Center at The Arch to discuss health resources, the association leaders announced Tuesday.

Mertikas and Saied originally planned to meet with Barnes Center representatives on Wednesday, but the meeting was postponed due to the Community Peace Vigil taking place at Hendricks Chapel on Wednesday afternoon. The meeting is now planned for early next week.

At the association’s last meeting of the semester, Saied asked SA Assembly members about their concerns regarding health resources at Syracuse University. Student protesters spoke about their negative experiences with mental health and counseling resources during the #NotAgainSU protest, a movement led by black students.

#NotAgainSU held an eight-day sit-in in response to racist graffiti found at a SU residence hall. The protesters presented Chancellor Kent Syverud with a list of demands, which included a call for more counselors representative of marginalized identities.

Mertikas and Saied stated their support for the #NotAgainSU movement at Tuesday’s meeting and said they want SA to play a role in implementing the protesters’ demands. Syverud signed 16 of protesters’ 19 demands as written on Nov. 21 and suggested revisions to the remaining three.

“That’s where we’re at right now, still waiting to see what our role is going to be with all the demands being carried out,” Mertikas said. “That’s something we want to be a part of.”

Several Assembly members at Tuesday’s meeting shared their experiences at the Barnes Center and offered suggestions. One representative said she was concerned about the center denying drop-in medical appointments. Another Assembly member said a doctor exaggerated the severity of her chronic health condition.

Mertikas will push for the hiring of more counselors to better meet the needs of students, she said. She would also like to integrate mental health counseling services into the first-year experience so more first-year students are aware of the university’s mental health resources.

Published on December 3, 2019 at 10:27 pm

Contact Chris: cjhippen@syr.edu