The Student Assembly Infrastructure Funding Committee, armed with more than $100,000 in funding, is soliciting student ideas to decide Cornell’s next infrastructure project.
The committee is seeking infrastructure ideas from undergraduates up to Sept. 28 — roughly a month earlier than in previous years — to fast-track this year’s projects, Ian Wallace ’20, chair of the SAIFC said.
“I really want people’s imaginations to really run free and test the limits of what we can do,” Wallace said.
The Infrastructure Fund will have at maximum $130,000 in funding available this year to support student proposals dedicated to improving campus facilities, according to Wallace. He expects the committee will receive $60,000 from roll over funding from last year and an additional $40,000 to $70,000 from the endowment that funds the committee using its return on investments.
In the past, the SAIFC has pushed for several improvements around campus to help accommodate student needs, funding the installation of water bottle stations, the addition of outlets in Green Dragon, and the repainting of bike lanes to improve student safety.
Last semester, the committee collaborated with The Straight Edge Initiative, a student organization dedicated to reimagining underutilized spaces on campus, to redesign the Willard Straight terrace, The Sun previously reported. The new community space, dubbed the Straight Edge Rooftop, will open this Tuesday, September 18th.
Daniel Correa ’19, President of The Straight Edge, said that it is “paramount” for the University to embrace student input when designing the campus.
“This nuanced idea of a campus designed by its students, should not be taken lightly in the eyes of American higher academia, and is something I believe more universities should seriously consider,” Correa said.
Moving forward, Wallace ‘20 hopes that the Committee will implement an investigation into the state of infrastructure on campus and put together a report to better guide their mission. “It’ll be for students and by students.”