Student Senate kicked off the semester by awarding postponed fall funding to student groups.

During the Jan. 14 meeting, Senators approved funds for two groups to purchase T-shirts for their philanthropic efforts.

The Zeta Tau Alpha sorority will use the T-shirts to raise awareness about breast cancer as part of their “Pinkout” and the Kappa Alpha fraternity will use T-shirts to raise awareness about muscular dystrophy.

A third funding request by the Students for Sensible Drug Policy was denied because paperwork had not been properly filed to designate it as a MSSU student organization.

During the Jan. 21 meeting, funding was approved for the Model United Nations to travel to a conference in St. Louis. The group will represent MSSU and the country of Malawi during the conference.

Senate also awarded the $1,000 for a group to travel to the Collegiate Music Education National Conference.

Ben Hinkle, Student Senate president, said planned discussions for the semester include revisions to the drop policy and a policy recommendation on the international mission.

“I know progress has been made on the campus safety/security committee,” Hinkle said.

The group priced cameras and security options for problem areas near the residence halls.

“I would love to see the entire security problem on campus solved,” said Will Lynch, vice president of Student Senate.

The crosswalk safety committee continues to meet, also looking at student safety.

Final recommendations from the committees are expected before the end of the semester.