By Vince Gasparini | September 23, 2024
A conflict between Director of Civic and Community Engagement Tahj Arnold and now-former Director of Programming and Marketing Caleb Sapp came to a culmination at Wednesday night’s (9/18) Student Association Senate meeting when, by Senate vote, Arnold was reappointed to his position while Sapp was removed from his.
Arnold (far left) speaks during the public comment portion of Wednesday’s meeting as Sapp (far right) looks on.
Photo Credit: Vince Gasparini / The ASP
Arnold saw a strong showing of support both from Senators and from members of the public who came to speak during public comment to advocate for him, with many referencing the work he did within his directorship over the same committee last semester and his strong pro-Palestinian activism, as well as advocating for his personal character.
“My community advocated for me and voted me into this role because they know that the work I’ve done has produced a tangible difference at UAlbany,” Arnold said in a statement to the ASP, referencing work he has done both as a pro-Palestinian activist and with the United Tenants of Albany.
While Arnold’s reappointment passed with near-unanimity, Sapp’s removal was similarly strongly backed by Senators, many of whom lambasted him for what they said was unprofessional behavior in the past, specifically referencing an email exchange between him and Senators in which he urged them to vote against Arnold’s reappointment due to concerns over his suitability for the post, specifically citing pro-Palestinian rhetoric from Arnold that Sapp labeled as “extremism;" this action led to Sapp being briefly suspended from his position.
“The decision to remove me, which came after I raised concerns about the rhetoric and actions of a nominee for another director position, was particularly painful because I believed I was acting in the best interest of the Student Association and the student body it represents,” Sapp said.
Sapp argued that during his directorship, SA experienced historic visibility due to his efforts on their social media accounts, their website and a Wikipedia page that he created for the organization; Sapp's arguments, however, were largely overshadowed by the accusations of unprofessional behavior.
While Senators were debating Sapp’s reappointment bid, President Jalen Rose, when asked by Senator Jac Cooper whether or not he would vote for Sapp to retain his position were he a Senator, said that he would vote “no.”
“I tried to encourage him not to do a lot of the things that he did and say the things he said about people, because I feel like it did make a bad look on him, and on me as President,” Rose told the ASP. “I think that there’s a point where I just had to be honest.”
In a statement to the ASP, Sapp said, “I was devastated to hear Jalen publicly state that he wouldn’t vote for me. I’ve worked closely with him over the past year and managed his re-election campaign, so to hear him take such a public stance against me was not only surprising but also hurtful.”
Sapp also maintained that his concerns over Arnold’s reappointment were valid, saying, “The Director of Civic and Community Engagement should be someone who upholds values of inclusivity, respect, and fairness - qualities I and others feel were lacking in Tahj’s approach.”
Accusations of unprofessional behavior against Sapp were also highlighted during the public comment portion of the meeting, where former Senator Jeremy Zheng spoke in support of Arnold, while also recalling an incident last semester where Sapp directly called out Zheng during a meeting for not helping set up an event to promote the SA special elections.
Zheng, who was also the Chair on Constituent Relations at the time, resigned his position as Senator following the incident.
“The way that you treat someone that you work with also speaks volumes about your character,” Zheng said. “The way that I was treated after making a mistake is unacceptable and should have no place in Student Association.”
Senate Chair Ethan Madapatt expressed appreciation over the fact that so many students appeared for public comment to make their voices heard, and that the Senate garnered a general consensus in their decisions to reappoint Arnold and oust Sapp.
“We had a very full public audience, we had very vocal Senators, we had very vocal SA leadership, all saying the same thing,” Madapatt said. “This is a rare occurrence where we have every single human being, I think, speaking the same truth.”