Members of residential community governments met with the Student Association on Wednesday hoping to increase cross-council communication — something the SA felt was sorely lacking.

Representatives from each of the residential communities, except for Susquehanna Community and the Off Campus College Council, attended a dinner hosted in the Mandela Room by Traci Rubin, the chief of staff for SA President Mark Soriano.

According to Rubin, a junior majoring in English, the event was designed to build relationships among community E-Boards, as well as between the different community governments.

“We’re doing some community builders so that community leaders can interact with each other so they can forge friendships and so eventually events can be planned together,” Rubin said.

With the exception of the annual LEADERS conference, there are no opportunities for all of the community E-Boards to get together.

Stacey Troy, executive vice president of the Hillside Village Council, said more interaction among the community E-Boards is necessary.

“I don’t think the community leaders interact enough,” Troy said. “We’re basically all the in the same boat as Executive Boards of our communities, and it’s nice to talk to other people to see how they plan events and how things stuck to become traditions.”

Troy, a junior majoring in computer science, considered the dinner a step in the right direction.

“I thought the event was a good idea, so we have an opportunity to interact with the community leaders for more than just the LEADERS conference they have yearly now,” he said.

Derek Gumb, executive vice president of the SA, said cross-community projects would allow the more isolated E-Boards to expand their horizons.

“It’s great to get all the community leaders together in one room because every community sometimes focuses on themselves, and when they get together to brainstorm they come up with bigger solutions,” said Gumb, a senior majoring in philosophy, politics and law.

Rubin suggested that increased communication would benefit Binghamton University as a whole.

“I love Binghamton, so I hope that the Binghamton community can become stronger through events like this,” Rubin said.

Starting off the night, SA members each described their role and how they could assist the various communities. Soriano, a senior majoring in history, said that they should work actively with the SA.

“I want you all to know that we are here to help you guys out,” Soriano said. “We are a resource for you.”

The event featured a buffet-style dinner, with each of the community E-Boards sitting at their own separate tables.

The respective E-Boards took part in two community builders, playing “two truths and a lie” and making team names. Afterward, E-Boards were mixed together into two teams, charged with the task of making the tallest tower out of a piece of paper.

Rubin said the event proved the effectiveness of cross-community interactions.

“While it started out awkward, the exercise proved that when we work together, it does provide a better environment and it does help foster new ideas,” Rubin said.