K-Staters,
Wow, what a semester it has been! From wrapping up the 150th celebration to another bowl-bound Wildcat football team, it’s hard to believe it is already time for Winter Break.
As always, Student Governing Association (SGA) has been hard at work for you this fall, and there are more exciting things to come in the spring. This semester, we completed a multi-year project by making the South parking lot at the Rec free for student use for up to 2.5 hours with the simple swipe of a Student ID card. We’ve made progress on our goal to make campus more mobile-friendly by installing mobile charging stations in the Student Union, Hale Library, and Leadership Studies building. We’ve also added a Wifi Error Reporting Link to K-State Online for students to report problem areas on campus for wireless internet access.
All three SGA branches have worked together on a variety of initiatives this fall: we’ve passed a recommendation on to President Schulz regarding the usage of City University Funds, which included recommended improvements to Denison Avenue from Claflin to College Heights. We also asked for funding to be used to pave the parking lot in City Park, which would provide more parking spots for students near Aggieville. SGA has also been working hard to increase our communications efforts year-round, so we’ve created an SGA blog (blogs.k-state.edu/sga) and upped our FaceBook and Twitter presences as well. In addition to all that, we’ve recommended funding for the next year for the KSDB radio station (91.9 FM), the Office of Student Activities and Services, and will soon review the Rec.
What’s up for the remaining four months of our time in office? Lots! We’ve been working with two academic colleges to potentially start professional mentorship programs — more news on these soon — and we’re continuing work on the design of the soon-to-be-renovated Student Union. We’re also excited about some possible funding reform efforts we’re discussing with the Privilege Fee committee currently, the goal of which would be to lessen the burden on students through privilege fee for programs like the Veteran’s Center, Diversity Programming Committee, and the LGBT Resource Center, while simultaneously guaranteeing funding for years to come for those entities. Updates to come on this!
Finally, we’re continuing work on the issue of TEVALs and on-campus smoking. Students have spoken loud and clear on both issues, and we’re working with the various governing bodies on campus to make progress if at all possible on both issues. The Tuition Strategies Committee will meet throughout the spring to form a recommendation for the cost of tuition next year, and we’ll work hard through May to let the legislature know the importance of adequate funding for K-State. And most importantly, we’ll continue to listen to your concerns; if you’re passionate about a potential change on campus that I haven’t mentioned, let me know! My email address is below, as always.
Thanks for the opportunity to serve. Best of luck on finals — study hard, and enjoy your break!
Eli Schooley
Student Body President
elis@ksu.edu