Student Government Association Blog

If you’re looking to get more involved on campus and have a greater impact on the K-State community, serving on a university is an excellent decision to make. With 27 committees looking for student members, there’s something for everyone. Regardless of your academic major or skills set, we encourage you to look into one of the following positions. Applications are due on Friday, and can be completed through OrgSync.

The Athletic Ticket Sales Committee shall be in charge of organizing and administering the football and basketball ticket sales policies, working closely with the Athletic Ticket Sales Manager and the Athletic Director. (6 Students)

The Campus Recycling Advisory Committee develops campus recycling policies for consideration by the central administration, discusses issues to campus recycling and development of educational and promotional activities regarding recycling on the main campus. (2 Students)

The Central Management Information Systems (CMIS) Advisory Committee reports to VP of Administration and Finance. (1 Student)

The Communicable Diseases Committee insures that necessary educational programs on AIDS, ARC, and ARC, and other communicable diseases are implemented, that these programs are up-to-date on current scientific information about the diseases, and that the university guidelines are carefully followed. Reports to Vice President. (1 Student)

The Commission on the Status of Women reviews the roles, needs, and opportunities of women students, faculty, and staff at KSU and makes recommendations for change where appropriate. Reports to the President. (4 Students)

The Committee on Religion formulates University religious guidelines and coordinates religious activities and dialogue in a pluralistic community. Reports to the Vice President for Institutional Advancement. (3 Students)

The Communications and Marketing Student Advisory Committee meets with members of the Division of Communications and Marketing to review and discuss current university communication and marketing initiatives and provide feedback on behalf of the interests of the student body.  (10 Students)

The Computer and Technology Advisory Committee advises the University concerning policies on computing and technology. (1 Student)

The Coordinating Committee for People with Disabilities studies and recommends utilization of resources and development of procedures to facilitate the needed programs for accommodation of handicapped persons. Reports to the Provost. (2 Students)

The Council on Parking Operations advises the Vice President for Administration and Finance concerning policies governing parking fees and parking accommodations for faculty, staff, students, visitors, and clientele. (3 Students)

The Council on Police Activities and Campus Security assesses the safety of the campus in a proactive manner by evaluating real or potential environmental safety issues, such as campus lighting, emergency telephones, etc. Also, keeps the University in compliance with Public Law 101-542, Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990. Reports to Vice President for Administration and Finance. (3 Students)

The Diversity Program Committee will serve as a link between the Student Governing Association and multicultural groups.  This committee will help multicultural groups promote their respective organizations and activities campus-wide.

• 1 student representing sexual diversity

• 1 non-traditional student

• 2 international students

The Educational Opportunity Fund Committee allocates money to traditionally under-funded University Organizations. (4 Students)

The Intercollegiate Athletic Council advises the Director of Athletics regarding policies concerning Intercollegiate Athletics. Reports to the President. (1 Student)

The KSDB Board is responsible for overseeing of KSDB and is responsible for hiring a program director and the underwriting director. Reports to the Director of the School of Journalism and Mass Communications. (2 Students)

The Parking Citations Appeals Board hears appeals on traffic manners from faculty, staff and students. Reports to the Vice President for Administration and Finance. (6 Students)

The Strategic Planning Committee considers program priorities and needs, and advises the President as to planning and budgeting options in support of the University’s mission. Reports to the President through the Provost. (1 Student)

The Student Centered Tuition Enhancement Committee allocates seed money for the creation and implementation for new programs/initiatives which benefit the student body. (4 Students)

The Student Discrimination Review Committee hears student complaints alleging discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, place of birth or ancestry, or handicap. Reports to the Vice President for Institutional Advancement. (6 Students)

The Student Retention Strategies Task Force discusses student retention programs at Kansas State University; including first-year experience programs, freshmen-to-sophomore retention programs, and sophomore year retention programs, reports to the Vice President for Student Life. (10 Students)

The Student Technology Committee represents the K-State study body by providing their opinion and recommendations throughout their service in order to strengthen student use of technology on campus. (4 Students)

The Technology Classroom Committee works to create and improve technology related spaces on campus through technology upgrades, improvements to existing facilities and planning for future projects. (4 Students)

The Tuition Strategies Committee is the primary tuition and fees discussion group which collaborates with campus administration to develop a tuition proposal for the Kansas Board of Regents. (10 students)

The University Committee on Governmental Issues meets on a regular basis to share information about K-State. Reports to President. (6 Students)

The General Scholarship and Student Financial Aid Committee develops policies and procedures for student financial aids other than athletic-in-aid, examines the records of applicant for various scholarships and selects recipients. Certain scholarships are handled through the following separate committees appointed by the Faulty Senate for the appropriate colleges. Members are appointed by the Student Governing Association and college offices. (3 At-Large Students)

The University Grievance Committee hears complaints of students against faculty or faculty members against students on academic honesty, cheating, grades, and other academic grievances. (2 At-Large Students)

The University Library Committee reviews library operations and recommends policies leading to optimum utilization. (2 Students)

On August 4, the United States Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights began investigating K-State for how the university handles sexual assault cases. The growing list of institutions under investigation currently sits at 76.

The investigation will seek to determine whether K-State violated Title IX in its handling of sexual violence cases. The probe could take anywhere from one year to several years. However, the fact that K-State is under investigation does not necessarily mean that any wrongdoing occurred.

Universities have been consistently held to a higher standard by the Office for Civil Rights, and lately, this issue has come under more scrutiny. We want to meet and exceed the guidelines they set forth, and we’ve started by increasing training for faculty, staff and students, especially on Title IX.

The K-State Women’s Center is one department that has worked tirelessly to promote a safe campus and help victims in the recovery process. For more information about their services, see their website: http://www.k-state.edu/womenscenter/.

This fall, we are enhancing the Women’s Center and renaming it the Center for Advocacy, Response, and Education (CARE), which will offer confidential help for victims, bystander intervention training, and information on dating and relationships. With two full-time coordinators, CARE will expand the Women’s Center’s mission of promoting a safe campus.

“The untold story is the tremendous effort our student life folks have undergone for years to make sure our students have a safe environment,” wrote Jeffrey Morris, vice president of communication and marketing, in an email on Thursday. “The current media attention will continue, more and more schools will be added as it just takes one complaint to be on the list.  Some in the media are trying to create the narrative that universities have turned a blind eye to this issue, which is most certainly not the case at Kansas State.”

As student body president and vice president, we support bystander education to stop these terrible crimes before they happen. We are a family at K-State, and we have a reputation for treating others with respect. This culture is something to be proud of, but we also must accept the reality that violent actions happen.

As the elected representatives of the student body, we promise to ensure that K-State never winds up under investigation. We and our university administration are dedicated to ensuring the safety and support of all students, as is stated in the K-State Principles of Community:

 
We affirm the inherent dignity and value of every person and strive to maintain an atmosphere of justice based on respect for each other.

We affirm the value of human diversity for community.

We affirm the right of each person to freely express thoughts and opinions in a spirit of civility and decency. We believe that diversity of views enriches our learning environment, and we promote open expression within a climate of courtesy, sensitivity, and mutual respect.

We affirm the value of honesty and integrity. We will operate with honesty in all professional endeavors and expect the same from our colleagues.

We acknowledge that we are a part of multiple communities, and we have an obligation to be engaged in a positive way with our civic partners.

We recognize our individual obligations to the university community and to the principles that sustain it. We will each strive to contribute to a positive spirit that affirms learning and growth for all members of the community.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

K-State Proud,

Reagan and Cody

On Tuesday, iSIS experienced a disk error that led to a total system outage, rendering the service unavailable for students. K-State is currently working to restore service, and the goal is to have the system up and running by Monday, July 21.

If you made a change on your iSIS account between Thursday, July 10 and Tuesday, July 15, the transaction may have been affected. The IT Department recommends that you log into iSIS and verify that your account information is accurate as soon as the service is available.

The IT Department posted the following message at http://www.k-state.edu/isis/isisrecovery.html, which will be updated throughout the restoration process:

“The following steps will be taken in an effort to minimize the negative impact to students, faculty and staff:

1. Federal financial aid, scholarship awards and veterans benefit awards will be reposted to student accounts.

2. Payments that were made to student accounts since July 10 will be reposted.

3. Enrollments that occurred since July 10 will be re-entered as possible.

4. A comparison will be made between iSIS and the spring 2015 class schedule. Class schedulers will be notified of any discrepancies.

5. Applications for admission processes will be rerun since the last successful load into iSIS. This will be done in phases.

6. Automated data integration services between iSIS and other systems will be reinitiated.

7. iSIS will be opened for campuswide use after as many transactions as possible have been recreated. We expect to open iSIS on July 21.

8. Updates will be posted to this webpage and the IT Status page, and articles published in K-State Today to keep the campus community informed.

9. Students will be asked to check their iSIS accounts to identify and report any inaccuracies.

Information Technology Services appreciates the patience and support of the campus community as we continue to work to restore iSIS to the fullest extent possible.”

If you have any questions about the iSIS outage, feel free to contact us by email or on Twitter @KStateSBP_SBVP. You can also reach the IT Help Desk at 785-532-7722 or helpdesk@ksu.edu.

As always, Go Cats!

Reagan Kays and Cody Kennedy

Student Body President and Vice President

rkays@ksu.edu · ckennedy@ksu.edu

Last Wednesday, the Kansas Board of Regents voted to accept K-State’s proposal for a 5 percent increase to undergraduate and graduate tuition. The proposal was originally formed by the Tuition Strategies Committee, which is comprised of student representatives and was led by former Student Body President Eli Schooley and Speaker of the Student Senate Kyle Nuss throughout last year. The committee’s reccomendation was turned over to President Schulz, who presented it to the Board of Regents without making any major changes.

No one likes to see tuition go up. Since Day One, we have been committed to doing everything within our power to keep education affordable for K-State students. However, with K-State’s recent growth, operating costs have risen. However, university administration did take student input into account throughout the process.

Here’s a breakdown of the general tuition increase and several fee increases passed by specific colleges:

• Undergraduate resident tuition at the Manhattan campus will increase from $261/credit hour to $274.10/credit hour.

• Undergraduate nonresident tuition in Manhattan will increase from $692/credit hour to $727.10/credit hour.

• The College Instructional Fee will be $12.40/credit hour. This money goes directly to the specific college to use as needed.

• The College of Agriculture fee will be $20/credit hour. Eighty percent of the revenue will go to the specific department that generated it, while 20 percent will go to the college. The money will be used for whatever students want it to be used for.

• The College of Architecture, Planning, and Design raised their fee from $35/credit hour to $40/credit hour.

• Student privilege fee will climb from $377 to $405.70. This is due to a $20 increase passed by students to fund the Union renovation, and an $8.70 increase to help fund the Recreation Complex and Lafene Health Center.

The increase in tuition, combined with state funding, internal reallocation, and enrollment growth projections, brings an estimated total of $16,936,465 of revenue for the university. This money will be allocated as follows:

• Merit Salary Increase (2%): $8,100,000

• University Support Staff Salary Increases (2%): $700,000

• Targeted Faculty Salary Enhancements $750,000

• Faculty Promotions/Professorial Performance Awards: $1,130,000

• Backfill 5-Year Promotion $400,000

• Fringe Benefit Increase: $50,000

• Institutional Scholarships: $1,328,000

• Utilities Infrastructure: $1,000,000

• Instructional Fees/GTA Waiver Increase: $445,000

• New Faculty Positions: $559,604

• Base funding support for academic unclassified professionals: $263,861

• Cover State Reduction FY15 and Human Capital:$1,000,000

• Student Center Tuition Enhancement Reallocation: $141,600

• Security Studies Replacement of Grant Funds: $400,000

• Pre-Award Research Services Support: $50,000

• Student Services Support: $132,900

• Alumni Database $85,000

• Academic Building Support: $360,000

This year, students are being held responsible for $8.1 million, more than twice as much as the $3.7 million in state funding. It’s important to have a sufficient faculty, and to pay them competitive salaries, but to put the tab on the back of students is wrong.

If you have any questions or comments about tuition and fee increases, or anything else related to life as a K-State student, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Go Cats,

Reagan Kays and Cody Kennedy

Student Body President and Vice President

rkays@ksu.edu · ckennedy@ksu.edu

In a recent meeting attended by Student Body President Reagan Kays, the Manhattan City Commission unanimously passed K-State’s final proposal for the allocation of this year’s City/University Special Projects Fund. The fund comes from city tax dollars generated on K-State’s campus, and aims to support projects that are mutually beneficial to the city and the university.

The proposal was originally drafted by SGA Senators on the Governmental Relations Committee, and was then approved by university administration. K-State vice president for administration and finance, Cindy Bontrager, presented the proposal with city manager Ron Fehr. Joining Kays and Bontrager in attendance to represent K-State was Dr. Jackie Hartman, chief of staff for President Kirk Schulz.

The following four projects, at a total cost of more than $600,000, will be completed through the City/University Fund:

• City Park/Aggieville Parking Lot- The lot  on the north side of City Park, on North Manhattan Avenue, will be paved and delineated with 62 parking stalls. The pavement effectively weatherproofs the lot, making it easier to remove snow in the winter and preventing mud puddles from forming in the gravel. The lot will be open to the public.
• Improvements to Triangle Park: This funding allows for completion of the restoration of the brick pavers in Triangle Park, located in Aggieville next to Varney’s. The park’s electrical service will also be upgraded.
• Safety Improvements on Denison Avenue: In addition to other projects in the area, the fund will provide new pedestrian signals and crosswalks on Denison between Claflin Road and College Heights Road. The improvements will reduce traffic congestion and enhance safety in the area.
• Intersection Improvements at 17th Street & Anderson Avenue and Bluemont Avenue & Manhattan Avenue.

K-Staters,

We’ve made it to March! The weather might not be much warmer yet, but Spring Break is right around the corner and Summer is in sight! 

From the start of our time in office, Jake and I have had the goal of moving K-State toward a more holistic mobile application for smart phones and tablets — one that would allow students to check grades, class notes, pay bills, and receive K-State news updates and other alerts. We knew coordinating the myriad of departments and entities on campus who deserve a say in the creation of such an app would be a big task, and that has proved to be true; however, we believe it will be more than worth it in the long run. 

Here’s a summary of our work: the folks in charge of iSIS have been hard at work for months on the potential for a mobile version of the system — or a similar version of the system that would allow mobility to be an option. The same goes for the K-State Online leadership team — they too are working on a potential transition, one to Canvas, a system used at a number of other universities around the nation and currently being tested by a handful of K-State students. Canvas would provide options for mobility on smart phones and tablets as well. Finally, there’s the K-State App released by the Division of Communications and Marketing in 2013, which has received an impressive number of downloads in the six or so months since its release. 

After work with all three of these relevant entities over the past months, we’re thrilled to say they’re now working in coordination on the concept of a full-service app for K-Staters. What’s the next step? Student input! In the next couple of weeks, we’ll be sending a survey out to the entirety of the student body asking students what they’d like to see — specifically — in a mobile app. Class schedules? Grades? Financial information? Questions like these and more will be included in the survey. We need your help encouraging fellow students to take the time (5 minutes) to complete it. Its importance for the future of mobility at K-State cannot be understated! Watch for an email and social media campaign in the near future.  

Thanks for reading; more updates on this to come. Only two weeks until Spring Break — make them good ones!

Eli Schooley

Student Body President

elis@ksu.edu

K-Staters,

 I hope you’ll have time this week to enjoy the forecasted warmer weather! You know it has been a cold winter when 35 degrees feels like shorts weather…

This week, I want to elaborate on a recent resolution that passed Student Senate on February 6 by a vote of 48-0-1. As you may have heard, this resolution recommended a stricter campus smoking policy for Kansas State University, and was in response to the clear mandate of the student body on the matter, as measured by a plebiscite vote taken last Spring.

On March 5-6, 2013, 84.79% of the students who voted in the annual SGA general election stated that they were in favor of some sort of further restriction of smoking on campus. In fact, 36.89% voted in favor of an all-out smoking ban. The plebiscite revealed that 93.51% of voting students do not smoke — telling data to say the least. The vote was initiated by SGA’s Student Affairs committee, chaired at the time by now-Speaker of the Student Senate Kyle Nuss, in response to the complaints of students concerned about the air quality of campus.

With the plebiscite data in hand, it became the job of this year’s SGA leadership to determine a path forward. While many universities around the nation — including Pittsburg State University here in Kansas — have moved toward and implemented full tobacco bans on their campuses, Vice President Unruh, Speaker Nuss, and Speaker pro tem Kaitlin Long and I determined a compromise solution would be best for K-State at this time. That’s why we authored Resolution 13/14/66, which recommends “designated smoking areas” in strategic locations around campus where smoking will be allowed, amidst the rest of campus being smoke-free. We feel this solution balances the freedom and rights of the most K-State students: it recognizes the right to clean air for those students who choose not to use the smoking areas, but protects the right of those students who do smoke to continue to do so on campus.

From here, the experts will take over. A copy of the resolution will be sent to K-State’s Director of Public Safety, Steve Galitzer, who we’re asking to work with the Campus Environmental Health and Safety Committee to determine the locations and number of the designated smoking areas. We’re also working with and encouraging the members of Faculty and Classified Senates  to pass similar resolutions through their legislative bodies.

In my time at K-State, I can think of very few issues that have united the student body like this one — barely a days goes by that I’m not asked about our progress on the matter since the vote last spring. We’ll continue to keep the momentum going until progress is made!

Eli Schooley

Student Body President

elis@ksu.edu

K-Staters,

Happy Monday! Just like last week, I want to first and foremost remind you of the filing deadline for Student Governing Association office: it’s Friday — this Friday, the 14th — at 4 PM. To file, go online to your iSIS account and click on the “Student Government Elections” link under the Self Service Menu. I can’t encourage it enough!

If you run and are elected to SGA, one of the most valuable experiences you may gain is with SCTE, the Student-Centered Tuition Enhancement Committee. SCTE is beginning its work for this year right now, and I’m excited to tell you about it. Each year, around $1 million is granted to the committee within the university’s central budget, and it is entirely up to the SGA leaders on the committee how the money is spent. Campus units and individuals submit proposals throughout the fall semester to the committee, those proposals are revised throughout February, and the committee submits its recommendation for the money to Student Senate in March.

Past examples of programs funded by SCTE include Powercat Financial Counseling, Career and Employment Services’ Internship Director, K-State First, the Green Action Fund, and the Student Design Center. A number of exciting proposals were submitted this year — so much so that the committee faces difficult decisions in the next few weeks. New proposals include two relating to our platform goal of professional mentorship, and one relating to another platform goal of wireless internet improvements on campus. Also applying for funding are the Kansas Summer Teams, Tree Campus USA, and the Public Health Lecture Series, among others.

Your fellow SGA leaders and I are particularly excited about a plan we’ve worked on with President Schulz, VP for Administration and Finance Cindy Bontrager, and VP for Student Life Pat Bosco that would move the Veteran’s Center, LGBT Resource Center, and Education Opportunity Fund (EOF), all SCTE entities, to stable, long-term central administration funding. As a part of that plan, the portion of EOF currently funded by Privilege Fee would be replaced by Diversity Programming Committee (DPC), allowing it longer-term funding as well. The plan would lesson the burden students face through Privilege Fee and provide consistent funding for some of K-State’s most vital programs. It will be voted on in Student Senate in the coming weeks!

As always, let me know if you have questions about SCTE or anything else. I’m here to serve you!

Eli Schooley

elis@ksu.edu

Student Body President