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Wednesday, February 28, 2008

Firstly, tonight, as with every Wednesday night, the Student Senate will meet beginning at 6:30 p.m. in the Atchafalaya Room. Beginning this week, we will post a preview of the session on this blog, including new business and resolutions that are on the table. As of this posting, there are only four scheduled resolutions to approve appointees to the Executive Staff.

UPDATE: The Senate tonight established a Housing Task Force to address concerns and issues involving on-campus living and residence halls. Senators Bonvillain and Sellers will represent the Senate in the group.

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Upcoming Events

• ATHLETIC TICKET FORUM: MARCH 6, ATCHAFALAYA ROOM, LSU STUDENT UNION
There will be a public Ticket Forum to discuss possible changes and improvements of the student athletic ticket process, including the Priority Points system, freshman tickets and distribution of postseason event tickets. The LSU Athletic Department and members of Student Government will be in attendance, and we encourage any students with concerns to attend as well.

• SAFETY WEEK: MARCH 9 – 14
Get ready for Safety Week! Student Government is expanding its annual Safety Day into a full week’s worth of events and programs to help educate the University community on available safety resources and other ways you can help yourself stay safe. We’ll be working with many departments on campus to make this event worthwhile and to improve the actual and perceived natures of security on campus.

• STUDENT GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS: APRIL 2
The election season is once again upon us. We enthusiastically urge the student body to take initiative and participate in this year’s spring elections. Elect representatives to your individual College Councils, Student Senate, University Court, Union Board and Student Body President and Vice President. An official list of qualified candidates is posted outside the Student Government office at 324 LSU Student Union. Please stay tuned to our site for more information on elections in the near future, and contact Commissioner of Elections Jacob Gower with any questions.

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Here are some of the other things we’ve been working on:

Campus Safety

• We have now posted links on our home page to the LSU Police Department’s Web site, as well as to its Crime Report and Safety Tips pages. This is a move several departments on campus are making to streamline communications about current safety issues on campus.

• The Senate took a break from its regularly scheduled meeting Wednesday, Feb. 13 to do a “Lighting Walk.” Senators explored campus, made notes of areas where lighting was insufficient or nonexistent and compiled these reports to help solve the lighting problems on campus. To read the article in The Daily Reveille and view some of the areas in question, click here.

• Acting Chancellor William Jenkins visited the Senate Feb. 20, accompanied by Gary Durham, Executive Director of Public Safety, to address ongoing safety concerns of the student body. Durham discussed the installment of additional security cameras across campus, as well as increased campus security presence.

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Chancellor Search Committee

• The Student Body has unprecedented representation in determining the University’s next Chancellor. Student Body President Cassie Alsfeld was selected to sit on the chancellor search committee. She and 20 other people—including Student Union board chair-elect Cherie Teamer—will help find a suitable replacement for the recently-departed Sean O’Keefe. Alsfeld will serve as an ex-officio member, meaning she will not have a vote at the committee level. However, if the committee makes its recommendation to the LSU Board of Supervisors before Alsfeld’s term as a Board member expires, she will have a vote on the Board in the final decision phase. If the committee has not recommended a candidate by then, Alsfeld’s successor as Student Body President will replace her on the committee.

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Academics

• The Senate has voted to establish an Academic Calendar Review Committee to evaluate potential changes to the academic calendars. Any changes would not go into effect until the 2010-11 school year. Items for review would include revising the scheduling of Spring Break and Thanksgiving holidays.

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Athletics

• In the past, LSU students wishing to purchase student season football tickets had to wait until some point in summer to learn when tickets went on sale. That will change this semester, as students will be notified of purchasing dates before the spring semester concludes.

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Community

• SG spearheaded a correspondence campaign from the LSU student body to the communities of Northern Illinois University and Louisiana Technical College: Baton Rouge Campus after last month’s tragic incidents. Students signed giant cards in Free Speech Alley, and the Student Senate passed official resolutions expressing LSU’s sympathies to the two schools. Additionally, the Chancellor’s Office sent memorial wreaths to both schools and flew the University Flag at half-staff for one week. NIU Student Association President Jarvis Purnell and Senate Speaker Rob Batey personally thanked LSU for its response to the incident. To read the article in The Daily Reveille, click here. To watch the Reveille’s online video package, click here.

• In LSU’s unique campus-wide U.S. Presidential Primary Election, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., emerged victorious with 33.5% of the total vote. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., won the Republican nomination. For a more in-depth breakdown of the results, please click here.

• Alsfeld and Vice President Josh King recently had the opportunity to represent the University in Washington, D.C., while meeting with Louisiana politicians and other student body presidents from the state. While there, they had the unique opportunity to meet Sen. Obama and interact with the Presidential hopeful. Among the items Alsfeld and King discussed with the group were the economic factors facing Louisiana’s students, increasing textbook prices and the lingering effects of Hurricane Katrina on coastal Louisiana schools. To read the article in The Daily Reveille, click here.

• Approximately 20 Student Government representatives visited the Governor’s Mansion today, Feb. 27, an opportunity that allowed them to represent the University while experiencing the inner workings of our state government.

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Branch Reports: Senate

• The Senate passed legislation on Feb. 20 requesting that the LSU Athletic Department extend its offers of football tickets for students’ spouses to include all unmarried domestic partners. To read the article in The Daily Reveille, click here.

• The Senate has elected a new Speaker Pro-Temp, Sen. Ben Clark of the graduate school.

 

Thursday, January 31, 2008

Campus Safety

The first three weeks of the new semester have been rather busy on several fronts, especially on the issue of safety.  As you are probably aware, recent events have placed an emphasis on the safety of members of the University family.  Campus and University officials have taken strides to rectify the safety issues and ease concern.

Student Government has been particularly proactive in resolving the issues of student safety that have been brought to light.  Student Body President Cassie Alsfeld called a short-notice Campus Safety Meeting of several departments on campus that are integral parts of the whole security picture.

Attendance included representatives from the following entities:

• Student Government
• The Daily Reveille
• Office of the Dean of Students
• Office of the Chancellor
• Department of Greek Affairs
• LSU Public Affairs and Media Relations
• Residential Life
• Student Auxiliary Services
• Public Safety
• LSU Police Department
• Finance and Administrative Services
• Student Life and Academic Services

President Alsfeld continues to push for increased lighting on campus and additional parking spaces near residential areas, the University Student Recreation Center and Sorority Row.  Public Safety confirmed that new security cameras have been installed near the Edward Gay and Nicholson apartments, as well as the inner core of campus (including the Quad), and that more security cameras will be installed soon.

For a more in-depth analysis of the safety meeting, please click here.

There will be a Campus Safety Forum held Thursday, Jan. 31 from 3:10 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. in the Hill Memorial Library.  The forum, sponsored by the LSU chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), is open to all members of the University family and will include remarks by incoming acting Chancellor William Jenkins, Maj. Lawrence Rabalais with LSUPD and Eric Monday, Associate Vice Chancellor and Interim Director of Emergency Operations at LSU, among others.  Student Government encourages all students with safety concerns to attend this forum.

Student Government’s annual campus Safety Day will be expanded to Safety Week and will occur sometime in March.  Safety Week will include various events and campaigns aimed at educating students on existing safety measures and helping develop new ones.  Student Government is dedicated to working with various campus departments, including those mentioned above, to making Safety Week more effective.

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Aside from safety, the Executive Branch is making good on its promise to move forward.

 

LSU’s U.S. Presidential Primary Election

Student Government is also excited about providing the student body opportunities to get involved in the political process.  We are sponsoring a mock primary election for the U.S. presidential race that will correspond with the State of Louisiana primary elections.  You can access the ballot on your PAWS account from 8 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 31 until 8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 1.

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Free Student Printing

Vice President Josh King was successful in his initiative to provide free on-campus printing.  Now, every student has a $5 credit on their Tiger Cards for printing use in the libraries and computer labs across campus.  This is equivalent to 100 black and white pages or 25 color pages.  All you have to do is swipe your card, and your credited fund will be accessed.  This credit will be used before students’ personal Tiger Cash accounts are accessed for printing.  This program will be renewed every semester, and while we’ve met our original goal of getting this program started, we hope to expand it in the future.

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LSU Traditions Council Established

Josh has also overseen the formation of the Traditions Council, which has received the approval of Chancellor Sean O’Keefe.  The Traditions Council is a body that will evaluate some of LSU’s timeless traditions and brainstorm on ways to enhance the LSU experience, either by improving on existing traditions or creating new ones.  Some of the ideas currently being tossed around are the creation of an “alumni walk” (a stretch of campus featuring the names of LSU alumni similar to something that exists at the University of Arkansas), improvements to existing programs like Stripes and Orientation, and the establishment of a rivalry football game with Ole Miss.

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Mardi Gras Mambo and Student Priority Points Basketball Game

The No. 9 LSU Women’s basketball team will take on South Carolina Thursday night at 7 p.m. in the PMAC.  The game will be a student Priority Points game for the allocation of next season’s away football games.  Also, the Mardi Gras Mambo Court will appear at halftime and the King and Queen will be crowned.  This is an annual tradition here at LSU and a wonderful way to kick off the Mardi Gras season in celebration of the great culture of Louisiana.

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Black History Month Speaker is Sponsored

Student Government has helped sponsor Dr. Noliwe Brooks to speak during Black History Month at LSU.  Dr. Brooks is a published author and Associate Director of African American Studies at Princeton University.  She will speak Thursday, Feb. 7 at 6 p.m. in the Cotillion Ballroom of the LSU Student Union.  Student Government allocated $1,000 it raised during the summer for initiatives and programming to help bring Dr. Brooks to LSU.  The money comes from the SG corporate sponsorship account.  For more information on the event, contact (225) 578-1627.

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