The Observer, September 29, 2006
Volume XXXIX, Issue 5
USG Briefs
This week's USG General Assembly Meeting opened with President Neil Ursic's Executive Board Report. Provost Anderson and CFO Sadid will be offering a short one hour session reviewing the University budget with any interested students. These sessions will be held on Oct. 26, Nov. 16, and Dec. 7, from noon to 1 p.m. in Nord 400.
Ursic also addressed the construction of the new Mandel Center building on Bellflower. In addition to two classrooms being prepared in Crawford, the new Mandel building will have an additional four classrooms available for undergraduate use. Construction is planned for completion in spring of 2007.
VP of Student Life Myles Nickolich reported that a survey regarding Greenie service on campus will be available soon, and that members of his committee would be riding the Greenies getting feedback from students, drivers, and other users of the bus system very soon.
Additionally, the committee is looking into getting an ordering kiosk installed for L3 and the Silver Spartan that would allow student to place orders online. For those students fasting for Ramadan, Bon Appetit has agreed to allow observant students to take as much food as they'd like out of Fribley or Leutner so fasting students would have food.
VP of Public Affairs Adam Rupe reminded the assembly that Homecoming is Oct. 14 this year. Also, on Oct. 6, USG will be handing out hot cocoa and surveys.
VP of Academic Affairs Dustin Fisher reported that USG will be holding the first of a sequence of three Open Forums with the undergraduate student body, the first coming on Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. in Wade Fireside, directed towards first-year students and their views on SAGES.
During the Open Forum, Nickolich reported that Adelbert Bridge would be reopening to traffic on Nov. 30 this year, and that Greenie routes would likely be redirected to take advantage of this.
Also, Nickolich said that an administrator asked him if there would be interest in providing $50-100 memberships to 1-2-1 Fitness for the entire undergraduate student body, in a manner similar to that of the RTA passes. Overall consensus among the GA was to just improve Veale's hours and if this plan is implemented, to make it optional.
The only resolution of the day was a bill calling on the university to stop using students' social security numbers on papers and computer systems that have no need for it. Director of IT Matt Crowley spoke about the University's disregard of FERPA regulations, which prohibit using the SSN as a personal identifier. These violations, he explained, needlessly open students up to identity theft and privacy violations. The assembly voted in favor of the regulation unanimously, 35-0-0.
New Judicial Board members were confirmed. This committee, in charge of ensuring USG follows its own rules and regulations, consists of David Corn, Jennifer Sharma, Dan Myers, Krishna Surapaneni, Josh Ernst, and Robert Hobohm.
Finally, the meeting closed with elections for Class of 2009 Treasurer. Four candidates ran, Jennifer Brinkman, Aditi Sinha, Amanda Lansell, and Jeffrey Decrosta, with Brinkman winning.
