Student Union

As many of you know, the University administration announced its unilateral decision last semester to make the campus tobacco-free by July 2010. Since that announcement there has been an overwhelming response by the student body, and quite a few people were left confused an unsure about what exactly the tobacco ban would mean to them.  

Last semester, SU Senate hosted an Open Forum where students had the opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns about the ban. One of the problems that students had with the ban was that they felt there was not enough transparency, and I am pleased to announce that this coming semster, Jill Carnaghi (Associate Vice Chancellor for Students/Dean of Campus Life) and I will be co-chairing the Undergraduate Committee dealing with smoking ban concerns, questions, etc...It is our goal to make sure that the committee is transparent in hopes that students and the administration can work together and respond to the needs of the undergraduate student body.

As always, please give us your feedback. SU representatives will be working hard in the coming months to represent all students as we move forward in an attempt to understand and respond to the University's tobacco ban.

I will post more information about the committee in the next few weeks. Have a great move in/first few weeks of school!

As you may know, all Senators are assigned to a specific department on campus and we meet with them to express any concerns that students may have and establish a link between students and administators. Since I am the liaison to Campus Life, I met with Jill Carnaghi, Dean of Campus Life and Vice Chancellor of Students, a couple of weeks ago. One of the things that she mentioned to me is an upcoming campaign to make the campus smoke free in the next year or so. The issue is something that I feel very strongly about, and I'm willing to bet that other students do also. We have eliminated bottled water from campus in an effort to increase sustainability, and it was something that many students and administrators initially thought would be impossible to do.

Hmm, well I think that with the cold weather, people will be inside so much that our blogs will get lots of hits, and you can find out all about what we're doing this semester in Student Union!

My name is Amy Heard, and I'm a Sophomore senator for the College of Arts and Sciences. I just started Senate a few months ago, so I'm still getting a feel for everything that both SU and Senate do, and all of the things that we have to offer to students. I think it's a major problem that most students aren't really aware of all of the things that go on behind the scences and all of the resources that they have available. Hopefully things like this blog will help change that!

One thing that's coming up next week, Jan 20-23, is Senate Outreach Week. This will be an opportunity for students to meet their senators, as well as understand what Senate does, how to get more involved, and how Senate can help you! We will be tabling in the DUC every day next week (except Monday because it's MLK), and we will be walking around meeting students in the DUC Thursday and Friday, all from 11-1. I'm really excited about this outreach, and I hope to meet a lot of you next week!

Have a great four day weekend, and try to stay warm!