Posted on March 31, 2008
SGA will hold its annual spring elections on Tuesday. The offices of President, Vice President of Student Affairs, Executive Treasurer, Student Representative to the Board of Visitors and Vice President of Administrative affairs are being contested.
Candidates for President
Chiquita King:
• Increase visibility and communication between SGA and other campus organizations.
• Promote diversity by working with the Center for Multicultural Student Services, and start a Lifestyle of the Month program to share experiences with students of diverse backgrounds.
• Make “No Turn on Red” signs around campus effective only Monday through Friday.
• Create an SGA committee on environmental sustainability to reflect on university environmental policies.
• Hold senators accountable by adding structure to the recently passed “Senator Forum” bill requiring SGA senators to hold open forums with their constituency, making senators more visible to the student body.
Larson Thune:
• Increase student involvement in campus organizations as the university expands by working with the Office of Residence Life and Student Organizational Services.
• Help the university lead safe and healthy lifestyles by adding blue lights to off-campus locations because most timely notices occur off campus and make STD testing more readily available.
• Cut down on traffic congestion by working with Harrisonburg Department of Public Transportation to increase the JMU busing budget, encourage carpooling with HOV lots and add more bike racks on campus.
• Ensure students receive correct and consistent information from their major advisers.
Candidates for Vice President of Student Affairs
Mallory Micetich:
• Expand involvement of class councils.
• Organize SGA events that involve the entire student body.
• Organize events concerning the presidential elections this fall.
• Create spaces on the commons for organizations to distribute handbills.
• Work with the 16 class council officers to develop better leaders for the student body.
• Re-evaluate senate structure to allow senators to better represent students.
Candace Avalos:
• Increase VPSA communication with the student body by creating a number of forums for students to communicate such as an online comment box.
• Raise awareness about the “Madison Milestones” program by creating a Web site to view records and organize more record-breaking events.
• Decrease admissions prices to events for those who donate shirts for the class council philanthropy project collecting shirts for local Harrisonburg shelters.
• Increase SGA visibility by hosting more commons days.
Candidates for Executive Treasurer
Tara Rife:
• Work with Card Services to lower cost of replacing lost JAC Cards and increasing the number of businesses that accept FLEX.
• Increase the percentage of student fees that go to campus organizations and adding to the Club House.
• Negotiate lower advertising costs in The Breeze for campus organizations.
• Establish a Treasurer’s Council to publicize to organizations how to receive funds.
Parag Pirikh:
• Provide student organizations with publications of the budget.
• Inform students on how to receive funds and how best to utilize them.
• Ensure funds are used to benefit the entire student body.
• Promote on-campus social events such as a college prom.
• Reduce the high cost of meals in dining halls and increase the number of dining options available on weekends. (Photo unavailable)
Candidates for Student Representative to the BOV
Marley Green:
• Work with the Board to advance the Green Fund, which won overwhelming student support last spring, by investigating the use of renewable resources such as solar or wind power.
• Build a Sustainability Center out of recycled materials as a center for education on sustainability.
• Narrow the gap between students and their representatives by holding monthly forums.
• Find a solution for problems created by Title IX which cut several athletic programs in 2006, as many athletes still need university support to compete at the highest levels.
Stephany Herzog:
• Advocate for a greener campus by increasing the number of recycle bins on campus, saving energy by turning off the stadium scoreboard at night and creating a volunteer group to help clean Newman Lake.
• Increase student parking on campus and investigate if meter times need to be expanded in certain areas.
• Work with Dining Services to increase the value of the punch and offer more vegetarian and vegan options.
• Increase safety with more blue lights on campus and bus service to Highlawn and Downtown Harrisonburg to avoid drunken driving.
• Increase student academic success by increasing the time between classes and creating online midterm professor evaluations.
Alex Plunkett:
• Increase student awareness about the role and actions of the Board of Visitors.
• Inform the student body of decisions made in board meetings through online updates and on-campus awareness raising.
• Raise student concerns to the board. (Photo unavailable)
Fred Rose:
• Advocate for more busing hours and a third Intercampus shuttle route to operate between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m.
• Advocate for a new parking deck on the ISAT side of campus.
• Work with Dining Services to increase the amount of a punch, double punch on Fridays and creating guest punches.
• Make free bluebooks available to students as needed by the course.
• Establish student-based mentors for every major.
• Inform students on possible Board decisions to allow student feedback before the decision is made.
• Create a Student Advisory Council to meet monthly to talk about student concerns.
Candidate for Vice President of Administrative Affairs
Daniel J. Stana (Unopposed):
• More blue lights, specifically in parking lots where many commuters and residents are susceptible. Better lighting throughout campus.
• Require advisers to send students two e-mails per semester highlighting (a) their office, (b) their office hours, (c) what they can do to help while at JMU and (d) how they can help students prepare to leave JMU.
• It’s time to voice student and faculty concerns to the administration about the growth rate of JMU. It has caused severe headaches that lead to problems with (a) parking, (b) crowded classrooms, and (c) crowded dining halls.
• A fence similar to the one on the bridge leading to ISAT on the Port Republic Rd. bridge.
• Work with VDOT and Harrisonburg Department of Public Transportation to retime the lights on Port Republic.
• Organize a “Cleanup JMU Day” with various groups on campus.
