Possibilities for Student Senate
As part of their application for student body secretary,candidates have been allowed to write commentaries detailing theirplatforms. Voting will run from Feb. 25 to Feb. 26.
My name is Gabe Travers and I am running for student bodysecretary. This past fall I was elected by my peers to serve as aFirst-Year Senator. Since then, I have worked hard to represent thevarious interests and concerns of my constituents, and now I wouldlike to serve the student body as a whole.
As a senator, I have worked on issues such as funding forstudent programs, SMU ID card replacement fees, football seatingfor students in Ford Stadium, as well as other issues that arebeing addressed by the Student Issues committee.
One of my main goals for the next year is to improve the linesof communication between the student body and Student Senate, and Isee the position of student body secretary as being the perfectfacilitator for such action. Many students feel uninformed aboutissues that Senate is addressing and frequently have troublefinding the information that they need. I believe that one of thebest tools that could be used to alleviate this issue would be animproved Student Senate Web site. I would like to see the sitecontain easily accessible information regarding Senate’slegislation, upcoming issues on the agenda, past meeting minutes,accurate contact information and updates from each of thecommittees. By taking more steps to inform you, it would be my hopethat you feel more involved in the issues that pertain directly toyour everyday life. Hopefully, this would encourage students tobecome more involved with Senate as I would like to see an increasein participation by students in each of Senate’s committeesas well.
Another area where communication can specifically improve isbetween Senate and student organizations. Many changes will likelybe going into effect in the coming year that will change theprocess by which student groups receive charters. It is crucialthat this process be communicated to the students, whom it directlyaffects. In addition, communication needs to be improved betweenexisting student organizations and Senate. Many organizations areunaware of the different avenues that Senate offers for funding.Furthermore, correspondence from each charteredorganization’s affiliate senator needs to be more effective;numerous groups are unaware who their affiliate senator is. Thisresponsibility of ensuring this communication rests with StudentSenate and I would work to ensure it is drastically improved.
I would also like to introduce new programs and services thatwould directly impact and improve the life of students at theuniversity. For example, we all can relate to the high cost oftextbooks and the small amount that we receive back for them atbookstores’ buy-back programs. I would propose the creationof an online book exchange system sponsored by Senate. The program,which is already in place and working at various otheruniversities, would allow SMU students to post their books forfellow Mustangs to buy. Essentially, you get to sell back yourbooks for more and buy books for less.
It is also a goal of mine to work with the university toincrease the availability of library facilities. Many universitiessimilar to SMU offer students a facility to study in all hours ofthe day and night throughout the year, which I think could beaccomplished by encouraging the university to allocate more moneyto our library system.
This year, I also worked on a committee working toward the finalgoal of the indexing of scholarships. This is a realistic endeavor,and I will continue to work with others to seek out itsimplementation. These are just some of the ideas, goals and issuesthat I would like to work on for you as Student Body Secretary.Please don’t forget to vote on Feb. 25 and Feb. 26.
Gabe Travers is running for student body secretary. He may bereached at [email protected].
