Maj. Gen. R. G. Richard, Tiger Athletic Foundation chairman, enlightened the Student Senate about TAF’s mission during Wednesday’s rainy evening. Richard, retired U.S. Marine Corps chief executive officer, has headed TAF for seven years. He said the mission of TAF is to help student athletes graduate on time and improve the facilities student athletes use in their pursuit to graduate. Richard said TAF provides the athletic and academic side of the University with $2.5 million to $3 million per year. “If we want to get money for something, we have to get the permission of the Athletic Department, the Chancellor’s Office and sometimes the Board of Supervisors, depending on the amount of money,” Richard said. One senator asked Richard what TAF plans to do with excess funds after paying off the debt. Richard said the debt “doesn’t go away.” He said TAF is looking at the possibilities of building an upper deck in Tiger Stadium’s south end zone which would make Tiger Stadium one of the largest stadiums in the country. He said TAF is also looking at the possibility of improving the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Corey Weber, SG director of transportation, said the University’s transportation system is not up to par. He said he is looking at the possibility of implementing a GPS system on campus for students to see where the buses are moving. Weber also said he has been working with the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation to relocate greenhouses near east campus dorms to make more room for parking. He said students can also expect to see additional parking near the University Student Recreational Complex in the near future. During unfinished business, three senators presented a resolution requesting the University change the academic calendar to allow students travel time before the Thanksgiving holiday. The bill was written by Sen. Andy Palermo, chair of the Housing, Infrastructure and Technology Committee; Sen. Amanda Gammon, college of Arts and Sciences; and Sen. Meghan Hanna, vice chair for the Athletics, Academics and Administration Committee. Palermo said the bill aims to end classes at 12:30 p.m. the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. He said he spoke with University Registrar Robert Doolos who confirmed half-days count as full days in the academic calendar. The resolution passed unanimously with one abstention. Palermo, Gammon and Hanna also introduced a resolution urging the University to move the spring break holiday to the week after Easter. Palermo said the purpose is to make the holiday more in-line with peer institutions in East Baton Rouge. The resolution was tabled for one week to get more student feedback. Students can e-mail suggestions or questions to [email protected]. Earlier during new business, two bills were referred to the Finance Committee. Sen. Brett Jackson, College of Arts and Sciences, introduced the first bill, which aims to allocate $2,500 to help the Department of French Studies fund their charitable fashion show, “Athletica: A Tribute to Sport.” Sen. Chris Sellers, vice chair for the Finance Committee, wrote the second bill, which seeks to appropriate a maximum of $10,000 from the SG initiatives account to the Center for Community Engagement, Learning and Leadership to match funds committed by college deans. A bill written by Sellers passed through committee to unfinished business. The bill passed unanimously and will appropriate $1,500 from the SG initiatives account to the Computer Aided Design and Geographic Information Systems Research Laboratory to defray the cost of providing a new campus map.
—-Contact Natalie Messina at [email protected]