Heath Hattaway, Student Government presidential candidate, and Rachel Spinner, vice presidential candidate, are pledging to put campus affairs “In Focus” for the 2005-06 year.
Their campaign highlights a variety of issues, such as creating a virtual scheduling system, extending the Thanksgiving holiday and cleaning the University lakes.
Hattaway said he and Spinner wanted to create a campaign that is obtainable and plans that will set a foundation for the administration that could follow him and Spinner.
Hattaway said, realistically, there are only about seven months, taking into account holidays, for an administration to work and for students to see results, which is why he and Spinner chose obtainable plans.
“We don’t want to tell students we are gonna do something and not,” Hattaway said.
Hattaway said one of his ticket’s most important plans is a virtual scheduling system.
Spinner said the virtual scheduling will simplify the degree audit because it will list needed classes with a list of available classes.
“[The virtual scheduling is] taking the complexity of a degree audit and combining it with the simplicity of a Web page,” Hattaway said.
Spinner said the virtual scheduling will make University degrees worth more because students will take classes they need and not just fill space.
Hattaway said he and Spinner already are working with administrators such as University Registrar Robert Doolos and Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Risa Palm to create the virtual scheduling program.
Hattaway said he and Spinner want to expand wireless Internet on campus “from the river to the lakes,” which includes dorm lobbies, married and greek housing and along the lakes, and have a virtual computer lab, which anyone with their PAWS identification can access.
“LSU needs to be a leader in [the technology] field,” Hattaway said.
Hattaway said the expansion of the wireless network, which is only in areas such as the Quad and CEBA, will cost about $2.75 million. He said he will propose it be payed for with the Student Tech Fee — a fee students already pay every semester.
Hattaway said the virtual 24-hour computer lab is better than a physical 24-hour computer lab because a physical lab would cost more money to pay people to work the lab, monitor security and to convert an area capable of handling the demands.
Students could access the virtual computer lab by logging-on to the University network, which would allow them to use available software from anywhere, as if the programs were installed on their own computer.
Hattaway said students will get the same results as a physical 24-hour computer lab, as long as they have Internet access — which is the only way a virtual lab can be used.
The virtual lab would enable students to access high-end software, such as graphing design software, like Adobe Photoshop, Hattaway said.
The Student Tech Fee would also fund the virtual lab, Hattaway said.
Another issue Hattaway and Spinner want to address is diversity, such as race, religion, age and culture.
Hattaway said he and Spinner want to begin diversity education programs for every new student — freshman, transfer and international students.
Hattaway said he and Spinner will work with the Office of Orientation and the Office of Multicultural Affairs to teach new students about diversity on campus.
“We want people to see LSU as a melting pot, instead of a food tray with dividers,” Hattaway said.
Hattaway said the effects may not be seen overnight, but that “change must start somewhere.”
Hattaway said he and Spinner also want to clean “Campus Lake,” the lake behind Miller and Herget Halls, by creating a marshland. He said they want the lake to be “a living habitat for students, alumni and guests to enjoy.”
Hattaway said he and Spinner will get swamp grasses planted to filter garbage before it enters the lake, bring marine life to the lake and plant swamp flowers in the area.
Spinner said a clean lake is important because many students live near it.
Hattaway said he and Spinner are working with ecology professor John Day to improve the area by removing trash and algae. He said it will cost between $5,000 and $7,000 and that he will propose for it to be payed for by the Coca-Cola fund — a fund SG uses for new projects and initiatives.
Hattaway and Spinner also want to extend the Thanksgiving holiday.
Hattaway said they want to make the Wednesday before Thanksgiving a half-day to give students extra time to get home for the holiday. He said the idea would be a proposition to the Faculty Senate because the SG president does not control the University calendar.
He said he and Spinner have begun talking with University Registrar Robert Doolos and Assistant Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs Karen Denby.
Hattaway said the Faculty Senate would have to approve the scheduling change for 2006 because the calendar is already set for 2005.
Most importantly, Hattaway said their campaign is about creating “programming with a purpose.” He said he and Spinner want to spend student money on lasting programs, such as the virtual computer lab and a clean lake.
Hattaway said he wants students to see him and Spinner implementing their platform and know that SG is working for them.
“LSU is one of the best places on earth, and I want other students to feel that way,” Spinner said.