Two pieces of legislation were introduced at Wednesday's Ball State University Student Government Association meeting, which if passed, would begin the process of improving student safety on the south end of campus.
The bills discuss fixing the sidewalks in the Quad and finding a way to reduce speeding near Woodworth Complex.
Frank Hood, one author of the bills and the At-Large Caucus chairman, said the sidewalks have been an issue for awhile because they are cracked and when it rains some areas pool. People in wheelchairs or crutches cannot go around the areas and walk in the grass like other students might be able to, he said.
"This definitely is helping students with disabilities," Hood said. "This has been brought to my attention by professors who work in buildings around the Quad, the executive slate and a lot of other people want it. This is a collaborative issue and we need to work together to get it done."
Hood said if the cracks were fixed and the sidewalks were made to not pool the water when it rains the appearance would be better. Most importantly, he said, safety and student access would be improved.
The Quad is the grassy area between Riverside, University and McKinley avenues and Christy Woods.
Carrie Cozad, another author of the bills and Student Safety Committee chairwoman, said working to reduce speeding near Woodworth would help stop cars from colliding with one another or a person getting hurt. She said she was not aware of any student getting hurt yet, and she hoped the legislation would keep it from happening.
As the legislation reads now, there are two solutions Hood, Cozad and Michelle Voss, the final author of the bills and On-Campus Caucus chairwoman, suggested.
One would be to create a marked loading and unloading-only zone along the sidewalk in front of Woodworth. An alternative solution would be to create a marked parking zone along the sidewalk in front of the residence hall that could be metered or unmetered. The implementation of either solution would eliminate the need of vehicles to cross the center line into the lane of oncoming traffic and would make the lanes more narrow and lead to reduced speeding, according to the legislation.
"[I hope] we can come to a solution about getting something implemented and can get this happened," Cozad said.
The senators will debate and vote on the legislation at their next meeting Wednesday.
Other than a question and answer session about the two pieces of legislation, the senators met in their caucuses and committees to discuss campus issues that can be seen at the right of the page.
Committee reportsAcademic Affairs: Committee Chairman Carson Lance said he has retyped a policy draft about Dead Week and legislation will be on its way. He also said he and his committee members are still looking into mandatory teacher evaluations.
Community and Environmental Affairs: Committee Chairman Kyle Johnson said he is still trying to get in contact with Ball State's grounds and landscaping department about what can and cannot be done on the Nov. 10 campus cleanup day.
Diversity and Multicultural Affairs: Committee Chairman Travis Schilla said he would have a five to 10 minute presentation about diversity during Wednesday's SGA meeting.
Governmental Affairs and Student Awareness: Committee Chairman Shawn Meier said he and his committee members were still working on the How-to Book, and it should be completed in December. He also said they would begin letting people know about the end-of-November blood drive in hopes of getting more people to participate.
Student Services: Committee Chairman Frank Hood said he and his committee members were seeing what it would take to get e-mails sent to students about when dates are approaching for things such as course withdrawl, course request, "Fruesday" and graduation application.
Campus reports
At-Large: Caucus Chairman Frank Hood said legislation should begin in a couple weeks about getting benches put in front of the Burkhardt Building for the bus stop. He said he also is still looking into getting Cardinal Cash implemented for washers and dryers in the residence halls, or getting change machines in the places Cardinal Cash can't be established.
On-Campus: Caucus Chairwoman Michelle Voss said she and her caucus members were continuing to look at issues in the residence halls.
Organizational: Caucus Chairwoman Evie Markoulatos said she and her caucus members were informing people about the Student Voluntary Services events the organization is hosting.
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