L.A. Pittenger Student Center will have more dining options, possibly including franchises such as Starbucks or Taco Bell, because the Student Government Association has succeeded in that area of its executive board's platform
SGA President Betsy Mills covered that subject along with many other facets of the U.N.I.T.E.D. Initiative platform in the first All Presidents' Forum on Thursday.
Mills delivered a speech in front of about 25 students from campus organizations.
Mills said SGA wanted to stage the event because updating students on SGA's progress was a goal of the executive slate's platform.
"You guys are from all over campus, and that's exciting" Mills said during her speech. "We want to tell you how we're keeping our promises to the student body."
Renovating the student center and making it more usable for students was a main focus of Mills' platform, she said. Adding brand-name restaurants and other healthy food choices would meet that goal, she said.
"It's something that's still in the works," she said. "The university is in contract negotiations, but it's something that's going to happen."
Mills covered all the goals of the platform during her speech.
One goal that is meeting some resistance from the university is the implementation of an academic "dead week" before finals week every semester, she said. A dead week would allow students to prepare for their finals without additional class work being assigned, similar to the system at Indiana and Purdue universities, she said.
SGA Vice President Jamie Manuel said some university officials do not like the idea because it affects how professors teach.
"They view it as limiting their academic freedom," Manuel said.
Mills and other SGA members fielded questions from the students in attendance, specifically on SGA being more accessible to the general student body.
Mills said she understands students concerns and wants to strive to meet all students' needs. She said she was generally happy with the way her administration has handled the term to this point.
"We're firing on all cylinders right now," she said. "Our cabinet, we make them work their heads off."
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