Ball State University’s Student Government Association (SGA) President Joseph Gassensmith announced the updates for the executive board’s platform points in his “State of the Student Body” address during their Jan. 24 meeting.
Gassensmith claimed the board accomplished “20 out of 27” of their platform points. The points fall under multiple categories, such as Sustainability, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Disability Services, Campus Safety Infrastructure, Sexual Assault Awareness, Transportation, Senate Struture, Campus Services and Sound Fiscal Management.
The seven points that aren’t accomplished, Gassensmith said they’re ongoing, such as expanding disability awareness, angel shots awareness, and updating blue lights and lighting on campus.
Expanding disability awareness in classrooms is ongoing due to proposed legislation failing in the Faculty Council. Gassensmith said there are plans to rework the language in the legislation.
The original platform proposal was that lectures and lessons would be recorded and posted on canvas as well as all coursework instructions provided written and verbally.
“When a professor teaches a class, that's their property,” he said. “It's a valid point that they're worried, if their lectures are posted on Canvas, their entire class, someone is going to steal it.”
Gassensmith said the angel shot initiative is not completed due to possible liability.
“It's a more complex legal process to protect ourselves and the university from liability and reach out to the businesses in the Muncie area,” Gassensmith said.
Gassensmith said efforts to add blue lights to Scheidler Apartments are waiting on University Police Department Chief John Foster to update them on the possible locations for the blue lights. He said they will be focusing on possibly getting signs with emergency contact information added to Riverside Avenue.
The plans for adding an additional Blue Loop bus has been changed to increasing commuter pass parking spaces on-campus, such as converting general lots into general/commuter parking.
The original plan for a bus loop was changed because “financially, [it] is not feasible right now.”
A few points Gassensmith claimed he completed were sustainability in Ball State’s dining, establishing a disability equity and inclusion (DEI) committee
To learn more on 23 of their points, the SGA Fall 2023 Executinge Platform Progress Report gives more information.
Along with Gassensmith’s updates, Raegan Mullins, a criminal justice and criminology major, was voted in as Sheriff for the Elections Board.
Mullins was approved 30-2 with three abstentions.
Contact Hannah Amos via email at hannah.amos@bsu.edu or on X @Hannah_Amos_394. Contact Abigail Denault via email at abigail.denault@bsu.edu.
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