Most of us have taken our first exam of the new semester and now we’re all figuring out how to make the grade, avoid classroom boredom and finish out the semester with some memorable experiences. Along those same lines, Student Government is preparing for a transition phase, as well as finishing up all projects and continuing to communicate about the budget situation and the strategic planning process. Elections are coming up after Spring Break in March, so get ready for those awesome two weeks of campaigning in the Brickyard.
Speaking of awesome, there’s going to be free pizza in the Talley Ballroom on Wednesday, Feb. 16 at 6 p.m. The pizza is a shameless attempt to bring more students out to the student success forum and you can’t have a slice unless you eat it while participating in the forum. I know a forum may sound dull, but currently the Strategic Planning Process is in its final stages of creating a proposal and student input is critical. Check out “Student Success Forum & Free Pizza” on Facebook and join in the discussion. If any RA’s are reading this, there will be a lot of dialogue on learning villages and your input and your residents’ input would be really valuable.
On a similar note, our ability to be successful in the classroom is undoubtedly related to the resources we have available. Hence, the current budget situation, possibly $80 million in cuts, doesn’t seem to bode well for students. Most everyone should have received an e-mail from your college dean explaining how these budget cuts might effect your respective colleges and how you can give your feedback. This communication came about because our student senators contacted all the college deans and asked if they could work with them to develop a communication strategy in hopes we could all better understand what’s going on.
Please send me an e-mail if you have ideas about better ways Student Government can help relay information about the budget situation and provide opportunities for you to make your voice heard [email protected] (Example of opportunity to make your voice heard: the aforementioned student success forum).
The vibe on campus isn’t doom and gloom right now though, nor should it be. In fact, as The Technician previously mentioned, Student Government just launched the Wolfpack Student Discounts program to help offset some of our financial woes. Also searchable on Facebook, the program offers discounts at local businesses with a student ID. It’s pretty awesome and will only continue to grow over the next few months, so get pumped.
I won’t be redundant and just repeat everything that I sent out in the last student e-mail but I am really proud of this year’s Student Government and all that the 300 students involved have accomplished. That being said, your student reps all know we could do more and we welcome your ideas and suggestions. There’s a feedback link on students.ncsu.edu. I’m always open for e-mails and I’ll continue to keep you updated via Facebook and my blog. As always, GO PACK!
