From the president

It’s approaching that time again: SGA elections. On March 6-8, voting will take place for executive tickets (president/vice president/executive director) and senators. You can only vote for one executive ticket, but you can vote for up to 25 senators. In order to make the most informed decision possible, I recommend marking your calendars for Thursday, March 1. On this date at 8:30 p.m. in Commonwealth Ballroom B, the SGA will have its official presidential debate. Students will have the opportunity to ask questions directly to any member of the executive ticket. There will also be an audio podcasted vice presidential debate, which will be available for download the morning of Monday, March 5. If you have any questions for the vice presidential candidates, please e-mail communications@vcusga.com.
In my opinion, Jessica Lee is the best candidate for student body president. She is an intelligent, driven, hard-working student with rich experience in student government. She has worked to try to improve student life by lobbying for increased financial aid at the General Assembly. She has worked to improve dining options for students. She has worked with the new University College to improve academic advising, and she will continue to advocate for students for all these issues and more. I fully endorse her and her team. You can find out more at www.votevcu.com.
Another SGA event to look out for is the presidential roundtable, taking place tonight from 7 to 8 p.m. in the Richmond Salons. The presidential roundtable is an opportunity for student organizations to communicate their concerns directly to the president. Every student organization is required to send at least one person to a roundtable meeting, and there are two more scheduled for this semester. To see these dates and for more information, please visit www.vcusga.com and click the “presidential roundtable” tab on the left side of the screen.
Upset about parking issues on campus? Here’s your opportunity to vent about it to someone who is in charge. VCU parking and transportation services is holding a student advisory meeting March 7, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the University Student Commons, Richmond Salon II, to hear students’ opinions regarding the VCU parking and transportation program. Free pizza and drinks will be provided. For more information or any questions regarding parking, contact Miriam Maddux at madduxmf@vcu.edu.
The senate meeting last Monday was as usual very lively and productive. First order of business was the confirmation of Kadie Puffenbarger, my appointment for associate justice on the judicial board. Next up, the senate passed the “banned students bill,” a housekeeping bill designed to keep students already banned from the university from reapplying. Then the senate worked diligently and persistently to find the right language for the student body referendum to extend period to drop classes. Not only did the senators want the wording to be convincing enough for the student body to sign on, they also wanted it to be professional enough for the administration to take it seriously. If the referendum passes, the drop extension has a good chance of being instituted, especially now that the add extension was removed from the bill. The add extension was removed due to objections from professors.
Finally, have you ever thought that punishments for non-academic related offenses such as drinking and drug-related offenses were too harsh or not harsh enough? If so, today is your lucky day. I am currently looking for students interested in serving on the university hearing board, which hears the cases of students charged with violating the university’s rules and procedures. If you agree to do this, you must be available for training on an as-needed basis as hearings are scheduled. For more information, or to submit a resume and a paragraph explaining why you want to serve, contact my deputy director of external affairs Joshua Maye at mayeji@vcu.edu.
Again, elections are less than two weeks way, so this is your chance to influence SGA policy by finding and choosing the best candidates for president, vice president and executive director, as well as senators. Check out our Web site at www.vcusga.com.

Editor’s Note: The endorsement reflected in this article does not constitute the official endorsement of The Commonwealth Times.