Written By: Taymara Tait

This week, SGA discussed topics concerning the campus safety walk, academic planning and academic scheduling among others.

The campus safety committee takes an annual walk around campus and analyzes lighting and the safety surrounding the campus environment. Campus police, administrators and professors walked through main campus, north campus and the parking decks checking for any hazardous areas. This included checking signs and finding insufficiently lit areas.

They also noted that sheet signs are not allowed to be hung on certain pine trees around campus due to damages to the tree. When one wraps anything around them, it damages the preservation of the trees. Only the larger trees on campus can be used to display sheet signs.

Next on the list was the discussion of the academic planning committee pushing spring break to Easter. The academic committee is divided on this topic. SGA plans to make a survey to see when students would prefer to have spring break.

An academic forgiveness policy may be coming into effect next year as well. Under this policy, students with an inadequate grade can retake the class for a better grade to improve their cumulative GPA.  Petitions were passed around this Monday to the SGA members who were encouraged to pass them around to the student body. Twenty-five signatures are required by Monday in order for the policy to be passed.

Some senators were concerned about whether this proposed policy involved the Board of Regents only VSU. This is in fact a VSU policy and not a part of the BOR policy.

The discussion shifted to SGA’s effort to sell Krispy Kreme Donuts around campus. Comptroller Tamelia Hall announced this fundraiser is raising money for SGA’s scholarship emergency fund. Unfortunately, donuts have not been sold as expected and card readers are encouraged to help in the effort of selling Krispy Kreme donuts.

Another subject matter addressed at the SGA meeting was the question of a student philanthropy committee, which will mainly focus on raising money for projects desired specifically by the student body. To start this, the first step as suggested by Tamelia Hall is to start up a committee that will take student surveys, which will include organizers to search for ideas that the student body wants to specifically see on campus.