Section A·Page 8
The University Daily Kansan
Monday, August 21, 2000
Ben Walker, student body president and Marlon Marshall, student body vice president, discuss issues concerning the new school year. Walker and Marshall plan to address issues such as tuition and student services. Photo by Karra Kraus / KANSAN
Student execs set year's agenda
Fewer tuition hikes among top priorities for Walker, Marshall
By Kursten Phelps
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Student Body President Ben Walker and Vice President Marlon Marshall want Student Senate to focus on students — not on bickering.
Walker said a main goal for the new academic year was to make Senate a working government body that served the students rather than just a legislative body.
"Too often, we have spent our time in long meetings arguing over minor issues that don't really change much," he said. "I think that's a big turnoff to students."
Marshall said they had been working on specific programs that would provide concrete services that students want.
"My department is more the tangible things, the stuff that students can see and know their student government is working for them," Marshall said.
He said work had already begun on an online, off-campus housing directory, and also on a plan for students to use the residence hall meal plan at Wescoe Terrace. Other possible services may
include local discount cards, a newspaper readership program that would make national newspapers available on campus, and more ATM machines and copiers in the residence halls.
Another big issue for Senate would be tuition, Walker said. Tuition was increased twice this year. It increased 2.5 percent in June 1999, and last December a $3.20 increase per credit hour was approved.
During the summer, the Board of Regents approved another increase of 3 percent for resident students, 2.5 percent for nonresident undergraduates, and 2.2 percent for nonresident graduates. That increase will go into effect in Fall 2001.
Walker said he was working with the student body presidents of the six other Regents schools to develop and lobby a tuition bill of rights that would establish several laws to limit tuition increases. For example, if tuition was increased by a certain percentage one year, the Board of Regents could not raise tuition for three to five years.
Walker also said he wanted to tie financial aid to tuition increases, meaning the Legislature would have to increase financial aid by the same percentage tuition was increased.
"All of the student body presidents are on board with this," Walker said. "It would limit the power of the Board of Regents to raise tuition at will."
Walker said he was going into the year
WALKER AND MARSHALL
Title: Student body president
Ben Walker
Hometown: Hutchinson
Major: Political Science
Previous Senate experience: legislative
adirector, 1994-2000
nunemaker senator, 1997-2000
- From the president - Wants Senate to focus on working for students, not arguing about legislative issues.
Marlon Marshall
Mon Klarsman
Title: Student body vice president
W
Hometown: St. Louis, Mo.
Major: Communication Studies
Previous Senate experience: Student Senate Executive Committee chair, 1999-2000
Engineering senator, 1998-2000
From the vice president: "We're going to argue in Senate sometimes, but as long as we respect each other, I think things will go well."
with a positive outlook of the new Senate.
"There were some hard feelings left over from the elections, but over the summer there was really good cooperation," he said. "We have a strong, bright, energetic group of senators and a pretty high turnover rate of new senators, so I'm excited to work with all of them."
Edited by Shawn Hutchinson
Report: students unhappy with campus politicians
By Kursten Phelps writer@kanson.com
Kansan staff writer
Student Senate surveyed students in April to find out what campus issues are important to them.
The results didn't reflect well on Senate. Instead, the survey revealed students' indifference toward Senate.
Students said that they felt Senate didn't serve their needs, but that they were concerned with tuition, financial aid, parking and online enrollment.
Ben Walker, student body president, said he hoped to change that indifference.
"It reaffirmed a lot of my feelings about students' attitudes toward Senate," he said, adding that a lot of students were anathetic toward Senate.
"Hopefully, this will help us in general work to change students' attitudes so that they're less apathetic about Student Senate all the way up to state and local politics," Walker said.
The survey research center of the Policy and Research Institute conducted the telephone survey at random. It questioned
577 students at campus issues and their knowledge of University, local and state politics, said Don Haider-Markel, director of the survey research center.
"We haven't had time to digest too much of the results," Walker said. "But it gives us an idea of the issues we need to work on."
Walker said he planned to review the report with the Senate Executive staff before he would present it to student senators at Senate's Leadership Training Seminar Saturday.
Senate plans to release the results to the public within a couple of weeks, he said.
"It's in line with our plans for LTS and it will contribute to our group discussions about our constituencies and how we can serve our constituents' needs better," Walker said.
"We all have our own ideas of what direction Student Senate should go in, and the survey adds to that and makes a larger voice of what students want to do," said Marlon Marshall, student body vice president.
The results were processed during the summer and the Student Senate received the report at the end of July.
Haider-Markel said the margin of error was less than 3.4 percent, which is comparable to major national surveys.
University governance
Edited by Erin Adamson
The chart below illustrates the hierarchy of governance at the University of Kansas. Committees, councils and senates make and enforce the regulations that govern and guide the University of Kansas. The hierarchy delegates authority to students, faculty and administrators. Chancellor Robert Hemenway must approve any bill adopted by Faculty, University or Student senates. In turn, Hemenway's decisions are subject to approval by the Kansas Board of Regents.
University Senate
Faculty Senate -
Faculty Council
Faculty Executive Committee
Board of Regents Chancellor
University Council
Senate Executive Committee
Student Senate
Student Executive Committee
University Boards
such as the Parking Board and Court of Parking Appeals
University Council Committees such as Organization and Administration
Faculty Senate Committees
such as Tenure and Research
University Senate Committees
such as Internal Affairs and Libraries
Student Senate Committees such as Graduate and University Affairs
Kyle Ramsey/KANSAN
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