WARTblog

2005 Organization of the Year

Student Senate has been selected as the 2004-05 Outstanding Organization!

This award would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of each member of Student Senate.  Thanks for your commitment!

We will be honored on at the Leadership and Service Awards Ceremony on Saturday, April 9th at 4:15pm in the Chapel.

Summer Improvements

I forgot to mention in the meeting this morning that I am still gathering a list of summer improvements for maintenance.  If you have anything that needs to be fixed or looked into over those couple of months that school is not is session, leave a comment and let me know or e-mail me via the senate account (senate@wartburg.edu).  Happy Easter!

Friedo

Housing SubCommittee 3/23/05

* The committee meet and discussed a recent submitted proposal to Residential Life.   Mainly the proposal is looking to designate a Christian Manor for the upcoming sign-up process .  Below is a letter, which was sent to Pete Armstrong and Hal DeLaRosby today.  Any comments can be directed to Amanda Pullin.

* A survey was also discussed and will be dispersed after the housing sign-up process to gather feedback from students on their overall reaction this year.

March 23, 2005

To:       Peter Armstrong

From:  Amanda Pullin, Housing Sub-Committee Chair

            Emily Friedman, Administrative Ombudsperson

            Emily Barnd, Academic Ombudsperson

Cc:       Hal DeLaRosby

Re:       Christian Manor

Dear Mr. Armstrong,

            As you requested, the Student Senate Housing Sub-Committee and Executive Team has reviewed the proposal put forth by a group of students requesting the designation of a Christian Manor.  The opinion of the committee is not to support the proposal.  The following concerns support the committee’s recommendation to deny the proposal.

• A main point, as stated in the proposal, is to advance the mission statement of Wartburg College.  Although the mission statement does seek to “challenge and nurture students to lives of leadership and service as a spirited expression of their faith and learning” it does not specify that this particular faith is that of the Christian faith.  Allowing a particular manor to be designated as a Christian Manor implies endorsement from the college, and excludes individuals of faiths outside that of Christianity. 
• Also not designated in the proposal is a definition of a Christian lifestyle.  Arguments within the proposal imply that this includes a substance free atmosphere, but fails to clarify beyond this.  Many definitions of living a Christian lifestyle exist, thus, failure to clarify this idea allows a variety of interpretation to fall underneath this heading.
• Many mentions are made to working in conjunction with campus organizations, especially Campus Ministry.  However, there is no specific mention that contact has been made with these groups and their precise involvement has been solidified.
• The opportunity to for students with similar interests, including faith values, to live together already exists through the Lohe Hall experience.  Therefore, this need is already being met.
• The submission of a proposal to live in both the Residence and Lohe Halls requires an advisor.  Although it is mentioned that the group will find an advisor, this person is not yet designated.
• It concerns the committee that the designation of a manor as Christian would set an unhealthy precedent for the rest of the campus, causing division among students.  If we allow one group to segment themselves, there is no way to predict the groups that may come forth in the future. In addition, similar proposals have been set forth by other students on campus, such as athletes, and have readily been denied. 
• Setting aside an entire dorm, on campus of our size, significantly decreases the amount of available housing.  This point is accentuated especially when we are designated as a residential campus and heartily encourage students to live in college residence halls.
• The committee felt that the un-professionalism shown in the grammatical structure of the proposal did not add to its validity.  In addition, the poor syntax of the proposal brings forth academic quality questions with regards to writing.

The proposal of a substance-free floor, however, is valid. Yet, if this were to be enacted for the coming school year, planning would need to happen in an efficient manner so as to inform students of the available option. We also recommend that this designation be set forth in either Grossmann or Lohe Halls. Further discussion of this option is needed.

In conclusion, we do not feel that this proposal should be approved.  We are open to further discussion on the topic should new areas of contention arise.  Please let us know if you have any additional questions as to the concerns outlined in this letter.

On behalf of the Student Senate Housing Sub-committee and Executive Team,

More thoughts on tuition increase...

Will Regents or Presidential Scholarships ever increase accordingly to the increase in tuition and fees?

It is important to remember that any increase in aid will also affect other costs, so in effect, you have to pay the piper sometime.  The short answer is that Wartburg does its best to make merit-based scholarships as large as possible.  For instance, for the incoming class of 2009, there is a 6.6% increase in tuition, with a corresponding 9.3% increase in merit aid.  Remember, that some 25% of a Wartburg education is subsidized through grants and the endowment. 

Will it ever be possible to "freeze" tuition for each class at Wartburg?

This is question is asked each year, and it certainly is a great idea.  However, according to President Ohle, "costs would be continually driven down to the first-year class," and as such, Wartburg will not follow the lead of some public institutions.  Wartburg figures tuition based upon the Higher Education Price Index (HEPI), which is usually 2-4% higher than the consumer price index (CPI).  This year the CPI is 3%, so the 6.6% increase in tuition is right within the expected 5-7% increase according to the HEPI.

Additional points of interest:

There was discussion of phasing in the new May Term fees over a 3-year period, but the Board of Regents and Cabinet decided to begin the new increase this year.

Administration is in ongoing conversations about developing new scholarship programs for students and alumni.

Technology Notes...

Meeting with Gary Wipperman, Director of ITS:

TECHNOLOGY FEE:  We discussed the increase in the technology fee. 

     *It is important to note that the student technology fees pay directly into the general budget and not directly to ITS.  However, there has been an increase in ITS spending which has contributed to the rise in the technology fee. 

     * ITS is funding a wide variety of improvements including antivirus software, printing equipment, wireless internet access, antispyware, technology in classrooms, and multimedia projectors.  Gary also commented that the goal of ITS is always to improve services which means new software and equipment and unfortunately also means an increase in the budget. 

PRINTING COSTS: There continues to be an ongoing conversation concerning the idea of charging for printing on the Wartburg Campus.  Administration is considering several ideas in order to best conserve paper and meet the needs of students. 

WIRELESS:  Our committee came up with an idea of posting permanent signs to make students, faculty, staff and visitors aware of the various wireless access points on campus. 

HAVE A WONDERFUL EASTER BREAK! 

Technology Subcommittee:  Annie Reiher, Katie Jo Kuhens, Ryan Granchalek

Mail Box Stuffer Ideas

As of now, student organizations are being charged to do a mass stuffing in student mailboxes.  Although understood, this policy isn't necessarily beneficial to student organizations. In order to get this changed, I have been in communication with Matt Pries, Director of the Student Center,  to try and change this policy.  Here are some ideas...please leave feedback as to what you think might work.

* Upon completion of their re-application, each student organization would receive two coupons that would allow them to have every campus mailbox stuffed, free of charge.  One coupon will be designated for the Fall Semester and the other for Winter.

* In order to use the coupons, the organization would have to submit the proposed mailbox stuffer one week prior to the stuffing to the Director of the Student Center for approval.  The Student Center director will notify the organization's contact at least three days prior to the stuffing to let them know if the flier has been approved.

* Organizations will be allowed to have mailboxes stuffed without the coupons.  However, they will be charged 3 cents per mailbox.

* It is the responsibility of the organization to keep track of the coupons.  No supplementary coupons will be granted if the originals are lost.

* If coupons are not used, they are NOT transferable to the next academic year.

Please leave comments as to your opinions on this policy.  Thanks!

Emily F

Housing Subcommittee

* The Housing Committee will meet tonight at 9:30p.m. in the Shotwell Tower.

* There were 34 students at the Housing Extravaganza and many question answered.  We will sending thank you cards to the RHD's and Pete for attending the Housing Extravaganza. For next year will be looking at how to increase attendence at the forums.

* The committee will also discuss ideas for next year's committee.  If you have comments please feel free to post them here or contact me.

Smiles,
  Amanda Kay Pullin

Housing Subcommittee, Chair

APC 3/14/05

*The committee evaluated the nominations for the Staff Award and narrowed the list down to 5.  Voting for the Staff and Chellevold Award will occur on Thursday March 17th.  Voting will be available on Evote.

*Faculty appreciation ideas were discussed.  The committee decided to serve cinnamon rolls and coffee before the next Faculty Meeting.  The committee also discussed how to go about informing faculty of this event.

Annie Fox, APC Chair

Roberts Rules

Yesterday "Roberts Rules" premiered in Senate. The exec team put together this little soap opera to let "everyone know what we are really like and how we see ourselves," said VP Buzza. Well, that is completely a joke. Below is a synopsis of "Roberts Rules," something we created to give an old, mundane process a new twist...

"Roberts Rules" follows the Roberts Family. Ben Parks and Emily Friedman star as Mr. and Mrs. Roberts. Jed Riley and Emily Barnd are their children Andy and Suzie. Colin Buzza and Ashley Weets are the crazy neighbors that live across the street, Delford Doherty is the token black guy, Lex Smith is Grandpa Roberts and Bill Withers is the voice in Mr. Roberts' head.

The Roberts Family is your stereotypical nuclear American family. Mr. Roberts is a bank president who loves to come home after a long hard to day at work to a hot meal on the table...served by his wife, no less. Mrs. Roberts is the perfect little housewife who loves to do nothing more than wait on her husband hand and foot.

But there is trouble behind the white picket fence. Mr. and Mrs. Roberts are always fighting about something...this time it happens to be the color of carpet that is going to be put into their living room. Mr. Roberts wants a burnt sienna color, but Mrs. Roberts does not feel that it would fit with the sky blue walls.

The children are also struggling. Andy's grades are slipping and he may be involved with a local gang. Suzie is perfect, but she is being pursued by Andy's ominous friend, the token black guy.

The neighbors, professors at a liberal arts college, have just returned from a nudist cruise and want to share their photos with the Roberts. The neighbors also do not believe in a monogamous marriage and Mrs. Neighbor has set her sights on Mr. Roberts.

Mr. Roberts, with his new found conflicts in life, consults his father Lex...
"Oh, father Lex! I just don’t' know what to do. The carpeting issues between Mrs. Roberts and I are just too much for me. And I find myself seeking solace in the seductive eyes of my neighbor."

That's all for this edition of "Roberts Rules." Next time, expect Mr. Neighbor to set his sights on Mrs. Roberts and "move to suspend the rules..."

If you would like to view a copy of "Roberts Rules," please contact Emily Friedman.

Have a great break!

Emily F