The University of Louisiana System granted the Student Government Association (SGA) permission to allow the students of Southeastern to decide the future of the proposed student fee increase.
“The meeting went very well,” said SGA President David Cavell. “We presented our case very well to the Board, and we answered their questions about the logistics of the proposal. It is now time for the students to decide if they want to support this initiative and if they do or do not want these fees.”
In addition to Cavell and other representatives from the SGA, President John L. Crain and Student Affairs Assistant Vice President Jim McHodgkins were also present.
“The Board was very supportive of the students’ request,” said McHodgkins. “One of the great things about this referendum is, I believe, it will enhance student life on campus completely.”
The voting will be held in conjunction with the SGA spring elections, which will take place March 28-30, 2011.
According to Cavell, the proposal to increase student fees from $147.75 to $221 was created by the Student Budget Oversight committee, members of which are tasked with reviewing all self-assessed fees.
“They made this recommendation because these fees have not been increased in a while,” said Cavell. “This increase will help better student services as well as increase student support.”
Cavell explained that due to the several budget cuts inflicted upon the university, its services have been negatively affected. Cavell cited the situation of the Pennington Student Activity Center as an example of how services and facilities have been affected.
“The Center was receiving funds to support their expenses as well as janitorial services, but because of budget cuts, the center had to take on those expenses, and therefore they are running short of money,” said Cavell. “This fee increase would help to increase revenue for the Center and to allow them to continue and expand upon their operations.”
Cavell also offered some insight into the repercussions should students pass or decline the fee increase. For instance, passing the fee will benefit the Lion Traxx Shuttle Service. Using the money gained from the fee increase, more drivers can be trained, increasing the service’s availability to students. Inversely, declining the fee increase may see the disappearance of certain privileges altogether, such as those associated with athletics.
“It mostly deals with students getting into every athletic game for free,” said Cavell. “The time may come when the university cannot afford to continue to do that. Students might have to pay to get into games if this fee increase might not happen. I’m not saying it will, but this could be a potential consequence should the students not pass the fees.”