The Undergraduate Budget Priorities Committee unveiled a new online poll Wednesday to gauge student input on pertinent campus projects.
The committee, which includes Associated Student Government President Rachel Lopez, Academic Vice President Tamara Kagel and three non-ASG affiliated students, will tabulate the results from the poll of 15 recommended improvements to the university and then relay the suggestions to administrators.
The poll was posted online at 1 p.m. Wednesday and will remain online until 5 p.m. Friday. The poll can be accessed through a link on HereandNow.
By about 9 p.m. Wednesday, students had posted 526 submissions, including suggestions regarding increased campus lighting, expansion of the Multicultural Center and the creation of a Latino studies minor.
Other ideas include the expansion of resources for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, the re-establishment of a 24-hour computer facility and the creation of an environmental studies program.
UBPC member Jay Goyal said the committee is making an effort to involve students in its decision-making process.
“Last year, we were criticized for just coming up with the proposals,” said Goyal, a McCormick senior. “The purpose of the online poll is just to reflect what students suggest. It’s basically just trying to incorporate as much student input as possible.”
Group leaders said they are pleased to be included in the poll and urged students to weigh their options carefully when voting.
“We need these resources to bring in some keynote speakers and have some functions,” said Mario Biancamano, a counselor for Safe Space, an LGBT support organization. “Basically, the most important thing is just raising awareness.”
Other leaders implored students to vote for measures improving campus life such as increased campus lighting.
“Often it’s kind of seen as a women’s issue, but it’s just as likely for a man to be mugged as it is for a women to be attacked,” said Nell Haynes, director of Women’s Coalition. “Even if there wasn’t danger to the whole population, it is still important to keep places safe for the smaller group. Generally, when lighting conditions are safer, crime takes a plummet.”
The options also include two suggestions promoted through recent ASG legislation: increased accessibility for students with disabilities and renovations to Blomquist Recreation Center.
In previous years, the university has funded an overwhelming majority of UBPC’s recommendations, Lopez said.
“I think that whatever the committee decides to do for guiding its deliberation is its choice,” said Eugene Sunshine, senior vice president for business and finance. “I have complete confidence that what (the UBPC) presents to us will be a meaningful representation of what students feel.”
Past UBPC recommendations that the university approved include renovations to the Black House, a campuswide lecture series and the new position of Asian-American coordinator.
Members of the committee hope to submit five or six ideas to the University Budget Committee based on input from the online poll.
After the committee receives all submissions, members will research the feasibility and prices of the recommendations. They will base their decisions on students’ priorities and the number of votes.
“I think that any time the students are involved in where their money is spent they get to prioritize what is given to them,” Kagel said . “That ensures that money is spent on what students want.”
