With spring 2005 electionsquickly approaching, students are being given more to think about than just whothey will choose for the next Student Government Association president.Students will be voting on three referendums; adding a magazine to StudentMedia, increasing the fee for the new jaguar habitat and complying with cableincreases.
Voting against the cablereferendum could mean the difference between continuing or not continuing cableand internet access in on-campus housing facilities.
Huey Lawson, executive directorof the Office of Technology and Network Services, said that Cox Communications,the cable company which provides the Southern University at Baton Rouge campuswith cable and internet, is raising their prices and the university will haveto raise tuition to accommodate the increases.
“The only reason for theincrease is because cost have gone up,” Lawson said. “The increase that isbeing proposed is the exact amount that Cox will be charging the university.”
While SU owns the cableinfrastructure that it provides the students with, its programming is purchasedfrom Cox on a fee per student basis.
In a letter addressed to RaymondDowns, vice-chancellor for student affairs, Lawson wrote, “Unfortunately, wecannot afford to provide the cable services at a rate that is below our cost.Therefore, without this fee increase cable television services to the residencehalls would end.”
According to Lawson, even thoughit would mean an increase in tuition, on campus students are still getting offcheaper than those residing elsewhere.
” Five years from now, on campusstudents will be paying less for their cable and internet packages than whatoff campus students pay now,” Lawson said.
The issue of whether or not toplace a referendum on the ballot to increase tuition was brought before thestudent senate in a March 31 meeting where they decided that it would be leftup to housing on how to handle the voting.
“I really hope that studentsunderstand that it is basically an ultimatum,” said Carmen Rossum, SGAvice-president who also serves as president of the student senate. “Either we payfor it or we don’t have it.”
Commuter students, or thoseliving off-campus, will not be eligible to vote on this particular matter, andit will not affect their tuition expenses. The new fees will be added tohousing fees if approved by the voting majority of students residingon-campus. This referendum will beplaced on a separate ballot.
Other referendums that will bevoted on include the Lacumba III project which proposes to change the Lacumbafee from $2.00 to $7.00 and a new student-run magazine which would call for anadditional $5.00 to be added to tuition expenses. All students will be eligibleto vote on these referendums.
Chancellor Edward Jacksonexpressed why the increase for in tuition for Lacumba would be necessary.
“We are going to need more carefor this larger habitat,” Jackson said. ” We want to make sure that we haveeverything we need to get the jaguar taken care of.”
Rossum is also excited about theidea of the university becoming home to a new magazine.
” I’m very excited about themagazine,” Rossum said. “I think alumni will also love it and I think it’s justa really great idea.”
Elections will take place onMonday, April 11.
