Student Senate and Graduate Student Senate moved out of the Governance Room in Walter Hall and into a classroom because the new room is a better space for student meetings and the old room has a set-up fee, according to Tom Davis, secretary to the Board of Trustees.
Last spring, the senates met with Kent Smith, vice president for Student Affairs, to discuss alternative meeting rooms.
Faculty Senate meets in a classroom on the second floor of Walter Hall, and both senates decided to hold their meetings in this room as well, Davis said.
Use of the Governance Room costs about $65 to $100 per meeting, depending on how much preparation is needed.
The money is used for setting up the tables, which must be moved by university movers for safety reasons because of their weight and to ensure that the technology hookups are handled correctly, said university spokeswoman Sally Linder in an e-mail. She added that the room also requires having an employee on duty after normal working hours to unlock, lock and check the room. If the group needs to use the projector and other equipment, technology support is needed. In the past the Board of Trustees covered the fee with their general operating budget.
The new classroom has split-screen projection that anyone can set up, which makes it easier to show presentations. Food and drink can also be taken into the classroom and laptop computers can be plugged into the desks.
The feedback is positive
Davis said. It's a comfortable and conducive room for meetings.
Wickman said that he was glad the board footed the bill, adding that Graduate Student Senate has no problems with changing rooms.
The Governance Room was included in Walter Hall to be used as a meeting space for the Board of Trustees and Administrative, Classified, Faculty and Student senates. It has equipment for presentations and microphones built into each seat at the governance table.
The senators have been thinking about moving to a new room since the opening of Baker University Center, Davis said.
Originally, they discussed moving to Baker Center because it would be closer to their offices, but no space was available for them. They have been discussing a room change since then, and decided that moving to the same room as Faculty Senate would be the best option, he said.
17
Archives
Jackie Best
