The Associated Students Inc. is currently getting $44 of every student’s tuition, and the senators want to let students know where their money is going.
The University Affairs Committee is working on a resolution to create an e-mail database to keep Cal State Long Beach students informed of activities on campus, updated on ASI actions and aware of all of the services every student is paying for.
“I think ASI has a responsibility to keep students plugged in,” said Chair of the University Affairs Committee and Senator-at-Large Erin Swetland. “It is only fair that we let students know where their money is being spent.”
The University Affairs Committee is working with the newly formed ASI Communications on the budget for this proposed service, which Swetland said would not be finalized until next year.
The e-mail service would not be through CSULB’s server and would not be affiliated with the official e-mail service, which is in place now for presidential and emergency announcements. The service would be completely voluntary.
Christopher Burnett, the faculty representative for ASI, said anything that improves communication on campus is a good thing, especially if it gets students more involved.
“Most students don’t know a whole lot about what ASI is or what it does,” Burnett said.
A survey recently circulated by ASI reported that most students recognize the Senate’s logo but a majority did not know the organization’s mission statement or what they do for the school. Students certainly do not know that they are paying almost $50 a semester toward it, Swetland said.
“I am involved in clubs on campus and I have no idea what ASI does,” said Jordan Green, a business major. “I didn’t know we pay money to them in our tuition or that they are the ones who support the student organizations.”
Green also said that he would sign up for the proposed e-mails and thinks they would be very beneficial to the clubs he belongs to and for getting more participation in campus events.
“I think it’s a great idea,” said sophomore music major Tim Bacon. “I would do more on campus if I knew what was going on.”
CSULB lacks the community that a lot of universities have, Swetland said. Her goal is to increase participation and pride in the school.
“Nobody votes for ASI representatives because they don’t even know what they are,” said student Laura Castellanos. “Maybe the e-mails would get more people to vote because they would see what kinds of decisions ASI makes.”
The Senate is made up of elected students that help make decisions and policies on behalf of the student body with the government and school administration.
ASI’s Web site provides a breakdown of their $3.2 million budget and a calendar of activities on campus. The Senate provides support for a variety of services on campus from the Isabel Patterson Child Development Center to the campus radio station KJZZ, with 25 percent of their budget going to athletic scholarships.
