IU student body presidents hold video conference

The All University Student Association held its first video conference Friday. The association serves as the liaison between student governments on all IU campuses, and its board of directors consists of the student body presidents on each IU campus.\nThe video conference was organized by student trustee A.D. King. It encouraged more participation by making meetings more accessible, King said. Participation in AUSA meetings has been dismal in the past because of the distance student government leaders had to travel, King said. \n“Video conferencing capitalized on cost and time efficiency,” King said. “Leaders from around the state appreciated not having to drive four hours plus to attend a 90-minute meeting.”\nThe student trustee – one of nine trustees that are in charge of most funding and policy decisions at IU – traditionally works with AUSA to facilitate and host the first meeting of the school year, King said.\nStudent government representatives from IU Bloomington, IU-Purdue University Indianapolis, IU Kokomo, IU Southeast, IU South Bend and IU East participated in the video conference. King said he was pleased with the turnout.\n“This is a great group of students who care a lot about IU,” King said.\nThe board of directors held elections for chairperson and vice chairperson during the video conference. They elected IUSA Chief of Staff Matt Jarson as chairperson and IU Kokomo Student Body President Chad Andrews as vice chairperson.\n“I think Matt (Jarson) is going to do a great job,” King said. “I’m pleased Chad Andrews stepped into his roll.”\nJarson will take over the planning of AUSA meetings for the rest of the year, King said.\nAUSA will continue to use video conferencing, Jarson said. It will become AUSA’s primary means of meeting, but Jarson plans to have at least one live meeting this school year.\n“Video conferencing is very useful, but we need to make sure we have interaction in person,” Jarson said.\nAUSA will probably meet monthly, Jarson said.\nOutsourcing of the IU Bookstore and the campus-wide smoking ban were two of the issues discussed during the video conference, Jarson said. Students were unable to bill textbooks purchased at IU Bookstores to the bursar this semester due to privatization issues.\n“We’re still trying to look into it,” Jarson said. “We’ve received conflicting reports.”\nJarson said he wants to get a full picture to the board before deciding on a course of action.\n“I think next meeting we’ll have a resolution on it,” Jarson said.\nThe Bloomington Campus Tobacco-Free Policy, implemented by former IU President Adam Herbert, will go into effect Jan. 1. It prohibits the use of tobacco on University-owned or leased property, according to an Aug. 24. Indiana Daily Student article.\n“I think it’s going to be an ongoing dialogue,” Jarson said, referring to the smoking ban.\nAUSA doesn’t receive funding from the University. This has been an obstacle for the organization in the past, Jarson said. He plans to look for funding, but discussions have just begun.\n“Everything’s kind of up in the air at the moment,” Jarson said.\nEveryone will benefit from an active AUSA, King said. It allows student governments to learn from each other.\n“AUSA is a platform for collaboration of the best practices among student governments,” King said.