IUSA plans semester ahead

As the spring semester began, members of IU Student Association’s executive branch surveyed their work and discussed what is left to accomplish. In the second half of their term, this will mean both working to achieve goals and implementing a plan to transfer initiatives and power to a new administration.

IUSA Vice President Jack McCarthy described three areas the administration hoped to address when they stepped into office last spring. The first of these involved representing students through committee appointments.

“We appoint students to all the committees, whether it’s something big like the faculty council or a smaller sort of ad-hoc committee that comes up throughout the year, like pedestrian safety,” McCarthy said.

The administration also hoped to address the day-to-day issues of students by establishing departments to help increase collaboration between campus organizations. In turn, these organizations would deal with smaller issues students face on a daily basis. A newly established volunteer department, for instance, provides a central forum for many student volunteer organizations.

A third goal of the executive branch was to tackle the “five B’s” described in the Btown ticket’s campaign platform. These included the implementation of a bike rental program, a fall break for students, publicly accessible gym cameras to help students check for open basketball courts, improved public transportation and support for a bill creating tax-free weekends for purchasing textbooks.

McCarthy said their approach to the “five B’s” has changed over time.

“They’ve sort of adapted a little bit from when we were running, just based on, you know, we find out more information about what’s feasible,” McCarthy said.

He said state budget cuts have also put a damper on the administration’s plans for the year.

“But the overall goals of those ‘five B’s’ are still there,” McCarthy said.

Regarding achievement, IUSA Treasurer Jenn Chen said the bike rental program is coming along as planned. Executives and task force members are currently evaluating several bike rental companies in an effort to determine which one will best help them meet their goals.

“Hopefully we’ll be able to see this, especially on campus, if the next administration carries it out and everything,” Chen said.

The idea of turnover is one that is also important to members of the executive branch.
By developing a strategic plan, McCarthy said they hope to smooth the transition after elections and pass initiatives on to the next administration.

“With all these initiatives, we’re forming sort of reports on what has been done and what needs to be done, so that if the next administration chooses, they can continue on with some of these issues,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy described this step as crucial because of the difficulty associated with making real change in a single year on a large campus.

As elections approach and the current administration works to achieve its goals this term, IUSA Executive Director of Public Relations Liz Billman said working for a campaign is a great way for all students to become more involved with government on their campus.

“It’s a great way to start to learn about IUSA and the different things people can do.”
Despite entering the second half of their term, McCarthy emphasized the fact that nearing the finish line doesn’t mean running any slower.

“You know, we have four months left in office, and I still think that we’ll be working for those four months to continue working for what students want and to make the campus even better.”