Did you miss out on the Delegates Agenda today in Sunnen Lounge? Check out The Journal’s recap, and keep an eye out for our full story on the Delegates Agenda later this week.
This Thursday during Delegates Agenda, the top five student issues were presented to administration. Below are a list of the topics presented, accompanied by key discussion points.
Campus-wide Digital Signage
Presented by Katjah Ehrenmüller and Briana Jones
- Students currently receive info on campus events through email, flyers and social media.
- Students want digital information on events rather than looking at flyers around campus.
- Delegates proposed that Webster install flat screens around campus showing upcoming Webster-related events.
- Webster currently uses 8.4 million sheets of paper per year, which costs $51,000 annually. Mail and copy alone prints 1.3 mil copies per year, 51% of which are promotional material.
- According to the presenters, 90% of students want this digital signage.
- This system serves to eliminate flyers, create interactive content, connect departments and provide an emergency alert system for students, staff and faculty.
Comprehensive Sexual Health Services
Presented by Rosie Jones, Warren Ferguson, Maggie Hake and Amy Clark
- According to the presenters, 70% of students do not feel Webster’s current sexual health services meet the standards that students deserve
- Webster is falling short compared to other St. Louis universities except Fontbonne.
- Delegates proposed an increase to the sexual health services budget to create facilities for nursing stations, staff to give HPV vaccine and STD testing, pregnancy testing and hiring a full time nurse practitioner.
- In addition, Jones, Ferguson, Hake and Clarkson proposed short term sexual health services like female contraceptives, home pregnancy testing and a visiting nurse practitioner on campus once to twice a month.
Academic Advising Standards
Presented by Hannah Graf and Jenna Hopkins
- Currently, advisors operate on a 3-3 system; they are expected to teach 3 courses a semester which is supposed to give faculty enough time to meet with students.
- According to the presenters, 87% of students rely on email to contact advisors.
- The presenters proposed four steps of base standards for academic advisors:
- A welcome email to all students, including office hours
- Encourage an in person meeting between advisor and student once a year.
- Add to faculty advising tenure. Review tenure program to put more weight on advising.
- The creation of a Best Practices Committee, which would help streamline the advising process and act as a liaison between students and advisors.
Student Organizational Storage Space
Presented by Michael Grosch and Scott Lunte
- Grosch and Lunte said nearly half of all student organizations require places to store organizational supplies
- Some of the problems with not having a student organization storage space include limited accessibility to club items, unsustainable purchasing by students and a restriction on the ability of clubs to grow.
- They proposed a temporary solution of allowing clubs to use a storage shed on campus.
- However, the long term goal is to fill the pool in the University Center to create club storage space permanently.
Office of Community Service
Presented by Kevin Loving and Alexander Brosseau
- Loving and Brosseau said Webster is the only private non-profit in St. Louis without a community service office.
- Having an office like this would create networking and education opportunities for students.
- Some of the benefits of having a community service office include higher retention rates and students being more likely to vote and more likely to volunteer after college.
- The short term solution was to find a full time staff and create of a website or page on Webster’s website before a full office could be filled.
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