SAC News Archive
Monthly Media Updates : January 2000
Work Group Recommends Expansion Of Student Control Over Mandatory Fees
On December 15, students and administrators from throughout Georgia met to discuss the way mandatory student fees are created and budgeted. The work group, appointed by Chancellor Portch in response to a SAC resolution, consisted of five students, four administrators from USG institutions, and one Central Office staff member. After deliberating for several hours, the group unanimously agreed to recommend to the Board of Regents that the current policy regarding student activity fee budgeting be expanded to include all mandatory student fees, including athletic, parking, and technology fees. This expansion of current policy would require that all fees at USG institutions be budgeted by the institution president with the advice of a committee of at least 50% students. The full Board of Regents is expected to hear the proposal in March.
Student Advisory Council To Have Strong Presence At Capitol During Legislative Session
Georgia legislators will be dealing with a new force in Georgia politics this session - Georgia's college and university students, which number more than 200,000 under the leadership of the Student Advisory Council to the Board of Regents (SAC). SAC will have students at the Capitol every day of the session working to make the students' opinions heard. Primarily, SAC will be showing support from the students for the Board of Regents FY2001 budget request, which would continue to provide students with quality educational opportunities at a reasonable cost. SAC Chair John M. Fuchko, III will be assisting the Chancellor in his budget presentation before the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, January 19 - a first for Georgia students. SAC will also be working to end the practice of businesses obtaining students' addresses and phone numbers via open records requests for purposes of solicitation. Finally, students are pushing a bill that would eliminate sales tax on textbooks, which would save Georgia students $1-3 million per year. Similar tax exemptions are already in place in several states, including Michigan, New Jersey, Arizona, and Pennsylvania.
Students To Meet With Chancellor Portch, Legislators At Conference
This Month Georgia's Student Leaders will meet with Chancellor Portch and members of the Georgia General Assembly at this month's SAC Winter President's Conference to be held at Kennesaw State University January 21-24. Students will meet with Chancellor Portch and Board of Regents staff members on Friday the 21st, conduct regular business meetings Saturday and Sunday, and meet with legislators at the capitol on Monday the 24th. Students from all 34 public colleges and universities make up the Student Advisory Council, which makes recommendations on behalf of the students to the Board of Regents, Governor Barnes, and the General Assembly.
The Student Advisory Council is the official voice of the over 200,000 students of the University System of Georgia