By Jaime Hoerbelt
The Student Government Association (SGA) reviewed a number of pieces of legislation on Tuesday that dealt with the safety, health and welfare of the student body.
Sen. Brian Marquis proposed a resolution to remove the hand scanners from the back entrance of the Netherlands. The hand scanners bring up many safety concerns from students that live or have lived in the Netherlands complex, according to the resolution.
"It is suspected that the hand scanners are allowing multiple scans of a hand allowing many people to enter the Netherlands complex," it said.
The resolution was amended to add card readers in addition to the hand scanner, instead of completely eliminating the hand scanner. This would add an option to scan cards for students living in the Netherlands entering through the back without submitting their handprint. Also, according to the resolution, "Students are reticent to use the hand scanners due to the presence of inappropriate matter."
Marquis explained that several students reported having placed their hands inside of the scanner to find "disgusting" substances inside. This is an issue because there are no resident safety representatives within sight of the hand scanner to inhibit mischievous conduct.
The scanners were put in place approximately two years ago. Pete DiSilvio, the SGA Club Affairs chair, informed the senate that these hand readers were placed behind the Netherlands to be tested. The United States government owns them and the University receives money for testing them, he said.
Should they test well, the scanners may be placed at other locations on campus.
Ultimately, the legislation failed with a vote of 14 for, 14 against and two abstentions, meaning the hand scanners will stay.
"I have friends that live in the Netherlands, and they said it's convenient. But they don't want to give their hand [print] because they think that giving up their handprint or fingerprint is a privacy issue," Marquis said. "I mean no one is being forced to do it. Some said they are being forced, but no one is being forced. The card reader is more convenient."
SGA President Brent Weitzberg said, "In regard to the hand swipes, I lived in the Netherlands last year. They didn't seem to pose a problem. A lot of students actually seemed to like it. Brian brought up the issue that the main reason students this year aren't liking it was because they were finding inappropriate substances inside of the hand swipes. We don't need that on campus and I am all for the card swipes.
He went on to point out, the hand scanner is government issued and the school is benefiting from it. "Why fix something that's not broken?" Weitzberg asked. "I actually think it's doing okay. I didn't find any problems with it when I experienced it."
Two other pieces of legislation were proposed that deal with similar issues.
Sen. Jared Berry, the Rules Committee chair, proposed a resolution regarding the Kate and Willy's bar and eatery on campus Currently, Kate and Willy's stops serving healthy options such as salads after a certain time, when only a late-night menu is offered. Berry's resolution proposes that Kate and Willy's should serve healthy choices the entire time the establishment is open, allowing students to eat healthy even after-hours.
The resolution also proposed that Kate and Willy's offer healthy alternatives to french fries, such as a baked potato or mixed vegetables. The legislation passed with a vote of 28 for, 0 against and 1 abstention.
Berry also proposed legislation that would aid the eco-friendly trend that has been going on at the University.
Currently, the dining facilities on campus serve coffee and other beverages in non-reusable containers. The senate proposed offering "personal to-go mugs." Students could purchase a reusable mug and then use it at the locations on campus that offer beverages.
The incentive for students, in addition to helping the environment, would be a small discount. Students would be charged the price of a small beverage no matter the size of their personal container, according to the resolution. However, the details of the discount would be discussed with Lackmann before anything is made official.
The resolution passed unanimously.
SGA resolutions are merely suggestions to the University, and not binding.