Referenda support fall break, final exam reform, newspapers

The Student Government Board released the results of the three student referenda it conducted… The Student Government Board released the results of the three student referenda it conducted last month on final exams, a possible fall break and the USA Today Readership Program last night.

Fifty-six percent of students voted in favor of bringing USA Today and the New York Times to campus daily for $2.50 per student per semester. The price of the program will be added to students’ fees each semester.

Fifty-six percent of students also voted in support of a possible fall break at Pitt.

Forty-two percent of students claimed to have had three or more final exams in one day at some point in their academic careers at Pitt.

In light of the significant number of students who have experienced such rigorous final exam schedules, board member Nila Devanath called for a new policy allowing students with at least three final exams in one day to appeal to reschedule one of their exams to another day.

“A new exam policy would benefit a greater number of students than the current exam policy has,” Devanath said.

Until the administration formally adopts such reforms, Devanath said she will work with Dean of Students Kathy Humphrey to individually review cases of students facing at least three finals in one day.

SGB president Sumter Link plans to meet with Humphrey today to discuss the board’s next move regarding all three referendum decisions.

The initial voting period for the referenda opened on Nov. 8 and coincided with SGB elections, but low voter turnout caused former president Shady Henien to hold off on taking action and extend the referendum voting by two weeks.

When the extended vote closed, about 3,500 students out of more than 17,000 undergraduates had voted.

SGB Notes

-Board member Francee Varner announced plans to negotiate improvements to the Amos Hall fitness center in light of a flood in the facility Monday caused by a broken sprinkler. Varner proposed buying smaller equipment so more people can use the fitness center at once.

-Board members Amanda Reed and Gary Sanderson proposed placing recycling bins on campus for students living off campus to use. Sanderson said that although a Pitt representative shot down the idea and told him that Pitt should not be responsible for off-campus recycling, he plans to continue advocating the issue.

-Notes compiled by Lindsay Carroll, for The Pitt News