Volume 73, Issue 8
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
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More Money, No Problems
Whitney Thomas | Jacqueline Morgan The Southern Digest
bypass this legality by using the fee to offset “infrastructure” cost. This essentially includes the costs of appliances and technology, amongst others.
The Student Government Association Senate held a routine meeting Tuesday, October 5 at 7pm in the Mocha Room of the Smith-Brown Memorial Student Union.
Outside of the food pantry issue, an idea was proposed to give students an itemized report, which includes hyperlinks to see exactly where their fees are being used. This led to the proposal of the “Good Government Act” bill, by Senator Caleb Holmes. This bill is currently undergoing revision, but will ultimately serve as a safety net for students’ financial concerns. Director of Athletics, Roman Banks, came before students present to announce the Athletics’ Department decision to take an Athletic Fee Increase proposal of $50 to the Board of Supervisors (BOS).
Following the Freshman senators being sworn in, the meeting proved controversial, as discussion of making students pay a fee to use the Jaguar Eats on-campus food pantry took the floor. Under the proposal, every full-time enrolled student student could see a $5 fee charged during the fall and spring semesters, and a $1 fee during the summer semester.
“In order for Southern University's food pantry to move forward and continue to strive," Senator Blake Reddick explained, "the implementation of a $5 fee per semester and $1 for the summer semester will allow the Student Government Association food pantry to have more selections, better supplies, and better equipment for the students. Instead of leaving campus to go
to the grocery store, they'll be able to get everything they need here on campus.” Concern shifted to determining if students could afford the additional expense without struggling financially. Senator Caleb Holmes expressed his
disapproval. “A lot of these students are on Pell grants and scholarships, meaning they already don’t have the financial needs," said Holmes, "Our job is not to increase taxes on students who already can't give any more of their money.”
SUSON Holds WIC Clinic
Jalyn Gardner The Southern Digest
The Southern University School of Nursing started off last week with their WIC Clinic, which assisted young and middle aged mothers with the needed necessities to care for their child/ children in the proper manner.
“This fee increase that will be voted on Friday [at the BOS meeting] is sensitive to students. The food pantry, which began The ID you all use to get into operations last school year, gets games and other events is not the majority of its assets in the case with all institutions. We donations, making it illegal to never want to take that away from charge students for use. However, the student body. The student according to Director of Student Leadership and Community Engagement, Tiffany Freeman, See SENATE page 3 the university would be able to
SGA Senators visibly passionate about the topics discussed during the Senate Meeting held Tuesday, October 15 in the Mocha Room of the Smith-Brown Memorial Student Union (Jacqueline Morgan/DIGEST)
More than two decades ago, the School of Nursing vision, was spearheaded by the Dean of the Nursing School, Dr. Wanda Spurlock, who wanted to open a Women Infant and Children (WIC) clinic housed Dean of the Nursing School, Dr. Wanda Spurlock, explains how the WIC on a college campus. Back then Clinic got started and how it is thriving today. (Isaac Armstrong /DIGEST) it was supported and funded via a grant, now the WIC clinic is self- services, and not only am I housed care and social services that the sufficient, with the clinic being on a college campus . . . it is a women would need. paid for each person that they see. HBCU.” For a lot of young women around To date, Southern University in What goes into the clinic is a lot of the Scotlandville area highly Baton Rouge is the only WIC marketing, dedication, manpower, benefit from the clinic. With clinic on a college campus and has and experience. Experience being the area being such a vulnerable continued to serve the community, registered nurses, the nursing community the Scotlandville for Dr. Tonda Martin, who’s over students, registered dietician, and area, there is a bus route which is the WIC clinic on campus, feels a social worker which is different accessible for the people can’t get that the reward for her is “ being from other clinics because other to and from as well as students. an integral part of this program is clinics don’t have social workers. The youngest female to come into twofold” she went on to say that “ the clinic to date was a thirteen The wealth of education and I have the opportunity to support year old, with the majority of knowledge base that is had to the community by providing provide for the participants, to accessibility to health and referral See WIC page 3 have the accessibility to health
Learning About Top Jags
Top Jags official meeting on Friday October 6, 2017 at Samuella V. Totty Hall on Southern University Campus.
Ella Dodor The Southern Digest
The group of Junior achievers going to Southern commonly known as Top Jags is a group of highly achieving careeroriented students at Southern University A&M college that work towards academic excellence and community involvement. As Ms. Yolander Smith, a Top Jags coordinator commented, the endeavor of this program is to “Promote top talented students
www.southerndigest.com THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY AND A&M COLLEGE, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
across the country to matriculate as southern university students and to support them throughout their academic journey.’’
The Top Jags program is tailored to help students who meet a certain requirement (3.0 cumulative GPA in addition to a 21ACT Score or an equivalent SAT score of 14401490) with the integration and continued matriculation through college. This allows the program to be available for both incoming and See TOP JAGS page 3