A new semester brings new business to the University, most of which goes through the Associated Students of New Mexico (ASUNM) at some point. ASUNM, the undergraduate student governing body for the University, has many events and developments coming up that concern students, faculty members and administration. ASUNM President Jenna Hagengruber goes through everything that is new, what has changed and how the student body can get involved.
What is new this semester?
There are a lot of great initiatives that ASUNM will be taking on this semester. The legislative session will begin on January 19 in Santa Fe, so we plan to have our Governmental Affairs team be very established in the capitol this year. We will have UNM Day at the Legislature on Monday, January 25th, which is an opportunity for students, faculty, staff and administrators to meet legislators and discuss some of our goals for UNM this year. For ASUNM, that includes our Capitol Outlay project. We are asking for money from legislators for increased lighting in two parking lots: South Lot by University Stadium, and A Lot by Central and Johnson Field. We are hoping that increased lighting will also increase the safety of our students in these heavy-traffic parking lots.
Is there anything that came up last semester that will affect this semester?
Last semester, Institutional Bonds were introduced that, if fully passed, would raise student fees to help fund renovations to Johnson Gym, Anderson School of Management and Smith Plaza. Over the break, the bonds were passed through the Higher Education Department and the Board of Finance in Santa Fe. The final step of approval for the bonds will be approval through the Board of Regents within the next few months.
After garnering student support and gauging student interest, ASUNM does fully support the Institutional Bonds because we understand the dire necessity to provide better services and buildings to our students. If the bonds do pass, a student fee increase will be implemented starting in July of 2016.
Is there anything the student body should be aware of or that you would like them to become more active in?
Of course we would love student support at UNM Day at the Legislature and we plan to keep the student body up to date with any legislative initiatives that are happening in Santa Fe. ASUNM, as a whole, will also have quite a few events this semester through our eight student service agencies.
The ASUNM agencies’ goal is to provide different services, volunteer opportunities, and chances to get involved on campus. We are definitely always pushing students to learn more about what these agencies, and ASUNM as a whole, can do for students. Come talk to us anytime; we are here to serve you.
Denicia Aragon is a staff reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo.
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