During the March 4 Student Government Association meeting, the majority of the resolutions related to environmental sustainability or school spirit passed or are up for first reading.

The SGA passed four resolutions: S.R. 104 Don’t Buck With St. Edward’s, S.R. 110 Ballin’ on a Budget, S.R. 108 Annual Semiformal on the Hill and S.R. 114 Hilltop Pride.

Don’t Buck With St. Edward’s

S.R. 104 initiates a four-week “Don’t Buck with St. Edward’s” campaign ending on Earth Day, April 22, to spread awareness of recycling facilities on campus and proper trash disposal practices.

A major aim of the campaign is making students aware of the amount of litter caused by improperly discarded cigarette butts.

Freshman Sen. Fremen DeRuvo said that SGA would pick up trash around campus and present the amount of discarded cigarette butts in a display.

Additionally, more recycling facilities will be placed in the community buildings of the apartments, as well as inside and outside of the Ragsdale Center.

“[The physical plant] is trying to figure out how to weigh [the outdoor recycling bins] down while having maximum capacity in them as well,” said Executive Sophomore Sen. Alexandra Simons.

Hilltop Pride

S.R. 114, Hilltopper Pride, resolves to increase school spirit by teaching students the school’s alma mater and fight song.

Part of the effort to teach students will include placing banners with St. Edward’s University alma mater and fight song in the Recreation and Convocation Center so students can learn to sing them during events.

SGA feels the need to help restore the alma mater and fight song because it does not have the sheet music.

“Hopefully, some of our music students can translate it into sheet music because sheet music has been lost,” said Alexis Konevich, vice president of Student Representation.

“Once we do that, we were thinking of getting a whole orchestra recording, even if that meant having one of the local high schools record it for us.”

The bill that would allow for the purchasing of the banners, S.B. 114, was introduced and sent to committee.

Ballin’ on a Budget

S.R. 110, Ballin’ on a Budget, endorses the creation of a pilot program that would teach freshmen fiscal responsibility.

The program would begin during the 2011 freshmen summer orientation and would eventually become a permanent program.

“The best way to do this was to target freshmen, and the best way to target freshmen is through orientation,” said Sophomore Sen. Blanca Garcia.

Since the upcoming summer orientation had already been planned, the program could not be implemented this summer. Garcia said SGA plans to consult with economics professors to create the curriculum for the program.

“When I worked for the legislature, the state legislatures and were trying to figure out some way of combating the excessive amounts of debt students are accumulating,” said

Christopher Duke, vice president of Intergovernmental Affairs. “I think that St. Edward’s is able to tackle this on a grass roots campaign.”

Annual Semiformal on the Hill

SGA resolved to host a campus-wide semiformal dance in order to create a new campus tradition that will also promote student socializing and school spirit through the passing of S.R. 108, Annual Semiformal on the Hill.

SGA will hold the semiformal the night of Big Event, April 10. Big Event volunteers will be able to attend the event free of charge.

“I think it is a good way to attract traffic to Big Event and to drive traffic to the semiformal,” said Director of Service Krista Heiden. “I think it would be really fun for our volunteers to go work, rest and come back.”

Although St. Edward’s has hosted both formals and semi-formals in the past, no one student organization currently holds campus wide dances, according to Sophomore Sen. Andy Ryan, who authored the resolution.