Unlike most elected political parties, this year’s administration fulfilled most of its promises in its platform. Those not fulfilled were because of other already existing programs.
Some of the main programs created by the Associated Students of the University of Utah included two additional scholarships, Rock the Vote week and leadership conferences.
When the Impact Party was elected into office, their platform issues focused on four main categories: student involvement, student needs, tuition and parking.
Student Involvement
A consequence of a commuter campus is that students find it difficult to become involved on campus, according to ASUU President Bill Edwards.
ASUU joined forces with Rock the Vote to bring Green Party Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader and rock band Everclear to promote voter registration. More than 1,200 students registered to vote through the event-and 2,000 throughout the state-to make Utah the second highest in voter registration next to New Jersey’s 10,000 registered voters.
To promote and publicize student organizations, ASUU targeted freshman students by giving applications during and after orientation. More than 130 students applied for the Freshman Council Board, which was more than any other year.
Another addition was the creation of U-life, ASUU’s online newsletter. The number of people registered to receive it jumped from 30 to 7,000 with the new look.
The emphasis on the United Leadership Council brought in more than 200 students from a variety of backgrounds to develop leadership skills. The Council has now become an official board on the ASUU Executive Cabinet.
Meeting Student Needs
Students need to recognize a way the leaders they’ve elected are doing specific things that will better students’ lives, according to Vice President Randall Lloyd.
The Hook Up cards, which provide discounts to more than 37 different companies, increased from 14 companies in past years.
ASUU also provided financial assistance to students with the Emergency Student Loan, which gives students an opportunity to take out small temporary loans, and the Student Scholarship Program, which provides students without other scholarships a chance to get money, were created in an effort to help students with financial issues.
Tuition
In his role as chairman of the Utah Council of Student Body Presidents, Edwards led student lobbying efforts during the 2003 Legislative session in an attempt to minimize the impact of budget cuts on higher education. Lobbying efforts started in the summer of 2002 and continued throughout the year.
The 500 students who gathered at the state Capitol on Feb. 13 against budget cuts and tuition hikes were almost twice as many than other similar rallies in years past.
ASUU also made an effort to inform students on current legislative decisions. A letter-writing campaign sent more than 200 letters to the legislators.
Parking
Parking at the U was a major issue in 2002. Due to administrative efforts such as promoting TRAX use, the U averages around 3,000 empty parking spots per day. On April 17, the U was awarded the Commuter Vision Award by the Utah Transit Authority.
“We’ve gone above and beyond our platform,” Edwards said.