DeKALB — The Student Association Senate has lost 10 senators, which is a quarter of the body, as a result of unfulfilled requirements and the incompletion of Open Meeting Act training.

“The biggest reason, which is also the easiest reason to fix, is OMA and attendance,” Wang said.

The Senate also elected five members for the Board of Elections to oversee the spring semester Student Association voting process.

The 2018 Board of Elections consists of Iggy Domingo, Erin Hernandez, Kristina Harvel and Jack Barth. Stephanie Torres was elected chairperson of the Board.

Torres, who is also director of Academic Affairs, reported on her progress with textbook affordability. The survey Torres created in the fall 2017 semester has received 493 responses.

Torres said the Library Task Force is looking into textbook affordability, as well and has created an online resource to explore the issue.

Torres said she intends to address the Committee for the Improvement of the Undergraduate Academic Experience about the use of e-Books to benefit students by reducing textbook costs. Torres said Cengage can only be used as a cost-effective alternative if professors are on board, so she will make sure to address the concern with the committee.

“I also met with a Cengage representative, that’s just another alternative for a textbook vendor, and they talked about a deal that for $119.99, you can have unlimited access to their resources for the semester,” Torres said.

Luis Flores, director of Cultural Affairs, discussed the efforts of university inclusion involving an incentive to attend Wednesday’s women’s basketball game against Miami University.

Flores said if 65 percent of a student organization attends the game, their group will be entered into the Feb. 17 50/50 Split the Pot raffle.

Watch list

A rumor regarding the administration’s use of a software to monitor students’ social media accounts through a watchlist caught the attention of the Student Association.

The rumor ignited Friday on social media with the hashtag #SaveNIU.

Maxient, the software used by university officials, specifically targets students who are involved in Greek life, athletics and CHANCE.

“NIU does use a software called Maxient to record instances that are related to student misconduct, discipline, academic integrity, care and concern records and title IX issues,” Christine Wang, Student Association Senate speaker, said. “This is intended to help the university by legal obligations, to better identify students in stress and to help certain departments provide assistance and support.”

Wang said because NCAA athletes, students in the Greek community and students in support programs like CHANCE have different protocols and standards they must follow, they’ve been included in Maxient’s watch list.

The Division of Student Affairs released a statement on its webpage Friday denying the accusation of social media monitoring.

“If these allegations are indeed true, the Student Association will of course do everything in its power to protect the privacy of the students,” Wang said.

Correction: The Northern Star originally reported the cost per semester to have full access to materials supplied by Cengage Unlimited is $ 199. The story has been corrected to reflect the true cost.