The Student Association Senate wants to revamp campus printing by using a prepaid plan as NIU prepares to cut all free printing.

The printing plan is one of three major targets of the SA Senate as Speaker Dillon Domke said senators will survey students on their printing habits, change Senate elections to improve turnout and will help implement Student Involvement and Leadership Development off-campus party rules.

Printing

On-campus printing is set to switch from a quota system to a pay-as-you-go system where students deposit money onto their OneCard, but Domke said he wants to see a “better” system implemented in the fall.

Students are allocated $7 a semester in printing, a 50 percent drop from last year’s $14, which itself was a drop from the $21 allocated to students per semester in fall 2012 and spring 2013. Before fall 2012, students had unlimited printing for free.

The SA Senate has put out an online survey to see how many and how frequently students use campus printing. So far, the survey results show people print out at least 20 sheets a week for their classes, Domke said.

The survey asks students if they’d be interested in having a prepaid printing plan which they can choose to opt-in or opt-out of, like the student health insurance plan NIU provides. The prepaid plan would be added to students’ bursar’s accounts to allow for the application of financial aid or scholarships toward printing costs.

Elections

Domke said he wants to change the SA Senate election time to the spring to increase student participation and combat declining voter turnout in the elections. SA executive elections are held late in the spring semester while SA Senate elections are held early in the fall semester.

“We’re planning on coupling [the Senate elections] with the executive elections for the association and getting more information out there about the elections themselves in hopes that we will get more people to come and vote,” Domke said.

Last fall, 739 students turned out to vote, an 11-voter decrease from 750 voters in 2013.

“It’s a shame because there’s 19,000 students here and less than 1,000 people vote and it’s a large body and it’s an important body,” Domke said. “… I want to make sure people are getting their voices heard.”

Because paperwork to run for a Senate position is due two weeks after the beginning of the school year, Domke said those who are interested don’t have enough time to decide if they want to commit to the Senate. By moving the Senate elections to the late spring with executive elections, potential candidates would have more time to complete paperwork.

“If we were to push back elections for the fall semester it would delay further meetings,” Domke said. “So, by having it in the spring it would allow for more time for senators to stay [in office] and for people to come out and vote.”

Student Involvement and Leadership Development party rules

SA Senate will help implement wristband rules as Student Involvement and Leadership Development cracks down on organization-sponsored off-campus parties, Domke said.

Wristbands at Greek parties are being enforced to identify those who are allowed to drink and those who are not. There has been “uproar” in regard to putting this rule in place, Domke said, so SA Senate will undergo training from SILD to better understand the system SILD will put in place. Senators have yet to be trained, so Domke said he is unsure of what training will consist of.

“The Senate isn’t necessarily going to enforce it, but more of helping the SILD in their efforts to implement this new rule,” Domke said.

The party rules have a connection to the SA’s push to lower the bar entry age in DeKalb from 21 to 20, Domke said. The SA, which announced its effort to change the rule in November, is doing research on the effectiveness of lowering the age to bring students and the community together.

“The problem with the underage drinking is that most of the time on campus they’re not in a controlled environment and that’s why people can get drinks,” Domke said. “With lowering the bar age, people are in a controlled environment and can get carded so they won’t get alcohol. … And then if a 20-year-old is going out with their friends who are 21-year-olds, they have a designated driver.”