Alcohol and Other Drug Taskforce - 12/04/09 Meeting - Alcohol and Drinking Symposium

The Alcohol and Other Drug Taskforce met Friday December 4th. Primarily, our focus was on the presentation for the symposium titled "Examining Our Student Drinking Culture: A Look at the Culture Now and Ways We Can Improve It". Summarizing the two-day program scheduled for April 27th and 28th of 2010 (Tuesday and Wednesday) is as follows.

Night 1: Our Drinking Culture: A New Age Look at Alcohol Consumption

This night will examine the current drinking culture of this university and this city. It is important that we know where we are with alcohol as a community, not five or ten years ago, but today. We will learn about the effects of toxic drinking and the new studies being done that will help us determine the climate of our drinking culture. This night will also emphasize the importance of alcohol education. The goal of this night is to better understand where we are today so that we may improve our culture into the future.

Night 2: Chaning the Drinking Culture: Where to go from here?

This night will concentrate on current alcohol policy and discuss ideas for improving the drinking cuture in the future. We will get a physiological background on alcohol before we discuss the effects of the drinking age. The rest of the night will be panel-led discussion on city alcohol policy, and a comparative student look into the drinking cultures of our Big Ten and system neighbors. The goal of this night is to give us insight into the direction alcohol policy must take in light of current policy already in place, within the city and the university.

Some of the concerns brought up in discussion were consistency of student attendance, the venue it would be held at, and the equality of representation. Chances are it will be in a dormitory or somewhere like Grainger. Another related topic was food costs. Advertising and food were going to be the key ways to attract and maintain students. Lastly was equal representation. The issue was on our second day, we would have a returning guest, Dr. Kevin Strang, and a presentation from the The Amethyst Initiative Choose Responsibility group. Dr. Strang would give a physiological perspective on drinking and common misconceptions and one of the main points of the second guest is reasons to lower the drinking age. Some of the members of the AODT want to see a different speaker instead of Dr. Strang to fairly contrast the view of the Amethyst Initiative. A link for the schedule thus far will be added to this blog ASAP.

Office of the Registrar Advisory Board Meeting - December 4, 2009

The Office of the Registrar Student Advisory Board met on Friday, December 4, 2009. This is a new committee for the 2009-2010 academic year. The purpose of the committee is to meet with representatives from the Registrar's office and discuss ways in which to improve the Registrar's services, as well as increase student awareness of existing services.
At this meeting, we discussed Student Center, the web-based program in which students can register for classes, update addresses, and view financial aid information. The Advisory Board provided input on changes that could make Student Center more accessible and easier to understand for students. For example, we discussed making "help" options more visible on various pages of Student Center; noted that sometimes there is confusion about whether or not a class has been actually added to a schedule or if it still remains on the Wish List; and also noted that it is frustrating when the search defaults to the fall term instead of spring. We also discussed how the process of running and reading a DARS is somewhat confusing, and how students do not receive education about DARS reports and their purpose in any formal manner. Board members suggested that it may be helpful to have students go through online tutorials/demos of enrollment and DARS before they come to SOAR, so that they are more prepared for first semester enrollment.
Other Shared Governance members are encouraged to comment below or contact an Advisory Board member if they have input on services from the Registrar's office, including posting of deadlines, Student Center, enrollment information, DARS, and Course Guide.
-Kendra Gurnee

Campus Diversity and Climate Committee Meeting, December 1, 2009

With the conclusion of Plan 2008 and the campus community abuzz with talk about "inclusive excellence" (the framework for diversity and climate adopted by the UW, systemwide), the CDCC has begun to re-examine its purpose in relation to diversity initiatives. At this past meeting, the group discussed the question, "What does the university community need the CDCC to do and to be in order to accomplish the broad goal of inclusive excellence?" Several students from the ASM Diversity Committee were in attendance as guests, and they participated in the conversation as well.

Some key topics of the conversation included:

* the CDCC as a "the conscience" of the university around diversity and climate

* what sorts of incentives can be provided to enhance diversity initiatives across campus

* increasing student involvement in the committee

* broadening membership to include groups not normally brought in to diversity conversations

* creating clear plans for activating goals

* involving the chancellor and provost in future work of the committee

* being able to work simultaneously on programmatic action steps and big picture system thinking

* increased accountability structures

* incorporation of divisions and units

* translating ideas into action

This was just a brainstorming session, to be followed by some more intensive conversations throughout the spring about the charge of CDCC. Several times people noted the presence of students as a positive force, and people are reminded that the committee's meetings are open to the public and that guests are welcome.

The schedule for spring 2010 meetings is being revised, so any posted meeting times are subject to change.

--Frank Honts