Student Gov: Scholarships and Student Newspaper

Bailey Brednel ® Staff Writer |

Budget cuts, scholarships and the student newspaper were among the topics discussed at Wednesday’s Student Government meeting.

Outgoing Provost Matt Cecil and Associate Provost Brian Martensen talked about the “Budget Gap.” Budget gap refers to a structural or base funding deficit, or the money they expect to gain on an ongoing basis. Universities are people-heavy industries, so they must pay many salaries. 

On March 1, the university will receive the next state revenue decision. Then on March 4 they will provide a draft plan at meet and confer and there may be layoffs on campus. However, this is a draft plan, so they won’t have exact plans until mid-May. (See related story about tuition hikes and budget cuts.)

Destiny Cherry, the graduate assistant in the Office of Student Affairs, addressed the Student Government about scholarships. In her presentation she discussed how MNSU has the Scholarship Finder, a one-stop-shop for all the scholarships around campus. 

Not all scholarships are focused on a student’s GPA, as some are focused on majors, interests, or community service students may have done. After filling out a profile, the website recommends scholarships. Any MNSU student can apply on the Scholarship Finder website with the deadline being Feb. 28.

The last presentation was given by Maxwell Mayleben, Editor in Chief at The Reporter. Mayleben discussed the benefits of having The Reporter within our campus community, some of the problems The Reporter has faced in the past and what the paper is working on to improve over the coming years.  

Mayleben stated, “One of the biggest things The Reporter does is provide ‘out of classroom’ learning experiences for students. These are things that students going into business and mass communication studies need to learn for their careers.”

Some of The Reporter’s struggles have been budget-related. 

“In the past years, compared to other organizations around campus, The Reporter’s budget has been cut exponentially,” he said. “This has limited the amount of growth we can do and puts us in a tough place.”

After listening to the presentation, Senator Joey Novack commented, “I am excited about Max’s attitude to work closely with Student Government, and I hope to cooperate more with them in the future.”

In Open Forum, Martin Jacaruso discussed recent Maverick Adventures events, with the newest one being the Behind the Lens Outdoor Photography contest to help students be connected with nature. The contest will run until March 15 and all photos must be original work. 

Another event they are hosting is the Mankato Adventure Speaker Series with the first speaker arriving on Feb 24. 

College of Allied Health and Nursing Senator Gretchen Bygd gave her report on her work over the past year. Recently, the college has welcomed a new social work program. 

Senator Bygd announced, “Starting Fall 2021, we will finally have an American Sign Language certificate for the students who complete all four levels of the ASL program. They will then have to complete a course called Dimensions of Deafness.” 

As Senator Bygd moves into the remainder of the semester, she stated, “My goals are to continue listening to the College constituents for what they want and need from Student Government. I’m going to head into budget season educated and ready to advocate for our students and for classes to be in-person, as safety allows.” 

The next to present was Senator Alimo. In his presentation he discussed how he is working on conducting a survey with the help of Senator Minahil Khan for the students in the College of Science, Engineering, and Technology to find out what tools they need to succeed. They are also working with faculty to incorporate more project-based learning, and finding out how to help students succeed. 

To wrap up the meeting, Senator Nelson spoke about building a survey for students living off campus to see how their housing managers are treating them. Nelson then plans on using this information to create a presentation for students about their rights as renters.

Header photo from Reporter Archives.