Student Association Vice President Jessica Cunnington will present student feedback about the smoke-free campus initiative to the Syracuse University Tobacco Advisory Committee on Wednesday.

Cunnington told SA members to speak with friends who smoke to get their opinions and ideas about the initiative by Wednesday. SA members will send their findings to Cunnington, who will create a report. 

The Tobacco Advisory Committee meets about once a month and consists of more than 20 people who will have input on the initiative, she said.

During Monday’s meeting, members also discussed admission rates to SU and a proposal to shrink the Special Neighborhood District east of the university.

Cunnington previously said she and other SA members planned to walk around campus and interview smokers for their thoughts on the smoke-free campus initiative. The decision to have assemblymembers speak with friends is meant to be an easier and faster way to receive smokers’ opinions, Cunnington said.

One idea that seems to be popular so far is a ‘smoking hut’ — a place protected from the elements where one can smoke away from high volumes of people, Cunnington said. She said she might be in favor of this if they can get the funding to implement it for smokers.

‘It seems like that would be desirable over moving them 10 or 15 feet away,’ she said.

SA President Neal Casey spoke about a proposal to reduce the size of the Special Neighborhood District east of SU, where there are more limitations on rental housing, during the meeting.

An ordinance exists in the area requiring property owners to have one off-street parking spot for each potential bedroom before owner-occupied homes can be converted into rental homes. The ordinance, adopted in June 2010, is currently being challenged in court.

Casey attended a meeting Thursday in Syracuse City Hall about the proposal to shrink the Special Neighborhood District. He said on Monday his goal was to make sure there is as much opportunity for student renters as possible.

‘When we have the opportunity to have housing in a close neighborhood, why would we try to limit that?’ he said.

One issue the city should look at is the landlords’ enforcement of codes rather than the size of the district, he said.

Casey also spoke about what he called a downward trend in the acceptance rate of students to SU. The acceptance rates reached 80 percent in 2002, according to Casey’s report. This compares to approximately 60 percent of applicants SU admitted in 2010, according to a Feb. 17 article in The Daily Orange.

But last year’s percentage represents an increase from the previous two years, when SU admitted 53 percent and less than 50 percent of applicants, respectively, according to the article.

Casey said the acceptance rates have generally decreased since 2002, while the number of applications has increased in recent years. This mirrors an increase in the quality and diversity of students at SU, for which the university aims, he said.

‘That’s what adds to an overall quality of education,’ he said.

Other business discussed:

• The assembly elected the following eight students to the Finance Board for this session: Lauren Miller, a sophomore marketing major; Jean Lee, a sophomore finance and accounting major; Britni Jefferson, a junior economics major; Adam Arywitz, a sophomore finance major; Stephen DeSalvo, a freshman chemical engineering major; Greston Gill, a sophomore accounting major; Jerry Huang, a sophomore finance and accounting major; and Ryan Balton, a senior television, radio and film and policy studies major.

• SA will conduct a survey to get student opinion about meal plans. The survey will address, among other topics, the possibility of rollover meals from week to week, said Assemblymember PJ Alampi.

• SA plans to launch a website by the end of April called YourStudentFee.syr.edu, which will allow students to see as much relevant information as possible about the way the university spends the student fee.

• SA conducted a survey of University College students to investigate the ease of access to university events and whether they want to have to pay a student activity fee. Many UC students reported having problems gaining access to events, but there were mixed results as to whether there should be a mandatory activity fee.

• Graduate students can no longer live in on-campus university housing next year, said Taylor Carr, chair of the Student Life Committee. There are a little less than 100 students who currently live on campus, Carr said.

spcotter@syr.edu

Published on February 21, 2011 at 12:00 pm