Undergraduate Student Government Downtown met Friday to discuss budget issues and nutrition on campus.
Kylie Cochrane, vice president of policy and a junior majoring in journalism, said she met with Sun Devil Dining nutritionist Madison Stewart to discuss several issues concerning the dietary needs of students, the ASU dining website and the nutritional options ASU provides.
“One of the priorities was really about nutrition, dining, health and wellness,” said Cochrane.
Cochrane said that one of USGD's current objectives is to focus on healthy meal alternatives on campus and to help provide meal options for students from different backgrounds, who have diet restrictions such as kosher and halal.
ASU's campus dining website provides pictures and descriptions of meals served in the dining halls along with nutrition information.
USGD shared this website with its members and other students as a tool to help others eat healthier on campus and as a part of their mission to help students become more informed of the campus' dietary plans and options.
This is the first of many actions to be carried out by USGD to promote better eating habits on campus. They plan to eventually make changes to the menu to be more inclusive to students with specific diets and to provide healthier choices all around.
Shortly after Cochrane’s report, Operations Clerk Christopher Weddigen, a freshman majoring in public service, spoke on the realignment of USGD's operations budget.
“There was a budget that was set in the beginning of the year that was not accurate for the rest of the year,” Weddigen said.
With only half of the positions filled, an adequate amount of money was not set aside for stipends when the Senate and Executive Boards were filled.
Furthermore, Weddigen added that a budget of $10,000 was an unnecessary amount for an office budget. The needed cutbacks and increases have been made to reflect the operations budget for the current school year.
USGD receives an annual budget of approximately $250,000, which “goes to organizational and professional developments,” according to Mykiah Williams, director of appropriations for USGD and a sophomore majoring in public service.
"Students are charged $30 for the school year," said Williams. "Half of (those) funds get allocated to student organizations ... to host events or travel that may pertain to professional development."
Student clubs can make requests to USGD for funding, and according to its website, students can now submit requests through SunDevilSync instead of attending Appropriations Committee meetings, which were required in the past.
Reach the reporter at cswonson@asu.edu and follow @swonsoncody on Twitter.
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