The Student Government Association came together Tuesday to hear speakers from two different groups, read legislation and review the student survey.Ryan Hughes and Bryan McCormack attended as representatives of the Bill Haslam campaign.

They opened with how they were once involved in the student government role. “Not too long ago, we were here at ETSU and wanted to be a part of something bigger than ourselves,” Hughes said.

They continued talking about how students had the chance to make a difference with this campaign. “This is a really good opportunity to get involved in a race for governor of Tennessee,” Hughes said.

Following the Haslam campaign presentation, Karen Matheny, regional marketing director with USA Today, gave a presentation regarding the Collegiate Readership Program.

The Collegiate Readership Program is a way to get newspapers, such as USA Today, onto campuses so students will be more informed.

Matheny briefed the SGA about the program’s history.

The president of Penn State in 1997, Graham Spanier, had believed that students were, as Methany said, “living in a bubble.”

“He started delivering newspapers to each and every resident’s hall door,” Matheny said.

This allowed the students of Penn State the opportunity to have better knowledge of what was going on around them and outside of the campus, as well as not having to pull out some spare change have to pay to read.

Matheny continued to talk about more aspects of this program, saying that it will better prepare students to live and work in a global economy, encourage students to examine diverse viewpoints and multiple perspectives, and empower them to seek knowledge outside of the classroom. It sets them on a path toward lifelong learning, she said.

Once the floor was open to questions, one of the most notable was in dealing with the evolution of journalism and how the Internet and smartphones are the future of news.

“Not even 35 percent of the USA Today newspaper would come out in a little news feed,” Matheny said. “So, you are getting a lot more in the printed edition than you would in a news feed.”

Matheny says that the Internet allows one search, but someone who has various topics at hand will be better rounded with a newspaper.

The next piece on the agenda was Treasurer Maggie Darden reading Legislation No. SSR-101-10.

Section 1 of the legislation explains it as, “The Technology Access Fee be applicable to copy machines in the library, in addition to printers.”

Following the reading of the legislation, Dr. Sally Lee made remarks regarding the celebration of the university’s centennial celebration. Oct. 1 will be the start of a yearlong celebration of ETSU’s 100th year. On this day, there will be a centennial convocation on the ETSU Main Campus at the Mountain States Health Alliance Athletic Center at 10 a.m.

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