The Student Government executive board is putting U first till the end.
A new course offering search system on myUM will go live March 22 and will allow students to search for classes by a variety of options.
“We went in with the intention of doing a face lift and we did a complete makeover,” said SG Press Secratry Ryan Aquilina.
The new system will allow students to search by day of the week, time of day, building, professor, campus and other options through a drop-down menu.
“It was one of our campaign promises,” Aquilina said. “This is going to affect every single student whether they know we did this or not.”
At the end of the semester, SG will also debut its smartphone app that will work with the iPhone, Blackberry and Android. The app will inform students about SG activities and projects and provide other information, including nutritional facts for the dining halls.
“Making life easier for students- that’s the goal of U first,” Aquilina said.
SG is also working with the Office of Prestigious Scholarships on creating a notification system that will alert all students who are eligible for prestigious scholarships.
“It will hopefully produce more students that can receive these scholarships,” Aquilina said.
Future projects include erecting a “U” statue near the Rock and implementing a bike rental program. The statue has already been designed by an architecture student and will be made out of aluminum or steel.
“We have a bell tower, a lake but nothing that says UM,” SG Vice President Pietro Bortoletto said. “We want something that you can rub for good luck, that you can use as a landmark and that you can start and end tours at.”
The statue project will also transition seamlessly into the incoming executive board’s Spirit the U initiative.
“We are passing the project along,” said SG Speaker of the Senate Aaron Esman.
A prototype bike for the rental system recently arrived and SG is testing the equipment to make sure it can withstand the rigors of campus life. If the bike passes, the program will be implemented in the fall semester. Bikes will be available for rent from the parking garages for 24 hours.
The current executive board’s term will end on March 30, when the new board will be sworn in.
“I’m proud to say that we got things done that students wanted to get done,” Bortoletto said. These are all ideas generated by students.”
Alysha Khan may be contacted at akhan@themiamihurricane.com.