While most students are gliding through the early weeks of the
fall semester, members of Saint Louis University’s Student
Government Association have begun work trying to improve students’
quality of campus life.

SGA’s 31st assembly held its first meeting of regular business
on Wednesday. Along with standard administrative business, members
of the senate received a detailed description of the Department of
Public Safety’s Alcohol Task Force and approved charters for two
new student organizations.

The senate also passed a resolution congratulating members of
SLU’s chapter of the National Association of College and University
Residence Halls (NACURH) for winning the bid to host the
organization’s annual conference.

SGA President Nick Sarcone provided senators with an account of
his Friday night ride-along with the DPS ATF.

“They’re not out to get students,” Sarcone said. “The task force
is primarily there to protect the students from (St. Louis Police
Department) Liquor Patrol.” Sarcone said that anyone, DPS included,
could discern party locations on SLU’s campus, but that members of
the task force didn’t make it their duty to disband social
gatherings. Instead, the goals of the ATF are to enforce University
policies and protect students from harsher penalties enforced by
SLPD.

The senate also unanimously approved the charters of two new
student organizations: the women’s soccer club and the Omicron
Delta Kappa fraternity (ODK).

Members of each organization were present to explain the purpose
of their organization. The women’s soccer club is an athletic team
that is seeking to gain legitimacy on SLU’s campus.

ODK is a national leadership fraternity.

Eric Immel, a founding member of SLU’s chapter of ODK, explained
that the fraternity strives for excellence in areas of scholarship,
leadership and service. ODK’s founding members indicated that the
group intends to involve itself in many service and
leadership-developing projects.

Members of the senate approved a resolution to congratulate
members of SLU’s Residence Hall Association NACURH Conference team
for being chosen to host the organization’s 2004 conference.
NACURH, which associates with 555 colleges and universities in
three countries, is the largest student-run organization in the
world. The organization strives to improve conditions in residence
halls worldwide.

SLU’s RHA went through a long application process to qualify the
University to host the conference. SLU anticipates between 2,800
and 3,000 delegates, advisors and alumni to invade its campus in
May 2004.

SGA meets every Wednesday at 5:00 p.m. in the senate chambers in
the Busch Student Center.