USG seeks student attitudes toward UA leadership

At the Undergraduate Student Government senate meeting on Feb. 11, USG President Taylor Swift announced plans to issue a campus-wide survey to all students in order to gather student sentiment toward campus leadership.

The survey, which was sent to student emails Monday, Feb. 15, comes as USG considers its response to the recent Faculty Senate vote of no confidence in President Scott Scarborough. Swift along with USG Honors College senator Cassaundra Spaeder hold seats on UA’s Faculty Senate, and voted in favor of the no-confidence resolution.

The survey was drafted to be as unbiased and open-ended as possible, according to Swift. He does not want to influence students’ answers one way or another.

“We want to be as unbiased as possible and follow our constituents because that’s our job,” said Swift to the senators in attendance at last Thursday’s meeting. “Whatever the students respond in the survey will [influence] any further action we take.”

To gather as large a response as possible, USG also decided to incentivize participation. Students that respond to the survey have the chance of winning one of two $25 gift cards, or one $75 UA gift card.

During the senate meeting, Swift fielded questions ranging from expressions of doubt regarding constituents’ knowledge of current events, debate as to whether to provide information along with the survey, as well as concerns about incentivizing such an emotive survey.

“We need to establish a majority, this is establishing [that majority],” said Swift. “Once we get back numbers, then we move forward on a direction. But we need to have a [majority] in order to justify action.”