Students Suggest Change and Improvement at Fall Student Forum PDF Print E-mail
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October 21, 2008
Written by Sara Darcy   
Tuesday, 21 October 2008 13:25
      The student forum on October 7 was a definite success. Although the room was only a little over half full, there were many questions and suggestions from the students. President Loópez began the discussion by talking about construction of a new chemistry building, wellness center, and Bureau for Mineralogy and Geology Resources. Outdoor water spigots and medicinal whirlpools were suggested for the wellness center, and the idea has been deemed “possible.” It was also established that construction in the chemistry labs, while right on schedule, will be scheduled mostly over breaks so that it does not interfere so much with the lab work. Meanwhile, construction on the third floor of Fidel is almost halfway finished, and will hopefully be done by the beginning of next semester. The plan for now is that there will be no charge for the students to use the third floor, unless it is being used for a special event. The construction on the sidewalks, while planned out, has no set time frame.
      Another concern brought up was energy conservation. Motion sensor switches were suggested, and the students were told that Chevron might pay for more efficient lights with sensors. The school will also be testing out a controller that will direct not only lights, but temperature and water as well. The controller has already been used in Europe but not in the US. Another technology issue was about increasing TCC user space; the disks and server are up and there will be a substantial increase in user space over Christmas break.
      A question concerning raising the Puerto Rican flag on the flagpole was answered—yes, it can be raised-- and students were reminded that any suggestions regarding flags are to be handled by the Student Association. A rumor about West being torn down and rebuilt was denied, and the issue of Tech Dollars being used outside of the Fire and Ice was brought up. The Tech Dollars idea will be investigated further, but it is highly unlikely that it will be possible to institute the idea since cost would be too high.
      Regarding student safety and health, appointing more mental health counselors was proposed because NMT is one of the top ten schools for depression rates. This is not possible under the existing budget but may be next budget cycle. It was also confirmed that the Student Health center is open not only to Tech students but to their dependents as well.  If there are any questions about safety, such as a streetlamp going off, then please contact either the SA or GSA.
      Continuing on the safety vein, the lack of hands-on training in the explosives program was brought up. Currently, there is no PhD degree for explosives engineering, but if the school proceeds to the PhD level in that field then there would be a need for hands-on work.
      The rumor that Myth Busters visited Tech was confirmed. They filmed two episodes; one dealt with the making of industrial diamonds, and the other tested whether or not two semis would weld together if they crashed at 650 miles per hour. It is known that one of the episodes will air in two months. Myth Busters will most likely return for some future episodes, and, if that happens, their visit will be promoted among the students. There is also the possibility of another pilot, like Man vs. Cartoon, being filmed here at Tech. This pilot would follow a certain class around, but there is not much else known about the possible pilot.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 21 October 2008 13:35 )