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ROTC receives two new officers.
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Allison Jeffries breaks Boise State pole vaulting record.
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Nick Cunningham will be competing in the Winter Olympics in Sochi.
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February 6 2014 • Issue no. 36 Volume 26
Boise, Idaho
First issue free
Gregg resigns Tabitha Bower Mallory Barker
Fall 2009: Ryan Gregg joined Taylor Hall Council. This was his first leadership position as a Boise State freshman and the first time Gregg became involved on campus. As the 13th member in his family to attend Boise State, he felt the need to give back. Spring 2010: At the end of Gregg’s freshman year, he decided to run for student body government. “I was so sunburned at the end of the week we were out there handing out literature constantly. I remember going back to my dorm and crying because it was so stressful, but I knew I just couldn’t quit.” Gregg was elected to the student senate. It is not typical for a freshman to run, and extremely rare for a freshman to win. Spring 2011: Gregg contemplated running for student body assembly speaker. “I could be a really good first student assembly speaker. I didn’t want anybody to think that whatever the president or vice president said meant the assembly would just go along with it.” Gregg was elected as assembly speaker.
Spring 2012: Gregg decided to run for ASBSU president. “When I was done with the student assembly I thought, ‘Is there someone on campus that knows enough about old history and current stuff to continue the road? I don’t think so; this is something I should do.’” Gregg was elected ASBSU president. “My job was to create a student government that students could rely on, faculty could rely on and administration could feel comfortable sending students to.” Spring 2013: Gregg was re-elected for ASBSU president. When Gregg first joined ASBSU, student government was only giving 35 percent of the budget back to students. By the end of his first term, 65 percent of the budget was spent on students. “We were just trying to do what we needed to do.” Monday, Feb. 3: Gregg announced his resignation from student body president. page Design Christian Spencer/THE ARBITER
Bryan Vlok was emotional when he first heard the news that Ryan Gregg resigned as student body president. “Ryan is one of my really great friends. I’m sad to see him go but he is making choices for himself so he can graduate on time. It is hard on me, but he has prepared me well to take over this position,” Vlok said. “As he was cleaning out his office, I said, ‘I feel like you’re dying tomorrow and I have to say my goodbyes now.’” Gregg announced his resignation via email sent to all faculty and staff on Feb. 3. Q: What was the major factor in your decision to resign? A: I really think I would not have been able to give my academic semester the focus it deserves. I would not have wanted anything to come between me and graduation at this point. Q: What was the moment when you realized your decision was made and who did you tell first? A: I think I told Bryan first of my decision. He was like, ‘Really? You sure?’ It was this sense of mixed emotion. The weight was gone. Q: How did the conversation with you and Bryan go? A: I think Bryan was probably more emotional than I was. When you think about something you’ve nurtured and built into something, then you feel this sense of it’s okay. It can go on. I came to that point and I think Bryan went, ‘What am I going to do?’ He goes, ‘I feel like you’re dying.’ Q: How quickly did you make your decision? A: I thought about it be-
fore I made the decision to run. At semester I though about it again. Probably within the span of about a week. Gregg has full confidence in Bryan Vlok, who will be stepping in as president of ASBSU and everyone involved in the organization. “It’s the whole group. They all represent student government. I just know that everything will be okay. I know Bryan will do a good job and the other students will continue to work hard and well,” Gregg said. Gregg also believes ASBSU as a whole will improve this semester’s voter turnout through better campaigning and more
ASBSU Memories • Received Martin Luther King Living Legacy award for promoting diversity and inclusion on campus. • Brought Hollywood’s top linguists to campus. • Brought Jane Elliot, teacher who conducted the blue eye brown eye experiment, to campus. • All public speaking opportunities including veteran’s celebrations, convocation and orientations.
College presidents oppose gun bill Eryn Johnson Staff Writer
College presidents met at the Capitol to discuss a new bill that could allow firearms to be carried by students on Feb. 4. The presidents unanimously agreed to oppose the bill. Presidents from Idaho
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discussed the implications suggested by the new legislation. The bill, Safer Environment for College and University Residents and Employees (SECURE), would override current university rules, allowing firearms to be carried by certain students on campuses. According to the bill, stu-
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dents must meet certain requirements before they are eligible for the heightened concealed weapons permit. They must be 21 or older, take an eight hour training class, pass a background check and fire nearly 100 rounds in a live fire training. College presidents agreed that SECURE would create more conflict than it might
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candidates. “I think they will have a really good discussion surrounding elections,” Gregg said. “And I might have a favorite...I have a favorite.” Lastly, Gregg wanted to thank everyone who has supported him in his term. “I’ve really enjoyed being study body president,” Gregg said. “I want to say thank you to students, faculty and administration.”
resolve. “The bill raised a unanimous concern,” said President Don Burnett of the University of Idaho, and chair of the State Board of Education. He believes the bill undermines the authority of local law enforcement while undercutting the universities best
judgment. SECURE’s aim is to improve safety, but the presidents argue that adding guns to the equation would create safety issues. “Increasing the number of guns would increase problems and that creates conflict,” added President Bob Kustra of Boise State University.
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School of Governance and Public Policy proposed Emily Pehrson @EmilyPehrson
A campus committee presented a proposal for a School of Governance and Public Policy on Wednesday, Feb. 5. If approved, the school would combine programs of study that place a strong value on civic leadership and discourse and would require the realignment of several departments on campus, many from the College of Social Sciences and Public Affairs (SSPA). “This is something we’ve been working on for more than a year,” said Shelton Woods, dean of SSPA. “There are some very effective schools of government at really great institutions. So we started putting our minds together, visiting places as well, and looking at various models of schools of government.” According to the draft proposal, the school would house several departments, including Community and Regional Planning, Criminal Justice, Environmental Studies, Military Science, Political Science and Public Policy and Administration. The school would also oversee many centers not tied directly to departments, including the Andrus Center for Public Policy, Center for Idaho History & Politics, Energy Policy Institute, Environmental Finance Center, Frank Church Institute, and the Public Policy Research Center. The list of who may be affected does not stop there. Departments of Communication, Economics and History were all listed under “affiliates/participation,” as well as “other interested faculty.” In the short term, these affiliates will remain within their current departments but receive part time assignments from the School of Governance and Public Policy and be eligible to participate in their research.
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