New Student Government Committee to Promote Mason Events

Student Government, which was busy this semester with Vote Vans for the 2009 gubernatorial election and Gold Rush T-shirts, is looking to streamline Mason events of all kinds next semester through a new listserv and the newly created Executive Public Relations Committee.

The Executive Public Relations Committee will be made up of student leaders and will be responsible for providing the public with a positive image of the university and promoting school events through flyers, chalking, press releases and other means.

Student Government President Dev Dasgupta called increased student participation the biggest overall goal of his second semester in office.

“One of the things we’re really excited about is the Mason Events Listserv,” Dasgupta said. “Any student who wanted to could sign up and whenever there was a Mason event anywhere on campus, they would get an e-mail alert.” Dasguptas said that anything officially sponsored by the school would be included, which could mean sporting events, guest speakers, concerts, conferences, debates and more.

Earlier this semester, Dasgupta said that the perception of Mason as a school with few activities for students, especially on the weekends, is a misconception caused by a lack of awareness.

He hopes that through the Mason Events Listserv, more students will become involved in campus events.

“We want to give students incentive to participate,” Dasgupta elaborated. “Which is why we’re also trying to start an athletic rewards program.”

Under such a program, students who attended specific sporting events could swipe their Mason ID at the door and accumulate points, which could be redeemed at the end of each semester for prizes.

“UVA has something like that,” Dasgupta said. “At the end of the term you get rewards, like jerseys, T-shirts, maybe certain packages. It’s all GMU merchandise. Another thing we hope to do is increase the number of tailgates.” Dasgupta said tailgating events held potential to increase campus solidarity, leading to a greater sense of traditional college community that some students may say the university lacks.

Student Government hopes to have both the Mason Events Listserv and the athletic rewards program operational by February, in time for March Madness.