Archives for April 2010
The Elections Commission of the Student Government Association (SGA) announced the results of the student body elections held April 5-7.
For Student Body President and Vice-President, Jacob Swett and Justin Mellish were elected. John Gauthier was elected as the Senior Class President.
The student body also voted on and passed five Wyrick Proposals; however, the fund cannot support all projects. Projects will be funded by priority which is decided by the number of “yes” votes each received.
An increase in the Student Involvement Fee was also voted on and approved by the student body. The fee will be increased by $9 to total $25 a semester.
The votes were cast as follows:
Student Body President and Vice President
- Jacob Swett and Justin Mellish
- Votes cast in favor: 1200
- No Confidence: 270
- Abstentions : 151
- Sanctions Accrued: 10 Votes
- Total Votes = 1190
Wyrick Proposal
- Proposal 1 – Wayfinding Signage
- Yes – 926
- No – 484
- Abstentions – 192
- Proposal 2 – Four Corner Signage
- Yes – 814
- No – 563
- Abstentions – 219
- Proposal 3 – Light Pole Banners/Fence Painting
- Yes – 900
- No – 526
- Abstentions – 172
- Proposal 4 – Current Events Marquee
- Yes – 914
- No – 523
- Abstentions – 158
- Proposal 5 – BearPark South Counting System
- Yes – 895
- No – 561
- Abstentions – 150
Based upon the votes above, the order of preference won Wyrick Proposals as submitted by the students are:
- Wayfinding Signage
- Current Events Marquee
- Light Pole Banners/ Fence Painting
- Bear Park South Count System
- Four Corner Signage
Senior Class President
- Cory Honer – 253 votes
- No Sanctions
- John Gauthier – 316 votes
- Sanctions Accured – 5 Votes
Student Body Referendum – $9 Student Involvement Fee Increase
- Yes – 788
- No – 705
- Abstentions – 124
For more information please contact Justin Mellish, the Chief of Staff, at justin777@live.missouristate.edu
Alpha Delta Pi – Gamma Mu is a sorority full of Missouri State’s finest. We not only work hard to give back to our community and philanthropy, maintain good grades and remain extremely involved on campus but also living for each other. The classy girls of Alpha Delta Pi believe in living up to the high standards defined by our founders.
Girls of all types are in Alpha Delta Pi: from athletes to artists there is something for everyone in ADPi! We will be having an open recruitment event “MOVIE NIGHT” April 6, 2010 at 8:00 PM at the Alpha Delta Pi House on Elm. Any girls interested be sure to come check it out because we would love to meet you all. If anyone has any questions just visit our website at www.mostateadpi.com
Please vote in the 2010 Student Body Elections @ elections.missouristate.edu after you have educated yourself on the ballot and candidates. 🙂
Also, please be advised that there is an error on the ballot. The name of the Sr. Class President option should read “CORY HONER” not “COREY HONER”. The elections commission would like to apologize for any confusion this may have caused.
Wyrick Proposal:
Installation of Directional
Wayfinding Signage at
Missouri State University
Respectfully submitted by:
Erin Sullivan
and
Alex Johnson
19 February 2010
- I. Identification of Sponsors
- a. Project Sponsor
- Erin Sullivan
- a. Project Sponsor
1001 East Madison Street Shannon 800
Springfield, MO 65807
(314) 540-8525
Sullivan308@live.missouristate.edu
- Alex Johnson
1001 East Madison Street Shannon 500
Springfield, MO 65807
(417) 699-0415
Johnson08@live.missouristate.edu
- b. Project Advisors
- 1. Krista Bassen
Assistant Project Manager— Design & Construction
Burgess House
736 S. National
Springfield, MO 65804
(417) 836-5101
KristaBassen@missouristate.edu
- c. Project Coordinator
- Erin Sullivan
- II. Description of Proposed Project
- a. Research Process
Having both been students on this campus, there is a clear and apparent need for improved and expanded campus signage to address several deficiencies. Through anecdotal experiences as student workers interacting with both prospective and current students everyday we recognized that something needed to be done to make signage more effective and impactful for nearly all campus constituencies. Recognizing that, and both serving as members of the Missouri State University Student Government Association – the official voice of the student body— we requested the creation of a committee to research and gather input on ways to improve the lackluster signage found in some of the most pivotal locations on our campus. The request was approved, and committee membership was solicited in order to create a diverse group of student representatives that would be able to best voice the concerns and desires of constituencies campus-wide. The final committee included freshman, sophomores, juniors, seniors and graduate students, and included on-campus and off-campus students, as well as student involved in Fraternity & Sorority Life, Athletics, University Ambassadors, marketing, and many more organizations. This group gave us a balanced perspective of the entire student population, and with this balanced view we did extensive research on campus signage featured at educational and non-educational institutions. Furthermore, we researched the importance of signage and its contributions, did full assessments of our campus, solicited input from the general student body on places and areas of greatest need, and involved Missouri State University Design and Construction, Facilities, and Grounds. Missouri State University Design and Construction’s involvement in this project was extensive, providing us with designs, cost estimates, recommendations, locations and options that would best meet the current long-range and strategic plans of the university, as well as offering us general guidance. All cost estimates, examples, and “mock-ups” provided are from their office. Based on the extensive initial research, followed by the inclusion of as diverse a field of student representatives as possible that exhibited expertise and experience in the area of need, and, finally, inclusion of Design and Construction in nearly every step of the process, we have full confidence in our proposal. We believe it addresses a major need at Missouri State University, and does so in a measured and cost effective way that blends with the future visioning of campus leaders. Furthermore, we believe our estimates (in terms of cost and timing) to be as close to accurate as possible, we believe this project will have a significant positive impact on nearly all of the campus community, and we believe our project has “legs” that will allow it to be advanced, expanded, and built upon in the future (if future students seek to take it further). We appreciate your consideration and welcome all questions and inquiries on our proposal.
- b. General Description of Proposal
Missouri State University is a wonderful campus and a wonderful community for past, current and future members. This campus is something to be proud of and that should be reflected in our general signage and wayfinding. Signage, particularly on the perimeter of campus is our campus’s face to the world, and it is important that “our face” reflect Missouri State’s vision, purpose, pride, nature, and makeup. Note only does an attractive and well integrated signage program through core corridors of campus create interest and a positive impression on members and prospective members of the campus community, but it has been found that effective signage on properties can have a significant positive impact on users’ experiences due to increased independence, ease of access, understanding, branding, and awareness. Signage that builds pride and improves the user experience is something severely lacking on our campus. In addition, based on continued complaints from visitors and first-time students regarding confusion on how to find major landmark buildings and popular offices and departments, our proposal seeks to install several wayfinding signs in some of the busiest corridors on campus.
- c. Proposal Details and Justifications
Anyone that has worked in the Admissions Office at Missouri State, with first time freshmen, or with visitors, guests, alumni, or donors can tell you that for individuals unfamiliar with the campus, it can be very difficult to get around. Our campus is located in the heart of a dense urban area, our campus is incredibly compact, our campus is a pedestrian campus, and our campus is continually evolving. This can create a labyrinth for those on campus for the first time, for those who haven’t been on campus long, or for those who haven’t been to campus in a long time. This is a bad situation for the university, noting that first impressions are everything. The last thing we want any constituency thinking is how difficult and confusing our campus can be. It is important to note that for pedestrian visitors and those unfamiliar with the campus, most have are attempting to get to one of several locations: Visitor Parking Lot (Lot 13), Carrington Hall, the Bookstore, or Plaster Student Union (other major destinations such as JQH Arena, Plaster Sports Complex, Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts, and Bear Park North and South are easily located and visible).
To try to rectify this confusion, we recommend the installation of wayfinding signs in the main pedestrian corridor that leads to these four locations. We recommend that new basic double-sided wayfinding signs be installed at the entrance of the Visitor Parking Lot (Lot 13), outside the south entrance to Baker Bookstore near the Plaster Student Union, and at the northwest corner of Carrington Hall. These will constitute Signs 1, 3, and 4. These signs should be roughly 4 foot by 4 foot. A final sign should also be located at the southeast corner of the Visitor Parking Lot (Lot 13) that is more significant to drive individuals into the main corridor, and it should include both a permanent map and a location for individuals to take their own personal campus map. This will be Sign 4. This sign should be roughly 4 foot by 6 foot. These signs should include lettering and directional arrows on both sides pointing to the four major landmarks. The signs should also be unified in appearance, strongly influenced by Missouri State University colors (Maroon, White, Gray, and Black), and should include strong elements of the university logo. Examples of our preferred sign designs are included (Photo 3). All of these elements will serve to create a strong brand impact as individuals are getting a positive experience from the clear and concise signage. Furthermore, the strong brand elements will ensure individuals know the signs are official, and will serve as a template for future signage improvements campus-wide. An example of campus-wide applicability is included (Photo 4).
Photo 3 – Wayfinding Signage “Mock-Up”
Photo 4 – Potential Applicability to Campus-Wide Sign Unification
- d. Proposed location for the object of the proposal
Wayfinding Signs
- Entrance to Parking Lot 13 (Visitor Lot)
- SW Corner of Parking Lot 13
- Area Near the S Entrance to Bookstore
- Planting Bed Near NE Corner of Carrington
- e. Alternative Uses
None
- f. Drawbacks
These signs might lead some campus constituents, particularly colleges, deans, and multiple auxiliary departments to desire wayfinding signs that direct students to their locations. It is unfeasible to do this all in one project. We view this as a potential positive and a future opportunity for another Wyrick Proposal.
In addition, the sharp image and brand tie-ins with these signs may lead other university stakeholders to seek a shift towards a more unified signage system campus wide that mimics these signs’ appearances. We view this as an opportunity for the campus to unify and simplify its signage for more effective, impactful, and enjoyable use.
- g. Necessary modifications to existing structures
The current entry sign for the Visitor Parking Lot (Lot 13) will need to be removed. Furthermore, a small tree located at the southwest corner of Visitor Parking Lot may need to be removed. This has been discussed with Grounds, Design and Construction, and Administrative and Information Services, and costs have been considered and will be covered. Finally, a planting bed northeast of Carrington Hall will have Sign 4 placed inside it.
- III. Estimated Cost of the Project
(Please Note: All cost estimates unless noted were provided by Design and Construction)
Wayfinding Signs Proposal Costs |
|||||
Element |
Unit Cost | Quantity | Size | Overall Costs | |
Wayfinding Signs | |||||
Basic Sign |
$3,500 |
3 |
4’X4′ |
$10,500 |
|
Larger Sign |
$5,000 |
1 |
4’X6′ |
$5,000 |
|
Total |
$15,500 |
- a. Ongoing Costs
After discussions with multiple departments and divisions within the university we recognized that there would be some on-going costs associated with this project and that it would mainly be just the maintenance of the wayfinding signs.
To address these costs, we have included a memo in the Administrative Support Section from Vice President of Administrative and Information Services, Ken McClure, in which he agrees to have his division cover any on-going costs associated with this project. We very much appreciate his willingness to take on these future costs, and we very much appreciate his support.
- a. Complete Cost Estimates on Multiple Projects
As mentioned in previous sections, University Design and Construction provided us with extensive help in the designs and cost estimations on this project.
- IV. Estimated Completion Time of Project
We see no reason, upon approval of our proposal and passage during the Spring 2010 student body elections, that this project couldn’t be completed with the direct oversight of the University Architect in an incredibly quick time. Furthermore, designs for the wayfinding signs are complete and will need only to go out for bid and be installed. We see approval and installation of this project taking no longer than one year.
- V. Estimated Life of Project
These projects will add that extra touch of pride to our campus, and with upkeep from the grounds and maintenance the project should last into the foreseeable future. The wayfinding signs will be made out of durable, weather resistant material that should holdup for decades.
- VI. Direct Benefits to Students
Since Missouri State University’s name change in 2005, interest in our university from potential students, current students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and the Springfield community and beyond has increased greatly. Yet despite this increase in interest, Missouri State has taken no significant steps in providing an attractive, proud, welcoming first impression and “front door” for those many constituencies. This project makes great strides towards improving that situation. Not only will these new remodeled and installed elements ease confusion and improve impressions for those unfamiliar with the campus, but it will also present a new face of Missouri State to the outside and visiting world, and build pride in students living both on and off campus. This project will move the image of Missouri State forward and help us live up to our fresh new name. Furthermore, as the “Promise” and size of our university expands both physically and literally, it will be key that we have examples of quality signage in place to create standards for future signage improvement and expansion.