Eastern Michigan University’s Student Government has recently implemented a method to get feedback from students across campus about any type of issues they have from parking to safety concerns.
Student Body President Desmond Miller said that those who have a Twitter account can tweet #WTFEMUSG and provide comments to SG. The WTF stands for “What to Fix.”
“It’s supposed to be eye-catching,” Miller said of the name. He also said that the idea actually comes from a University of Michigan plan that was put into effect a few years ago.
SG’s Director of Graphic Arts Natalie Kittikul, a U of M graduate, proposed the idea to the SG. Miller said Kittikul thought it worked well for U of M and figured it would be great for EMU.
“We loved the idea and the concept behind it,” Miller said.
Miller also said that the Twitter feed will help bring awareness about matters students have around campus and the surrounding communities.
Miller said that one SG member thought that the feed would bring about negativity, but Miller said that comes with the job.
“The students should be pissed about things and they should be yelling at me,” he said. “That’s the job.”
Miller said they have received a few angry emails about fixing parking and Wi-Fi, but he said that’s what he needs to hear from students. Many students at EMU are already using the feed.
Miller also said that SGA hasn’t done an adequate job in his mind with going out to ask students how they feel about campus life.
Along with the Twitter feed, Miller said that the SG will be starting to survey students at least once a month to see what improvements the students feel are necessary for EMU.
Miller said he is also open to branching out to different social media sites, and if someone doesn’t use any sort of social media site, there is a suggestion box on the SG online page where students can also go to provide feedback.
“I need students to voice their concerns,” he said. “I think it’s been going great so far.”
EMU psychology major Diamond Madison said she only had one concern, recently.
“I feel like the past few weeks, safety has been the biggest issue,” she said.
Madison also said that she doesn’t feel like EMU students take the campus’s Department of Public Safety officers seriously, and that she would feel more comfortable with having the Ypsilanti Police Department come on the university grounds.
“We need to have more uniformed officers on campus,” Madison said.
Madison said she would probably use the Twitter feed to express the concerns she has in the future.
“If it works, it works,” she said.
EMU nursing major Ria Jaye agrees with Madison and also feels like lately safety has been a huge concern for the campus body.
Jaye doesn’t have a Twitter account, but she has Facebook and receives EMU updates through that social media site. She said she would utilize Facebook.
“I think if I can get more interactive with that, I can get my word out,” Jaye said. “I feel like everybody’s word counts.”
