Student Government is still looking for personal accounts from the effects of budget cuts on the Eastern community.

Four stories have been submitted thus far for the Faces Not Figures project, which was introduced earlier this year to serve as persuasion for state legislators to vote for increased funding at Eastern.

“(The project) is going well, but turning out to be a slow process,” said Adam Howell, Student Government executive vice president.

Howell said he plans to have eight to 10 stories submitted by the time he turns the project over to Jill Nilsen, vice president for external relations.

Nilsen will arrange for the publication of the book and for professional photographs to be taken of the contributors. The book will then be sent to legislators in Springfield.

Tim Roberts, a senior English major with teacher’s certification, is one of the four students who have submitted stories.

“Qualified students who deserve to be here are falling through the cracks,” Roberts said. “With the government cutting funds (for higher education), it’s happening more and more.”

Howell is advertising the project to students through word of mouth. He has spoken to Eastern’s Financial Aid Office, Executive Council, University Board, Panhellenic Council and the Illinois Board of Higher Education Student Advisory Committee, among others. He also plans to present the idea to the Office of Orientation and Council on University Planning and Budget.

The response has been positive from these organizations as well as across the state, Howell said, but he’s finding it hard to get students to come in and spend the time to write their stories.

Currently, there is no specified group in the state to lobby for funding within higher education, but Howell said several efforts are being put forth to form a unified body for this purpose.

Because it would be too complicated for Eastern alone to regulate stories from students across the state, Howell said he has no plans to include other schools in the project for this year, but would like to see others contribute in the future.

Howell said he plans to have a book completed by the end of this semester; the beginning of next semester at the latest.

Student Government will continue to accept stories for future use in lobbying efforts. Students can contact Adam Howell at 581-7669 or stop by the Student Activities Office in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

Students should be able to submit stories via the Student Government Web site by the end of the week.