At Wednesday’s Student Senate meeting, Carissa Coon, chair of the housing committee, announced that today will conclude her six-week campus challenge program to register organ donors at Eastern in accordance with Donate Life Illinois.

The program has registered about 152 students and is currently 10 short of surpassing the amount acquired at the University of Illinois, Coon said.

Those interested in becoming donors can sign up today at the designated table in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

In addition, Student Body President Michelle Murphy discussed a concern issued by the director of the 9-1-1 campus service who has proposed implementing an Emergency Services Fee for students.

Murphy explained that the service is presently funded by a tax placed on landlines, which are not prevalent at Eastern, though the student body comprises one fifth of the population served by local dispatchers.

“There’s kind of a money shortage,” Murphy said. “There’s a huge process to bring forward a student fee and this is all super-premature. It’s a safety issue, and it makes sense to support it.”

Nevertheless, Murphy expressed concern over supporting a new fee if it required students to pay a large amount of money.

“I can’t support a huge fee because students might not support it,” she said.

Further details regarding the potential new fee are to be discussed at a later date. No plans to implement the fee are currently in motion.

Student senators also examined a suggestion proposed by Jason Sandidge, chair of the university development and recycling committee, to consider future construction of advertising pillars around campus.

The pillars are intended to reduce paper waste and cut printing costs by providing a common area for organizations to post fewer notices as opposed to distributing a larger amount.

According to Sandidge, other universities across the state utilize advertising pillars in the effort of becoming more environmentally conscious.

In light of the university’s recent changes to the posting policy, Mark Olendzki, student vice president for student affairs, said that 150 posters intended to advertise last Wednesday’s open forum regarding the student body constitution were not distributed.

He also said that there was a discrepancy in prices discussed between the Student Senate and Panther Catering for the event. As a result, Olendzki said that the majority of the money allotted for the event would be returned to the Student Government account.

In other news:

Student senate member Jennifer Prillaman will be hosting an open forum on the senior seminar at 6 p.m. today in the Lumpkin Hall auditorium. She hopes to garner feedback on the effectiveness of the requirement, as well as tailor coursework to specific majors.

The official groundbreaking for the new steam plant will be held at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 20 at the corner of 18th St. and Edgar.

Erica Whelan can be reached at 581-7942 and elwhelan@eiu.edu.