Envision. Empower. Engage.

Our 15-Points of Action:

Advocate for a grocery store in our neighborhood and provide Growing Power as an
interim solution for fresh food on and around campus

Establish the Community Engagement Committee as a permanent component of

MUSG

Continue the Avenues West Neighborhood Clean-up as a Marquette Tradition

Facilitate student involvement with the Near West Side Partnership

Ensure the MUSG Office is a designated Safe Zone

Provide discretionary funding for the MUSG Coordinator of Diversity, Inclusion, and
Social Justice

Include inclusionary dialogue and a positive introduction to our Neighborhood during

Orientation

Increase SOF funding to student organizations and provide weekly SOF workshops
to facilitate an effective process

Support commissioning of DPS being done in an inclusive and cost effective way

Reevaluate Sodexos contract for healthier dining options as well as lower catering
costs to student organizations

Bring Bublr Bikes bike-sharing program to Marquettes Campus

Advocate for professors to post grades to the D2L gradebook

Publish an advising guide with the Office of the Provost for students and professors

Promote service learning as a requirement of the Core Curriculum

Ensure the success of the Good Neighbor and Good Tenant Programs

Community Engagement
We will work to create an environment where students are engaged not only at
Marquette, but also in our Avenues West Neighborhood and Milwaukee
Community. Together, we can make our neighborhood stronger and overcome the
challenges we face in a collaborative and positive way.
We both have played integral roles in the creation and execution of the MUSG adhoc community engagement committee, and would like to establish its permanence.
We will make sure that the Avenues West Neighborhood Clean-Up becomes a
continued tradition where students at Marquette have the opportunity to engage with
DPS, MPD, surrounding landlords and property owners, and members of the Avenues West
Neighborhood.
There is real and positive change is on the horizon for our neighborhood. Under
President Lovells leadership, Marquette has connected with numerous other businesses in
our area, including Aurora Sinai Medical Center, Harley Davidson, MillerCoors Brewing
Company, Potawatomi, and Weigand Enterprises, through the Near West Side
Partnership. Marquette students have the passion to create change in our neighborhood so
we will work to include student involvement with the Near West Side Partnership.
We will expand partnerships with local high schools in the area. Earlier this
semester, we piloted a student government-mentoring program with a high school
neighboring Marquette, the Wisconsin Conservatory of Lifelong Learning (WCLL). We will
continue mentoring these students in developing their student government programs at their
school and build connections with other student-government programs in the
area. Additionally, we will help other Marquette Student organizations develop these
personal relationships with our community.
Our neighborhood is a designated food desert by the FDA, but we will continue to
ensure that there is access to fresh and healthy food for our students and surrounding
neighborhood. We will advocate for the development of a grocery store in the area
surrounding campus, but understand that this is a long-term goal. As in interim solution, we
will institutionalize the Growing Power market basket program to provide fresh and
healthy food to our area. This program will allow students and community members to
order baskets of regionally and locally grown produce and have it delivered for free right to
campus.

Diversity
Ensuring our campus is a welcoming and inclusive space for students of all different
backgrounds is a priority. We will make sure that the MUSG office becomes a certified
Safe Zone on campus to make sure it is an inclusive and welcoming space for all students
on campus. Additionally, we will continue to inform students about the Bias Incident

Reporting System, however, we will also advocate for more proactive options to include
an educational component after a report has been filed.
We also have a voice on the President Lovells Task force for Diversity and Equity
on Campus, and will advocate for concrete and long-term solutions for the challenges that
many of our students face. We will continue to support MUSGs Committee for Diversity,
Inclusion, and Social Justice (DISJ) and its initiatives. Additionally, we will advocate for a
discretionary funding line for the DISJ Coordinator so the committee will have a more
efficient implementation of their initiatives. We look forward to the results of the Campus
Wide Climate Study, but will also continue to be proactive in our approach to increasing
equity and inclusion on our campus.
Furthermore, we will work towards reforming incoming students introduction to
Milwaukee that we receive upon arriving on campus for the first time. Right now, urban
connection and Milwaukee excursions have very limited exposure to the culturally diverse
city that Milwaukee truly is. We believe that if students feel more connected and committed
to Milwaukee, it will help erase preliminary biases and stereotypes and make Marquette a
more inclusive and accommodating place. Thus, we will work to include inclusionary
dialogue and a positive introduction to our neighborhood during orientation.

MUSG Budget and SOF

Every student on campus pays a $30 dollar student activity fee each semester, and this
money is used for MUSG programming and funding for Marquettes nearly 275 student
organizations. Approximately 93% of students are involved in a student organization during
their time at Marquette. In light of this, we will advocate for the Student Organization
Funding budget line to be increased so there is more money available for student
organizations to fund the events they would like to host, participate in experiential learning,
participate in competitions, and much more.
However, simply throwing money at an issue does not solve the problems
associated with the Student Organization Funding process. We have had extensive
experience serving on the SOF committee for a collective 3 years, as well as, serving on the
Ad-Hoc Committee on SOF Review that sparked the conversations of reform that were
carried out this year. With the comprehensive reform that occurred this year, it will be
extremely important, now more than ever, to have experienced individuals guiding
the Student Organization Funding process.
We will be taking proactive steps to ensure the process is as clear and efficient as
possible. We will shift our conversations from talking about what we cant fund to what we
CAN fund, in order to focus on how we can be a better resource for students and their
organizations. A proactive step to achieve this will be hosting weekly SOF workshops to
ensure that student organizations have a full understanding of the changes that
occurred in the SOF process and what that will actually mean for student organizations.

Academics
Being at Marquette means that we are all students first. This means that a pursuit of
academic excellence is essential. There are three areas that we will focus on: increasing
D2L gradebook usage, improving academic advising, and expanding service learning.
As more students come to Marquette from high schools that have an online grading
system, students are disappointed with the lack of feedback they receive. Even if students
do receive feedback, having one location to see their grades will ensure a more positive
academic experience. We will work towards making it required that professors publish
grades on to D2L in a timely manner.
Advising has the ability to positively shape students academic and professional
experience. However, advising is consistently an area in need of improvement. We will
work with the Office of the Provost to publish advising guides for both students and
faculty. Additionally, we will advocate for the creation of advising evaluations to promote a
higher quality experience.
As a Jesuit institution, service is at the core of our mission and should be at the core
of our studies. Approximately 60% of students are exposed to service learning
opportunities while at Marquette. Service learning is a unique opportunity for students to
apply the skills they learn in the classroom to real life experiences and help others in
need. We will work with the university to incorporate service learning into the Core of
Common Studies.

Health and Wellness

A healthy heart is a happy heart, and we believe in happy hearts. This year, the
Sodexo contract will be expiring and we will work with the University to reevaluate some
of the policies set forth in the contract. We will focus on catering costs and services that are
available to student organizations. We want students to be as satisfied as possible with the
food services provided on campus, whether it is with catering or in the dining halls. We will
work to provide more healthy food options in dining halls, and we believe that healthy
options shouldn't just be limited to one dining hall. We will also advocate for lower
catering costs and explore different ways to meet student organizations
needs. Additionally, we will work with the university food provide to reduce the amount of
food waste occurring on campus.
Another avenue to addressing health and wellness on campus is through
recreational space. We are excited for President Lovells announcement about the new
property acquired on Michigan Street. However, we will continuously advocate that this
new space is open and accessible to all students. This new building cannot become a
second version of the Al McGuire Center. Practice space for club and recreational
sports must be included in the plans for this new building.

Health and recreation is not only limited to on-campus initiatives. One initiative that
incorporates our commitment to breaking the Marquette bubble and providing
healthy options on campus is bringing Bublr Bikes to Marquette. Bublr Bikes is a bikesharing non-profit organization that is seeking to expand their current operations throughout
Milwaukee. We will advocate for Bublr Bike stations in multiple locations on campus and
offer this service for use at a student-friendly price. In alignment with bringing Bublr Bikes to
Marquette, we will also advocate for a more bike friendly campus with more bike racks and
bike lanes. These improvements and additions will be an outlet for students to further their
connection with the City of Milwaukee.

Safety
Student safety will consistently be one of our highest concerns. We will continually
advocate for resources and innovative ideas to promote safety in our neighborhood. In
addition to continuing our advocacy for increasing student use of the Blue Light App, we
will explore establishing a LIMO tracking system to make student services more
efficient.
We will work with the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to hold neighborhood
safety walks throughout the year to make sure that students are familiar with our
neighborhood and also identify places in the neighborhood that are in need extra attention,
such as, alley lighting and trash receptacles. We will also guarantee that DPS is enforcing
their already established policies, such as checking for Marquette identification when
all students are entering LIMOs. Not only is this a safety concern, but it will also eliminate
scenarios where certain biases against students from occurring.
Likewise, as DPS becomes a commissioned police force, we will support this
transition to be done in a cost effective and conscious manner. We will continually
stipulate that commissioning should not place a financial burden on students. Also, we will
provide opportunities for constructive and positive conversations regarding any concerns
with this issue that arise.
However, safety conversations do not solely involve the Department of Public
Safety. We will also highlight issues surrounding sexual violence and mental health
awareness on our campus. We will make sure that all members of MUSG participate in
bystander intervention training. Additionally, we want to break the stigma attached to
conversations surrounding sexual harassment and mental health, as well as educate
students so they are aware of what resources are available to them.

Housing
Nearly half of all undergraduate students at Marquette live in off-campus housing.
The transition from residence life to off-campus living can be challenging for many students.
We will work to improve the quality of housing as well as help students become more
prepared as they move to the off-campus areas. Initiatives that we have helped to develop

through our involvement in the Neighborhood Excellence Committee will address these
concerns.
The first initiative we will facilitate in conjunction with the Neighborhood Excellence
Committee is the MUSG Good Neighbor Program. This program will award the MUSG
Good Neighbor Designation to properties around our off-campus area based on
characteristics developed by the Neighborhood Excellence Committee. The program has
a variety of characteristics that seek to address housing quality and safety concerns
in regards to student living. Over the summer, MUSG leadership, the Avenues West
Association and other landlords will tour the properties and will award this designation to
properties that meet the specified qualifications. After the designations are finalized,
MUSG will publish these properties for all students to utilize when making housing
decisions.
Not only is it imperative to have good landlords and properties for students on our
campus, but it is also important that tenants have a full understanding of off campus
living. In order to provide students with valuable information to ease the transition from
Residence Life to renting, we have worked with the Neighborhood Excellence Committee to
develop the Good Tenant Program. This program is an optional training for students to
gain knowledge about their leases, setting up utilities, recycling and other conservation
practices as well as other key aspects of off-campus living. For participating in this program,
students will be identified as Good Tenants and receive various benefits, such as,
preferred lease signing and reductions to security deposits or rents.
We want to ensure that these programs start off on a positive and successful note
and we feel that we are the most qualified to do so. It is of vital importance that the
leaders of MUSG are on-campus and available to work with the Neighborhood
Excellence Committee throughout the summer months to ensure the success of
these programs.

All-University Committee Reform.

Student representation is a fundamental aspect of our Universitys governance. We
will reform the process for students sitting on these committees to ensure they have a
positive experience through productive collaboration. These reforms will promote
student leadership beyond MUSG and empower students to contribute their ideas
and beliefs on how we can continuously improve our university.
Additionally, we will seek to include student representation within each Academic
program. These student advocates will work with faculty in their program of study to
address challenges within their own respective fields. Initiatives that this advocacy position
can undertake include suggestions for curriculum changes, establishing mentorship
programs, and connecting student organizations with their academic departments.