Student retention and participation, fighting Proposition 54, mandatory student healthcare and greater visibility are some of the issues outlined in the agenda of Associated Students, Inc. this fall semester.-

Sacramento State students can expect to see more ASI involvement on campus than ever before, Vice President of Finance Luke Wood said. –

“This board is a lot more dedicated to being out there than other boards in the past,” Wood said. –

Following board approval, he said he hopes to hold two forums next month where students can voice their opinions about current campus issues.-

“It’s no secret that one of our biggest goals is retention,” Wood said. “When students are more involved on campus, they are more likely to stay.” –

Getting students involved also means making ASI more visible. Plans are in the works to establish a permanent booth with regular office hours where students can relay questions, comments or suggestions to ASI. –

ASI President Peter Ucovich said he is dedicated to raising awareness about ASI’s presence on campus this semester. –

“Monthly events in the quad will definitely increase ASI’s visibility,” Ucovich said. “I think higher visibility will give students a better understanding of everything ASI does for them.” –

Ucovich also advocated making improvements to the campus to help increase retention.-

“We want to improve campus facilities that are lacking so that students will have a campus they can call home,” Ucovich said. “When that happens, we will start to see more retention and more people graduating.”-

ASI officers will use classroom speeches to raise awareness about ASI’s plans and priorities. This will be especially true for getting the word out about ASI’s resolution against Proposition 54, said Marlon Cuellar, ASI’s Director of Governmental Affairs.-

Cuellar said that it is ASI’s goal to visit 1,000 classrooms before the Oct. 7 vote on Prop. 54. –

“We are also going to pass out flyers and informational cards about activities such as a Lobby Corps clinic being held at Sac State in October,” Cuellar said. “Our hope is that by doing this, more students will get involved.” –

Other activities planned by the ASI Governmental Affairs staff include voter registration drives and the promotion of voter education.-

Another concern that ASI plans to address is the rising cost of parking permits and citation fees. –

Vice President of University Affairs Joshua Wood, who assigns students to various committees on campus, is organizing a committee seeking to prevent future parking cost increases as well as put an end to restrictions that prohibit students with outstanding parking violations from registering for classes. –

Luke Wood, ASI’s Vice President of Finance, said many people are wondering how recent state budget problems will affect ASI’s ambitious plans for this semester. –

It is expected that the university will be pushing for ASI to fund more campus events such as this year’s Hornet Welcome, which took place on Sept. 5 and 6.In past years, ASI has provided $3,000 for the welcome. This year, however, the organization funded the entire event.-

Vital programs are at risk of being cut if ASI does not provide more money for events like the Hornet Welcome, Wood said.-

Long-term ASI plans call for focus on such issues as parking fees, apartment style campus housing and online voting, according to ASI will hold their first board meeting of the semester Sept. 17 at 1:30 p.m. in the University Union. –