New programs, office renovations, a new resource center, more advisors and courses, student fee increase, a polling place on campus, leadership classes and executive salary increases were all hot topics at the second student-only town hall meeting Thursday.

President Alexander Gonzalez and Vice President for Student Affairs Lori Varlotta joined about 40 students in Hinde Auditorium for a discussion covering student questions and concerns.

“We want to talk back and forth, what’s on your mind and what issues do you want to talk about,” Varlotta said.

Gonzalez said his focus for spring semester will be on “everyday planning” and he will look at issues having to do with retention rates, how to deliver courses and the reconfiguration of technology. To do so, Gonzalez said he will be putting the physical improvements of the campus on the back burner.

“Construction takes time so you have to get them on the books early,” Gonzalez said. By jumping on plans for large projects such as the Recreation, Wellness, Events Center, Gonzalez said he is now able to turn his focus on student and faculty everyday needs.

Online classes and better use of campus technology will help the parking problem ?” which is still the number one issues on campus ?” by making it so students don’t always have to come to campus for class, Gonzalez said.

“We want to find a way to ease the burden for students by mixing up some courses,” Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez said that even with the new parking structure built, there will only be sufficient parking for one year ?” which is why alternative transportation, such as the bus rapid transit extension from the 65th Street light rail, is in the works.

To boost retention rates, Varlotta said Sac State will make orientation mandatory for all incoming freshman, in addition to making advising mandatory for all underclassmen.

“A key initiative is to make sure students have the information they need in order to graduate in a timely manner,” Varlotta said.

To help students get degrees quicker, admissions is speeding up the time it takes for them to evaluate transcripts ?” right now the average time is one year, but Varlotta said they are working to whittle it down to one semester.

To a question about recent student fee increases, Gonzalez said the governor and the legislators are the ones that should be getting the pressure to change the hiking cycle.

Gonzalez said many California State University presidents had argued against the fee increase to no avail.

“Every qualified student in the state should receive free education,” Gonzalez said. The CSU board of trustees had once planned on that Gonzalez said ?” in the 1970s, the master plan was for free higher education, even today.

Gonzalez said the full cost of student tuition ranges from $10,000 to $12,000 a year and students pay almost one third of that now. However, since budget analysts have recently become more optimistic, Gonzalez said there is a chance that fees will not go up as steeply in the future.

To take some weight of the fee increase off students’ shoulders, Varlotta said student affairs is looking into paying more for on-campus jobs in addition to offering students a longer tuition payment plan.

“We have also created a more lenient pay schedule, elongating the payment plan for students,” Varlotta said.

Also addressed by Gonzalez was the executive salary increases in the 2006-07 trustee budget and the raise in his housing allowance to $60,000.

“The gap for university presidents was almost 50 percent behind of the national average,” Gonzalez said. “Given what salaries are, it is difficult to recruit.”

Gonzalez said he works hard ?” almost 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and does the “job of a younger person.” As an example of his hectic work demands, Gonzalez shared his work schedule, which consists of a 4:45 a.m. wake-up and dinner with possible donors until 9 p.m.

Because the cost of housing has sky-rocketed in Sacramento, Gonzalez said his mortgage is high and the housing allowance is used to pay for a nice place where he can host events and invite donors to dinner.

Gonzalez said he is still looking into how to improve the class availability situation for students. The funding is there, Gonzalez said, but because the colleges decide which classes to offer and when, there needs to be better communication between the administration, colleges and the students.

“This campus proportionally has the highest amount of money that goes to instruction, which is 80 percent,” Gonzalez said.

Varlotta encouraged students to contact her about ideas for a leadership curricular program, spawned by the new slogan that Sacramento State is “where leadership begins.”

Varlotta said that it would be “an academic course offered for credit to student leaders that want to augment their co-curricular with a leadership class.”

For students to hold administrators accountable for their promises to students, Varlotta said that starting next week there will be a link to Destination 2010 updates on the Sac State Web site.

Varlotta said she was pleased about substance of the student questions at the town hall meeting, but had hoped for a better turnout.

Student groups with representatives from Associated Students Inc., the Office of Governmental Affairs and the Queer Straight Alliance attended the open forum.

Keith Bordsen, an undeclared junior, said he came to the event not armed with questions, but curiosity.

“Usually, administrators aren’t accessible in this kind of forum, which opens them up to criticism-they should be commended for it.” Bordsen said.

“It wasn’t a full house, however, student affairs ?” Varlotta and Gonzalez ?” were very articulate and covered the points, said Angel Barajas, ASI president. “Overall, it was good, but I wish it could be longer.”

Jessica Weidling can be reached at [email protected]