Slow Elevators at Higgins

The elevators are being worked on in Higgins Hall. A sign posted by the elevators on either side of the lobby is letting students know about the work being done. The elevators will be undergoing construction for the remainder of the week and may cause more waiting time for riders.

Resident Assistant Brendan Royalty explained one of the problems with the elevators. He said they have been stopping at floors when they weren't supposed to and that some of the buttons wouldn't work. Royalty also said that the elevators should be back to normal by the end of the week and that the workers are doing everything they can to keep the elevators running at normal speed.

Happy Valentine's Day

Like it or not, Valentine's Day is right around the corner. For those who have put off buying gifts there is still time to do so. One option that Macomb has to offer for last-minute shoppers is Kirlin's Hallmark. This store is located downtown on the square and has many options for this much-anticipated holiday.

Employees of Kirlin's Hallmark agree that this is one of the busiest times of the year for them. The store is packed with customers making last-minute purchases. The store offers many different options of gifts, from various chocolates to stuffed animals to gift sets. Let's not forget the extensive collection of Valentine's Day cards that are available. Kirlin's Hallmark is a one-stop-shop that provides the perfect gift for anyone on your Valentine's Day list.

**clipart courtesy of clipartspace.com

SGA Finally Comes to a Decision about Student Fee Increases

The Student Government Association finally reached a decision about increases in student fees at last night's meeting. The journey to that decision was a long, hard one for all in attendance. The debate about student-athletes receiving a bigger increase in funds lasted over two hours alone. This drawn-out argument led to the expansion of the meeting for an extra hour, making the whole thing last a total of three.

There was an extraordinary amount of people in attendance at last night's meeting, most of them being student-athletes. Many different points were brought up by the SGA members, which led to many different questions and opinions from the entire crowd. The mediator tried keeping things as professional as possible but still wasn't able to control the whole crowd the entire time.

The SGA itself had split opinions on the issue of whether or not the athletics department should receive the 26.4% funds increase that they had been promised. Some members believed that funds should be spread more evenly among all students at Western Illinois. Others felt that the athletics department deserved the increase in funds in order to safely allow all of their teams to continue to travel and compete with the new members of the conference.

SGA member Kyle Davis said "athletics are the front porch of the university." He continued to explain that the sports teams are what gets most of the media attention for the schools, and that they need the appropriate funds to continue doing so. Many other people thought his comment was absurd. Students representing the Black Student Association were wondering where academics stood in this picture. Both sides of the argument had valid points, but in the end the athletic department increase fund stood as first proposed.

Go West Plans to Allow More Peak Capacity

The Go West bus system has plans in the making to accomodate better capacity during peak hours. With so many recent changes in the weather the number of riders varies from day to day. One thing Go West can count on is an increase of riders on days where the weather is less than fair. Since there have been many days like this recently, the bus system feels a need for a change.

Go West set a new record for riders per week two weeks ago with almost sixty-one thousand passengers. With an increase like this, the company decided to do something to increase their numbers even more during peaks. Go West director Jude Kiah said there are two parts to their upcoming plans.

One thing the bus system is planning on doing is adding what they call "extras". This means that during peak hours they will have an extra bus on the route for about thirty minutes. This plan would allow the buses to be less packed without having an extra bus run the route for the whole day.

Another part of the new plan is being looked at for next year. Go West is looking into audits to increase the total service next year, with more buses running on most routes. The most popular bus routes are one, two, and three, which ride around campus. There is also a need for an increase of buses on the other routes which is what Go West will be focusing on.

Even though the buses get packed during these winter months, Go West is doing everything they can to keep their system running efficiently. Without this bus system many students might have a hard time getting around. So before any complaints are made about Go West, it is important to realize that they are making efforts to increase capacity on their routes.