Eighteen new senators took the oath of office at the Jan. 12 Student Government Association meeting, and the organization moved forward on a more student-oriented course of action than in previous semesters.

Fifteen students sworn in were elected senator in the November SGA election; three were nominated by appointment and elected at the meeting.

“Congratulations on being elected to the senate,” Chief Justice Dave Caudill said. The senators then swore to “uphold the SGA constitution and bylaws and to faithfully serve the student body.”

SGA President Chris Pace recommended the appointment of three other students to the senate: Breanna Gaddie, Brett Hardebeck and Gary Darna. Hardebeck and Darna were elected unanimously with one abstention each. A majority of senators elected Gaddie, with one vote against her election. The three students took the oath of office immediately following their election.

Two prominent topics of the first spring semester meeting were the Jan. 14 SGA tuition forum and increased student involvement in TeamNKU.

Andy Hixon, vice president of public relations, encouraged senators to spread the word about the tuition forum in order to increase student involvement in the event.

“If we have a packed house, we’ll make that much more of an impact,” he said.

Hixon said that SGA would like to get a better feel for both students’ opinions regarding tuition, and the possibility of a mid-semester increase, in order to better serve the students’ best interests.

“We want to get some dialogue going between students, for students,” Eric Fegan, executive vice president, said.

Joe Myers, vice president of administrative affairs, announced several upcoming events intended to increase political involvement among NKU students. He announced that Congressman Ken Lucas will be on campus Friday, January 19 to meet with students, and Myers encouraged students to attend.

He also said TeamNKU is organizing a February trip to Frankfort to rally in the capital for state support of higher education. The Feb. 5 rally is open to all students, and transportation will be provided.

SGA will hold its spring retreat at Blue Lick State Park this weekend, Jan. 16, 17 and 18, where it will vote upon its goals for the semester.