To the members of the Texas Junior College Student Government Association:

By now, we're back in the swing of things at school and our SGAs are up and active. You should be receiving information very soon about voter registration and other ways of getting involved with the people who currently (and potentially) represent you. I hope that you will make the effort to get involved, even if it's nothing more than passing out voter registration cards. The potential reward is immense, even if the effort is small.

One of the issues that our students might be interested in, and one that might motivate them to register and actually vote in an election where experts are predicting record low turn-outs, is a proposal by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. The THECB is recommending that the state legislature enact a bill that would guarantee $5000 in aid that would not have to be repaid to every college student in Texas for 4 years of college. It is hard to overstate the impact that kind of aid would have to improving the accessibility of higher education in our state. The Coordinating Board does not make law, however, and even if the legislature did enact such a statute, it would be meaningless unless they also appropriate the funds to make it a reality. Make sure the students in your schools know about this proposal, and just as importantly, make sure the candidates in your district know about your position.

Another proposal that could have a tremendous impact on community college students has been advanced by Senator Madla, from San Antonio. This proposal would guarantee that community college students who graduate with a certian GPA (3.0 or 3.5) would be admitted to the flagship universities of UT-Austin and A&M-College Station. This idea has been advanced as a response to the Hopwood decision, and proponents believe it would create a more representative student body at the major universities.

We as an organization will be addressing these and other issues before the year is up. I hope that you'll be thinking about them and sharing your thoughts with me as well as with the students on your campus.

Have a great fall semester, and be sure to let Teresa and the folks at Kingwood know what's going on at your school. See you at the Region conventions!

Sincerely,

Trey Morris
President
Texas Junior College Student Government Association