If the Student Government Association wants to improve support among students, it has to pass the bill allowing student organizations to support candidates.

There doesn't seem to be a reason for SGA to not allow this bill to pass.

The worst that can happen is students will become more knowledgeable about the candidates and can decide to support them. Isn't that what all politicians, no matter how powerful, want?

A TCU alumnus returned to campus Wednesday as part of the university's celebration of Constitution Day.

Jeffrey Richard, president and chief executive officer of the Austin Area Urban League, said he geared his speech, "Racism and the Constitution: Then and Now," toward being a reflection on how far our country has come and how far it may have yet to go.

Richard earned a Bachelor of Science in political science and economics at TCU and a master's degree in urban economic development from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Milton Daniel Hall will soon receive new plumbing, heating and air conditioning in every room as part of a $10 million renovation at the end of the 2008-2009 school year, a university official said.

Don Mills, vice chancellor for student affairs, said the hall will be gutted and rebuilt from the inside out. Student input was considered in the design of the hall's renovations, which will require closing the dorm for a year, said Milton Daniel Hall Director Christopher Sewalish.

A recent voter registration incident at Virginia Tech has prompted concern among students that registering using their university addresses might cost them their financial aid.

TCU students need not worry about voting penalizations, because voter registration is not used to determine residency in consideration for federal financial aid, said Michael Scott, director of scholarships and student financial aid.

"It's a nonissue," Scott said.

But at Virginia Tech, students were led to believe it was an issue.

She wasn't the keynote speaker at the Democratic National Convention, but millions of supporters noted her with keen interest on the first night in Denver. Michelle Obama delivered a remarkable speech that made the audience shed tears of joy, and gave a smile of hope with her firm support for her husband, Barack Obama. The leading lady of the first day of the convention, Obama tried to connect with the common American through her personal story. She shared her moments of pains and gains to let everyone know she was not different, but one of them.

When reading the news story "Plus/minus system not widespread on campus," I couldn't help but make some observations. The system, in essence, reverts to a standard grading system some colleges have implemented. Although there isn't a consensus regarding whether TCU should use the plus/minus system, I think it would be appropriate to render a final decision on whether the system will be used. Many people believe using a plus/minus system will strengthen the academic reputation, however, there are other factors that comprise academic reputation besides a plus/minus system.

The Student Government Association's House of Student Representatives passed four new bills in its meeting Tuesday night, all of them written by the Elections & Regulations Committee.

The first bill discussed was "A Bill to Modify Campaign Rules." The bill clarified the definition of "campaigning" within the Student Body Code, also giving the finite starting and ending dates of when a campaign can be run, as well as runoff procedure. The bill passed unanimously.

Christopher Watts had no plans to enter into the field of speech-language pathology before he went to school at the University of South Alabama. In fact, the main reason he took a course on the subject was because his girlfriend was also taking it.

"I just kind of fell into it," Watts said about the beginning of his interest in the field.

Now, he is the new chair of the Harris College of Nursing and Health Science's Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders (COSD). Watts also heads the Miller Speech and Hearing Clinic on campus.

The Scholarships and Financial Aid Committee is expecting a decrease in formal appeals for scholarship renewal this year because of its decision to change the requirement for renewal from completion of 27 hours per year to 24, a Financial Aid official said.

Michael Scott, director of scholarships and financial aid, said all TCU academic scholarships require a 3.0 GPA at the end of freshman year and a 3.25 GPA for each consecutive year, but what most students seemed to overlook was the 27-hour requirement of past years.

A new town home development close to campus will likely further the university's goal of becoming a "residential campus," a university official said.Don Mills, vice chancellor for student affairs, said...