Student Senate has recently undertaken discussion on new policies and projects affecting Gustavus students. Among the topics are the routes and routines of the “Gus Bus”, the free weekend shuttle service, and the possibility of new outdoor recreational renovations.

The Gus Bus, a St. Peter transit bus that offers free rides to students from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights, has been funded by the Student Senate for a number of years. Prompted by students, student groups and Campus Safety, Student Senate is considering making changes to how the shuttle service operates.

Currently, students are responsible for calling the shuttle driver and requesting a pick-up. Due to difficulty contacting drivers during busy hours, and a lack of room on buses making stops at crowded areas, some students are having trouble getting picked up. To help alleviate these issues, Senate is considering scheduling a designated route for the Gus Bus.

The designated route option has not yet been decided on by Senate. If it were to pass, the buses would run on a specific route through the Gustavus campus and St. Peter, making regular stops at designated areas that students tend to go most often. The main concern among groups who advocate this change is for safe and efficient transportation for students. If students react negatively to the proposed changes, Senate will reconsider.

“We’ll see if [a designated route] has an effect. If it goes through, which it hasn’t yet, it will be on a trial basis. We’ll poll the students to see what they think. If it doesn’t work, we’ll re-evaluate and try it again,” Senior Political Science and Religion Major Courtney West, the academic and student affairs committee chair for Senate, said.

Designated routes for the Gus Bus have been employed in the past, and the biggest issue was long waits for students at the specified stops.

“We’ve eliminated that issue with the continuous route idea,” West said. With buses running a continuous route, there will be shorter stops at the designated areas, meaning the entire route will be completed in about 20-25 minutes.

Student Senate also has a committee considering new recreation opportunities for students who enjoy outdoor exercise. The Outdoor Recreation Committee (ORC), chaired by Senior Class Representative and Classics and History Major Joey Nowariak, has several ideas taking shape.

One of the ORC’s biggest projects at this time is the installment of a disc golf course on campus.

“We’re in the design stage of a Frisbee golf course. We’re looking at a nine-hole course, and we’re working with the Disc Golf Club to help out with that,” Nowariak said.

The course will theoretically run along the perimeter of the Northwest side of campus, because it must avoid interfering with the Arboretum or any high-traffic campus areas. At this stage, the holes are being envisioned as beginning behind Norelius Hall and ending somewhere near Southwest Hall.

The conflict with building a disc golf course is money; Senate would like to make the course essentially free for students to use, but the approximate cost of installing the nine hole course is around $300 per hole. To help cover these costs, the ORC is looking to local businesses.

“We had the idea that we’re going to try to get the holes sponsored by local businesses,” Nowariak said. After the conceptual stage of designing the course is completed, ORC will begin canvassing local businesses for support.

Another project being considered by the ORC is an outdoor bouldering wall, which would most likely be added somewhere in the Arboretum. A bouldering wall is similar to a rock climbing wall, except that it is smaller and often includes challenging angles to climb. A bouldering wall is not nearly as tall as a rock climbing wall, so equipment is not necessary.

“It’s basically like a jungle gym for climbers,” Nowariak said. “We’re trying to find some climbers to get some input for it.”

A final idea being considered by the ORC is the addition of community grills for students to use. Residential Life has considered adding more recreation zones, like the area between Norelius Hall and Complex, with basketball, volleyball or other activities, and possibly grills.

“It’s stuff that’s spontaneous—you can go out on a nice day like [those] we’ve been having this fall and just enjoy the day,” Nowariak said.

These and many more ideas are being considered by members of Student Senate, and students are welcome to submit their opinions or ideas.

“If students have any ideas for stuff like this, go to the Student Senate website and find your senator, and if your senator is worth their salt, they’re going to bring it up and they’ll try to do something about it,” Nowariak said.

“Students might not know it, but all of Senate does want to hear their opinion, and we really are trying to do the best we can for students,” West said.

To find your Student Senate representatives, visit the Senate website on the Gustavus homepage, and click “Meet Your Senators.”