Comments, criticisms, complaints?

Course evaluations are upon us, and though many students regard them as a waste of time, professors do take them seriously. Instead of Christmas-treeing your Scantron, take the time to give honest feedback. Future students depend on you.

Safe ride, take it easy

Universities nationwide provide safe transportation options to students traveling off campus, and we think the University should get in on the action. We suggest a bus route running from popular late-night venues to main apartment complexes Wednesday through Saturday nights, much like Alabama’s “Entertainment Route.” Safety is kind of a big deal.

A call for boxes

Emergency call boxes grace the presence of most public universities, but our own home sweet home has a distinct absence of the boxes, which directly call 911 at the push of a button. Considering recent increases in crime in Athens-Clarke County, we hope the University gets on the call box bandwagon soon.

High hopes

We’d like to thank the University for creating a steering committee to evaluate the results of this year’s National Survey of Student Engagement. Even though student satisfaction was high, the University continues to aim for improvement, and that’s something we always support.

Community service

Despite receiving criticism, The Red & Black will continue to print the names of students and faculty who are arrested for felony charges. The public – and especially their neighbors – have a right and a need to know, and as a newspaper, it is our job to report the facts.

Policy FAIL

Throwing out a policy that requires it to check with students, the Board of Regents voted to charge students a $100 fee that we must pay by the end of January 2009. We know the state is facing a severe budget crunch, but we believe procedures must be followed. In the future, we hope the regents follow their own guidelines.

Quick cash

Looking for a way to earn $100 before the Board of Regents makes you pay up in January? We have some suggestions: sell back your textbooks online, apply for a seasonal job, baby-sit or house-sit during the break and stop eating out so much. And if worse comes to worst, ask for the money for Christmas.