Community works to remove communication barriers in an environmentally
friendly way
One of the most highly touted promises of electronic communication technology
has been an anticipated reduction in the need for and use of paper as a
means of communication.
It's no small irony, therefore, that the rapid expansion of communication
technology at Emory has been accompanied by a seemingly meteoric rise in
the practice of student organizations plastering sidewalks and plazas with
brightly colored flyers to encourage attendance at major events. Letters
denouncing the practice for creating intolerable eyesores across campus
have appeared in both Emory Report and The Emory Wheel.
The burden of cleaning up the mess left behind by such flyers and posters
falls on the Facilities Management Division. David Turner, director of the
Roads and Grounds Department, said that in dealing with flyers or posters
of student groups placed in public areas, his crew removes posters or flyers
that: cause a safety hazard, such as obscuring signs or wheel- chair curb
cuts; announce events scheduled on dates that have passed; and have been
damaged by weather or foot traffic. Posters and flyers also are removed
upon the request of the administration.
Despite the logistical headaches that Facilities Management must deal with,
many leaders of student organizations say that in the absence of a centralized
campus communication system to inform students in advance about forthcoming
events, they feel pressured to resort to taping flyers on sidewalks to drum
up sufficient attendance at events that are quite costly to stage.
Senior Tracey Ryan, president of the Student Programming Council (SPC),
said that at present, the campus offers no forum for communication with
students that's more effective than flyers. "We are able to reach the
graduate students by e-mail, but the undergraduate population is not wired
in the same way," said Ryan, who believes that a coordinated system
of bulletin boards, kiosks and electronic communication would alleviate
the need for massive plastering of flyers. "Because the SPC is funded
by the students, we are responsible for getting the word out to students
about the events. We need to be able to publicize our events through every
venue possible."
Ryan said she wholeheartedly endorses the efforts of Judy Raggi Moore of
the French and Italian faculty, who also chairs the University Senate Committee
on Campus Life. Raggi Moore believes that the student groups' need for effective
communication about their events and the Emory community's desire to keep
the campus grounds free of unsightly paper can both be accomplished through
a single strategy: developing a centralized communication plan and hiring
an "electronic postmaster" to implement and monitor it.
Last year, Raggi Moore and the Campus Life committee began researching the
issue of centralized electronic communication and brought a proposal to
the full Senate recommending that the Senate issue statements: encouraging
the University to use electronic means as the preferred method to communicate
and distribute information among its members; encouraging a reduction in
the use of paper and tape; and discouraging the use of paper signs on community
property.
In response to the committee's proposal, President Bill Chace has asked
Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Harriet King to seek the opinions and
support of the deans and directors for creating the position of electronic
postmaster. Raggi Moore said the committee has sent a letter to the deans
and directors on the issue. In addition, Chace has asked King, Ethics Center
Director James W. Fowler and Richard Levinson of the public health faculty
to begin formulating the guidelines for moderation of a new campus communication
system. Using those guidelines, the electronic postmaster would determine
which types of information should be sent to which subsets of the Emory
community via which methods of distribution.
While the committee's proposal calls for the endorsement of electronic communication
as the preferred method, Raggi Moore is fully aware that paper communication
is a part of the Emory culture that is not going away any time soon. After
the Senate voted to recommend approval of the Campus Life committee's electronic
communication proposal in February, the committee began working on the issue
of regulating paper usage as a means of campus communication. Topics discussed
last spring include: creating an Office of Information to work with the
new electronic postmaster to centralize the distribution of paper information;
creating multiple bulletin board locations in the areas of highest traffic
to replace the current practice of plastering paper on sidewalks; creating
regulations for paper advertising; and creating sanctions for violations
of posting rules.
Raggi Moore believes the time is right for Emory to adopt a centralized
communication system, as evidenced by pledges of support from both University
Senate President Luke Johnson and President Chace. "The committee has
done all the groundwork," Raggi Moore said. "I have lots of faith
in the Senate to carry this work forward."
--Dan Treadaway
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