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By Jim Parsons
Daily Cougar Staff

The Students' Association Senate on Wednesday gave the green light to a campuswide referendum that would change the name of the student government body to the Student Government Association.

Senators hope the name change would help convey the purpose of the student government. The organization was once called the Student Government Association, but the "Government" was dropped in the early 1990s.

The name change will be presented for a vote on the SA general election ballot Feb. 29 and March 1. 

In other business, Natural Sciences and Mathematics Sen. Brian Pool briefed senators on the "soap bill," legislation introduced last semester calling for liquid hand soap to replace powdered soap in dispensers across campus.

Pool said that change would affect 818 dispensers. He said he called several colleges statewide and found that all of them have liquid soap in their rest rooms.

He also said he had received a detailed e-mail from sources at the University of Texas describing UT's liquid soap distribution. At  UT, Pool said, each hand-washing with liquid soap costs the University .0056 cents.

"I don't think that's too much to ask," he said.

Pool expressed his support for the liquid soap proposal and said he would continue to research the feasibility of placing liquid soap on the UH campus. He said he felt the change was essential, "especially if we're looking to get Tier I (research) status."

The Senate also approved a bill calling for professors to be required to use a plus-minus grading system. The legislation was written in response to some senators' concern that professors who do not grade with pluses or minuses -- the grading procedure set forth in UH's academic catalogs -- could damage students' grade-point averages.

Senators also approved the formation of an SA handicap exploratory committee, which will periodically check to ensure automatic doors across campus are in working order; the creation of a Freshman Council, which would provide freshman students with some SA representation; and the formation of a campuswide committee to draft a "Cougar Creed."

The SA will next meet at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 23 in the University Center Bayou City Room.