Georgia State’s Student Government Association (SGA) is taking steps to help students living on campus without cars get groceries by increasing the number of grocery shuttles available each month.
After multiple students voiced concerns, SGA is partnering up with Georgia State’s Residence Hall Association (RHA) to help them add more grocery shuttles by increasing the RHA’s shuttle budget. On Oct. 22, SGA passed the Grocery Shuttle Bill to allow the association to give money from their budget to RHA.
SGA’s Vice President for Student Services Fortune Onwuzuruike said the partnership was created to help RHA moneywise.
“The Residence Hall Association has been doing a great job coming up with the grocery shuttle bus idea,” he said. “The only reason they don’t have shuttles more often is because they don’t have the necessary funds.”
Onwuzuruike said SGA pulled out $2,000 from their Special Events budget.
“The money will be geared towards the necessary costs the grocery shuttle process,” he said.
He also said SGA will sponsor at least two more grocery shuttle trips per month. This will start no later than the first day of spring semester, he said.
Mia Tanksley, a Georgia State student, said it is a struggle to find a ride to the nearest grocery store. So she frequently turns to junk food.
“I have to wait until my roommate runs out of food. It is frustrating because often times I need a lot of things, but I don’t want to make her drive me when she does not need to. I try and wait for her to go, so I can go with her,” she said.
Fortune said one of the reasons SGA passed the legislation was to make sure the student government was moving one step closer to having the entire student body accounted for.
“We want to make sure the students on campus with and without cars, and commuters have equal access to meals,” he said. “The on-campus residents with meal plans are accounted for, but not those commuting, or with no plans. That is why we partnered with RHA, and that is why SGA is working towards a partial meal plan for commuters.”
Janis Salomon, a Georgia State freshman living in the University Commons, said she had to visit the front desk multiple times to ask for the grocery shuttle schedule.
“They are few and far between and usually come on Fridays, when I have already gone home,” She added. She said none of her roommates have cars either, which makes it harder to make regular trips to a grocery store.
Onwuzuruike said SGA is setting up a schedule that will include Mondays and Sundays, for the convenience of students.
