Work to keep tuition increases at a minimum, then worry about giving money to student organizations.

This was the resounding message from students to members of the Government of the Student in a recent campus survey.

GSB conducted the survey to gauge how students feel about its role.

Students had from Jan. 18 to 23 to respond to the survey, which included questions regarding how well students are informed about what GSB does and how well they do their job. More than 1,000 students responded.

Among nine categories, students felt keeping tuition increases at a minimum was the highest priority the GSB should focus its efforts on. This was followed closely by working with ISU administration on student issues.

One of the main functions of GSB, to allocate money to student organizations, ranked fourth.

Philip Hernandez, University Family Housing senator, said he struggles with issues such as tuition increases because it is sometimes unclear whether it’s really GSB’s job to lobby with ambassadors, or to inform and empower students to take action. He also said if students feel really passionate about issues, they should run for election.

When asked about their familiarity with GSB, approximately 50 percent of students who took the survey said they really don’t know much, and 40 percent said they know some basic information. Hernandez game some advice to students to find out more about the body.

“Students can get involved through our Web site,” Hernandez said.

“They should go there and read about what’s going on and e-mail their representatives.”

Hernandez is the co-chairman of the Principles Commission, which is working to develop a statement on shared values on diversity among ISU community members.

Hernandez said issues such as the Principles Commission’s goals can be misconstrued when students are partially informed. He said students shouldn’t hesitate to come to their representatives for clarification or to discuss pertinent topics of interest.

Although approximately three-fourths of students are aware of who GSB President Angela Groh is, that same percentage is unaware of who the GSB senators are, according to survey results.

“This is a huge problem,” said Groh, senior in political science. “If GSB can’t reach out and inform students of our projects, and initiatives and in turn gather input and feedback, we will never truly be effective or representative.”

Groh also said she hopes this information will help to better publicize what GSB is doing.

Katherine Lundberg, sophomore in political science and Richardson Court Association senator, said she sees more of a focus on the president and vice president, and less of a focus on what’s going on under the surface. This displays a lack of in-depth knowledge of what GSB does, she said.

Lundberg also said she sees a large involvement of those in the greek community within GSB, which can create a stigma about the body.

The greek community is more involved and informed, which can be attributed to the structure within it. This can serve as a model for how non-greek students can get more involved, she said.