SF State students voted to approve the athletics referendum, which will gradually increase fees by $35 over the next six years. The count, though unofficial until accepted by the university, was 933 to 4,291, according to Katherine Day, referendum supervisor.

Students also elected new directors for Associated Students Inc. (ASI), SF State’s student government. This year’s ASI elections voter turnout was 4,257, almost twice as many voters as the average number in the last five years, according to Horace Montgomery, leadership development coordinator for ASI.

The referendum, which lost on last year’s ballot by 233 votes, was placed on the ballot this year at the suggestion of the task force formed to address the future of athletics at SF State.

“I’m very happy that the referendum passed” said J.E. “Penny” Saffold, vice president of student affairs/dean of students. “Particularly that more than 4,000 students believe athletics has a role to play in university education.”

The athletics department declined to comment until the results become official.

The fee increase must be approved at a Student Fee Advisory Committee meeting on March 30. The decision is then forwarded to President Robert Corrigan for final approval before becoming official, according to Ellen Griffin, university spokeswoman.

Currently, students pay $25 for athletics. With the referendum passing, the fee will gradually increase each school year. In 2005-2006, students will pay $43. The next year, it will be $49, then $55 and finally $60 in 2008-2009.

The fee is compensating for the loss of funding resulting from the California budget crisis.

"The athletic referendum is not too much to ask for when other schools pay over $200 for athletics," said Giao Le, 28, BECA major. "SF State is too much of a commuter school and sports are a big part of building a community."

In addition to the referendum, students also voted for a new ASI board of directors.

Chris Jackson, 21, was named president for the next school year. Jackson will be accompanied by fellow SF4U slate member, Maire Fowler, 21, as vice president of internal affairs. Joining them is Think Pink's slate members, Jamie Domingo, vice president of finance, and Josef Anolin, vice president of external affairs, in ASI's executive board.

Slates, although not officially endorsed by ASI, promote a bipartisan government, said Leslye Tinson, office assistant at ASI. Support groups are formed around candidates, with the understanding that being part of a slate will increase voter turnout.

Though candidates ran on different slates, one common factor was building more of a community on campus. Both SF4U and Think Pink wanted to reach out to students and get them more involved in activities on and off campus.

The first thing Jackson plans to work on is forming an ASI team that will focus on reaching out to students.

“Semester by semester, I want to outreach and talk to at least 10,000 students,” said Jackson.

"We spent half of our campaign educating students about what the student body is," said Isidro Armenta, newly elected representative at large. Armenta, of SF4U, will be united with Pam Grotts, another representative at large, of Think Pink.

"With recent budget cuts I hope someone stands up for us," said Le. "I voted because I want to make sure students' voices are being heard."

ASI ELECTION WINNERS

ASI President:
Chris Jackson

VP of External Affairs:
Josef Anolin

VP of Internal Affairs:
Maire Fowler

VP of Finance:
Jamie Domingo

Graduate Representative:
Maria Millan

Senior Representative:
Jessica Do

Junior Representative:
Clifford Anderson-Bergman

Sophomore Representative:
Nadia Moreira

Freshman Representative:
Adrianna Quezada

BSS Representative:
Michelle Montoya

BSS Representative:
Michelle Montoya

Creative Arts Representative:
Oscar Edwards

Business Representative:
Chavon Smith

Education Representative:
Julie Costa

Ethnic Studies Representative:
Joshua Castro

Health and Human Services Representative:
Najma Nurriddin

Health and Human Services Representative:
Najma Nurriddin

Science and Engineering Representative:
Viet-Thi Ta