Student Support For A Green Fund At MSU? Why, Yes!

This post was originally written by Hailey Hawkings from Mississippi for the Campus Clean Energy Blog

The Fun Time Casual Band!!

On Tuesday, September 6th, a large group of students gathered in front of the Colvard Student Union on the Mississippi State University campus.  Holding each others hands, as well as our breathes, we waited silently to here the results of a vote a year in the making. After 1,000+ surveys, 3,500+ petitions, countless man-hours of clip boarding, tabling, and research, we had made it.  We had worked so hard just to have the opportunity to stand united in front of the Union. With hazy eyes, we listened intently as Park Wynn, the SA Elections Commissioner, read the results of the campus-wide vote.  The results of our first referendum, which read, ”Would you support a student run Green Fund on campus specifically appropriated for use of purchasing renewable energy as well as, energy efficiency and on-site energy generation projects at MSU?” were overwhelming. The moment Park exclaimed that 72.18% of the MSU voting student population clicked YES, I almost screamed in celebration!

Alex, Tess, and Evan tabling for a GREEN FUND!

In that short moment, a million emotions ran through my head in a swarm. After all the blood, sweat, and tears from many dedicated students, we had our victory.  WeWON the battle! After those few short seconds of ecstasy, I had to force myself to continue listening for the results of our second referendum.  The second referendum read, “IF YES, which of the following amounts would you be willing to allot towards the previously mentioned Green Fund, if the amount was added to tuition?” Of the people that voted YES to the first referendum 24.73% said $5, 20.01% said $15, 19.84% said $10, and 5.71% said $8. We could not have hoped for better results! This experience has been full of growth and accomplishment. I am so proud of our sustain-a-bulldawgs that I could (okay, I did…) cry!THANK YOU so much to all of you and your tremendous support throughout this process! We could not have accomplished half of what we have without you!SUSTAIN-A-HIGH-FIVE!!!