The Student Government Association issued two Student Service Awards recognizing outstanding leadership by UH student groups during Wednesday’s meeting.
The senate unanimously passed two resolutions awarding two groups for contributions that directly benefit UH students.
The first award was given to the group of students who developed the UH Guide iPhone application.
“These are students which I feel exemplify what every student should strive to be,” Honors College senator and resolution author Reyes Ramirez said. “It’s amazing quality of service that goes above the call of duty of what students should do, and they deserve the recognition.”
Computer science seniors Hussain Abbasi, Kaleb Fulgham, Andre Navarro and Nick Prescott were presented with the first Student Service Award of the evening for their efforts in developing the iPhone app as part of a class.
The application, which is free for Apple iPhone and iPod Touch users, provides students with real-time UH campus parking availability, as well as campus traffic updates, a campus map and PeopleSoft link.
“We decided to take it a step further than creating a map ⎯ to creating an entire University application,” Fulgham said. “We’re so happy we were able to help out the University of Houston.”
In accepting the award, the team thanked the University’s parking service, police department and mapping department for their assistance with the parking data needed to complete the project.
The second award was given to the founding members of the Gamma Rho Lambda sorority, which was inducted into the University on Feb. 6.
The group is the first nationally recognized all-inclusive lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning, intersex and straight-ally sorority in Texas.
The members were honored with the award for their support and achievement of the goal of further diversifying the University by establishing the sorority.
“I feel they’re making history here,” Ramirez said. “They are expanding what we take pride in here at the university, which is diversity.”
The sorority’s president, Jacqueline Keasley, appreciated the recognition by the SGA.
“We hope to greatly contribute to UH by adding diversity as one of our main goals and creating a sense of family and a support system for people who normally wouldn’t have it,” Keasley said.
College of Social Work Sen. Josephine Tittsworth said she is proud of the advancements towards accepting diversity at UH that made this organization possible.
“We’ve had a cultural change on this campus,” Tittsworth said. “In 2006, this sorority would not have been recognized, and because of the efforts of this SGA, we have made a difference on this campus.”
