But lately, ASMSU has been anything but under the radar, drawing more attention than before for various initiatives that have spurred criticism and scrutiny from students.

ASMSU is proof the phrase, “all publicity is good publicity,” isn’t always accurate.? The undergraduate student government recently has started turning more heads, especially after a controversial campaign involving the appearance of sidewalk logos across campus that stirred intrigue and brought up potential safety concerns.

Although the student government now has its accounts controlled by university administrators, the organization has fielded an onslaught of accusations related to wasteful usage of student tax dollars.

WTF MSU

ASMSU drew some negative attention through a viral marketing campaign earlier this fall semester, entitled “What to Fix? MSU,” better known as “WTF MSU.” It received scrutiny because of its chalk-paint logos across campus sidewalks. The campaign even caught the eye of the MSU police.

“MSU police became aware of the campaign and several concerns from people in the MSU community, prompting an investigation,” said Sgt. Florence McGlothian-Taylor. “While no direct complaints were made to MSU Police, investigators uncovered several concerns posted on social media.”

Student government officials assured the police and the university the campaign is meant to better student life on campus and does not cause any threat to campus safety.

The campaign launched Oct. 1 and still is ongoing.

ASMSU spokesman Matt Franks said the campaign has been effective so far. The campaign’s Twitter page has a little more than 1,000 followers, and the Facebook page has about 350 likes.

McGlothian-Taylor said investigations now are closed after officials found there was no intended vandalism, nor any threat associated with the campaign toward on-campus safety.

Franks added the student government offered to pay for any clean-up costs associated with the campaign. He said all the WTF MSU logos around campus were applied with washable chalk-paint and already are starting to wear off.

Despite this, university spokesman Jason Cody said there still were clean-up costs associated with the campaign.

“The initial estimate was about $1,500, but our folks at Infrastructure Planning and Facilities are still determining final costs as they continue cleaning up some areas of graffiti,” Cody said.

The student government’s involvement in the campaign was as much a surprise for some ASMSU representatives as it was for students.

“The (general assembly) didn’t get to vote on this campaign,” said Evan Schrage, ASMSU representative and political science sophomore.

Franks said the general assembly does not get to vote on all marketing initiatives.

Bike sharing program

The ASMSU finance committee voted Sept. 26 to allocate $60,000 for a bike share pilot program, which has sparked some negative discussion among students. Michael Mozina, ASMSU vice president for finance and operations, said the program would help reduce the number of bikes on campus.

“The general student population needs to realize … we are trying to create the idea of a bike sharing community,” Mozina said.

ASMSU’s bike share program membership would cost students $50 a year, compared to $90 per semester when renting from the MSU Bike Center. In addition to the rental fee, students have to pay a $250 or $350 refundable deposit, depending on the type of bike rented.

Before putting the pilot program to a vote by the general assembly, ASMSU officials will create a presentation detailing the bike sharing program for the representatives. Representatives then would present the program in front of their constituents in a forum.

MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon previously told The State News the university is struggling to add and maintain bike paths because of funding issues.

“The initial idea behind the program is fixing a problem,” Mozina said, adding the goal would be limiting the number of bikes on campus by providing the MSU community with a service they can share.

While a lot of students support the idea of a bike sharing program, some have concerns about the program their student government is working to pass.

Several public comments at the last ASMSU general assembly meeting on Oct. 3 focused on what some say are high costs associated with the project.

“I don’t think the plan ASMSU proposed is the best for (MSU), economically and logistically,” said Travis Lunsford, director of racial, ethnic and progressive affairs for MSU’s Residence Halls Association.

Lunsford said providing 40 bikes for 1,000 members for the pilot program is not a practical implementation.

The pilot program only has 40 bikes so it can test the usage, Mozina said, adding the student government would adapt and expand from there.

Martinak said once all 1,000 memberships are sold, ASMSU would work to get more bikes as soon as possible.

The amount of money includes all maintenance, technology and services that would come with each of the bikes.

“Students don’t assume any of the risk,” Mozina said, adding that Zagster, the bike sharing company ASMSU would work with, takes full responsibility for the bikes.

Mozina said the bike sharing program would be more sustainable than leasing a bike through the MSU Bike Center, since the center essentially creates a one bike-per-student model, leading to an increase of bikes on campus.

ASMSU vs. MSU Students United

ASMSU’s recent transition to a university department made some students skeptical about the extent to which the student government can fight for student rights. This led to the formation of MSU Students United, an independent student union aimed at representing students’ demands.

Since its formation this fall, the group has started petitioning for a tuition freeze, and so far has around 1,000 signatures on the petition, said Duncan Tarr, a group organizer and jazz studies sophomore. The student union’s goal is to get 5,000 signatures on the petition in order for the administration to acknowledge a serious conversation is needed.

Tarr said the new student union wants to force the university to comply with students’ demands by pressuring them through numbers.

“It’s hard for ASMSU to get something like (the petition) done since the university is putting so much regulation on them,” Tarr said.

Martinak said he is not concerned about any potential competition from the new student union, since ASMSU has an established history and is officially tied to the university. ASMSU and MSU Students United recently met up to co-write a resolution advocating for a tuition freeze starting for the 2014-15 academic year.

On Oct. 10, the ASMSU policy committee approved the resolution.

“This is merely saying that as ASMSU, we see that (tuition) is an important issue,” said ASMSU representative and environmental and plant biology senior Mitch Treadwell. “We want to further investigate the issue and do what is best.”

ASMSU Vice President for Governmental Affairs Jessica Leacher, a member of The State News Board of Directors, said Martinak’s office is researching the best way to go forward with the petition, adding that examining the issue is critical.