Pitt-Johnstown students Noam Berns and Alexis Kelly are to serve as the next student government president and vice president, and 28 senator seats were to be filled in an election last week.

With new student government leaders and some fresh input, the Pitt-Johnstown community may reasonably expect to see some campus changes soon.

Berns said he plans on pursuing needed changes right away, starting with parking regulations.

Many community members may notice that there seems to be little to no parking on campus lots this year, and, while more than one car is illegally parked in a faculty lot, only certain vehicles receive tickets.

Some students aren’t following the parking rules whatsoever. Campus officials have no way of tracking down students who have unpaid parking tickets if they never registered their vehicle.

And, those who do buy parking passes will be forced to pay their tickets, for their vehicle is registered.

When it comes to parking, student leaders should worry about more than acquiring extra parking spaces. The rules are rarely being followed, and, if this is going to continue, they need to be enforced regularly or eliminated altogether.

The enduring alcohol policy issue with its accompanying unreasonable rules cries out for repeal. When senators submitted alcohol rule changes last year, administrators rejected the proposal.

Since 21 is the legal drinking age, there seems to be no rationality to UPJ’s rules, and this issue needs the attention of student leaders if they are to make a claim to be student representatives.

The Advocate editorial board voted unanimously that the alcohol rules should be eliminated for 21-year-olds.

We think they are useless.

Programming Board members have seemed to be working hard to spread the word about campus events, but participation in the Pitt-Johnstown community still seems to be scarce.

Those who attended B.J. Novak’s comedy act April 5 may have noticed there was a difference in attendance compared with past spring concerts featuring musicians.

People should be taking advantage of all the activities offered on campus, but it seems some would rather be doing other things.

Student senators should focus on tactics that could increase participation and assure that Activity Fee proceeds are well-spent to bring the community closer together.