Vanderbilt Student Government intends to use its new converged form to make its mark on campus, starting with student empowerment.

VSG will increase transparency this year, making the full VSG budget public for the first time after the Senate and House approve it.

VSG meetings also are open to all students and will be broadcast on VTV.

The organization also will focus on increasing student participation at athletic events, said VSG President Cara Bilotta.

"We want as many students as possible to participate in the tailgate and to attend the games, filling the student section to capacity. Student participation in athletic events is critical to the continued success of our athletic department," she said.

Although there have been some tailgate-related incidents in recent weeks, Bilotta hopes that, with a revised policy, students will still participate in the tailgate.

"Last week's tailgate turnout was down, but it was amazing to see students pause tailgating and walk over to the game for kickoff," Bilotta said.

VSG also plans to address the housing lottery this year to restructure the process and make it as fair as possible, especially for sophomores who may have to live in freshman housing again.

"It will take some creative solutions and cooperation to address students' concerns about housing, but hopefully all students will be satisfied with the changes in housing," Bilotta said.

And staying true to her campaign promise, Bilotta plans to make the course registration process easier for students by putting syllabi online before the add/drop period and updating the archaic OASIS system.

"Providing students with these tools will help streamline the course registration process and specifically ease the add/drop period," she said.

The merger of Interhall and Student Government Association already has shown success, Bilotta said.

"The transition streamlines everything and reduces redundancies," she said. "The transition has proven to be especially effective in dealing with first-year issues, making it easier for them to voice their concerns and questions."