On the eve of the University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) elections, the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) showed no signs of giving up, and the administration appears to be continuing its support.

USG members held a meeting last night, discussing issues ranging from placing coat hooks in the HUB-Robeson Center to ways of providing legal services to Penn State students.

Even Felicia McGinty, associate vice president for student engagement and USG adviser, was in attendance.

After tomorrow's UPUA elections, USG will officially be removed from its status as the official voice of the student body.

McGinty said she will be the adviser of UPUA, the official student voice.

"I would assume she's still going to stay our adviser after tomorrow's elections," Henry Hund, USG chief of staff, said. "I'm pretty sure she will continue since she hasn't let us know otherwise. I assume she's just going to be both."

To kick off the meeting, Brandon Peach, president of the The Lion 90.7 FM, called UPUA the "bastard child of PSU" and offered his support to give USG links to national publicity.

Tom Shakely, director of anti-UPUA group PSU Stop, also offered the resource of his web site, www.psustop.com, insisting that "USG is not dead."

Following was a presentation from Tom Perrino with Hyatt Legal Plans, a division of MetLife, pitching a possible alternative to the legal consultation formally provided by crime, law and justice lecturer Jose Texidor.

A video of this presentation is available at www.clubs.psu.edu/up/usg.

Perrino said that Hyatt offers its services to faculty and staff to other universities, but if accepted, Penn State would be the company's first student legal services client.

"I thought the presentation was interesting," McGinty said. "They've made a lot of claims, but they've never done this before."

The plan, which would cost $36 per year, would be on an "opt-out basis" meaning students would receive the service fees unless they requested otherwise.

McGinty said she will review the proposal with her colleagues.

Also discussed at the meeting was a legislation regarding a USG Supreme Court Web site forum for students to report violations of academic freedom and freedom of speech similar to that of www.equity.psu.edu/reporthate.