2008 Woodie Awards
Staff Ed
SGA President Must Clarify Role
Issue date: 4/21/05 Section: Opinion
- Page 1 of 1
Many people question the influence of the SGA. Most of us do not have access to the process by which decisions are made. We know they have their meetings, but what really goes on at these meetings? Granted, a considerable portion of our campus may be apathetic, but how do we really know and to what extent just what the SGA does?
Ka'Neda Ellison, the SGA president-elect, has made a lot of promises, as many SGA presidents have made before her. The problem is that SGA presidents are only in office for a year, hardly enough time with which to evaluate their performance. If she expects to be successful in the goals she has set forth in her platform, then one of the things she must do is make the SGA more accessible to the average student so as to increase the visibility of the changes she intends to make.
For instance, Ellison has proposed getting a more diverse group of students placed on committees so that more student voices will be heard in campus decisions. But she has not addressed the general sense of apathy that pervades much of the campus. How can students be involved if they are not properly informed?
She has said too that she will address the issue of dining and house community, but again the main problem is transparency. We know that dining changes will be happening in stages, but no one really seems to know the specifics.
One of the most important and distorted issues right now is the impending Green St. construction. Most people simply do not know the facts. She must work with the student body to clarify the issue and to get rid of any rumors that are floating around.
Ellison also needs to make it clear why the SGA is important to everyone on campus. We had six candidates with very different platforms, so she must work to unify students under one agenda.
Another hot topic in the coming year will be party policy. This is an issue that is especially important to the student body, and what was begun this year must continue. But this and many other working projects must be made accessible to students.
The SGA president should be more than just a figurehead. She should go to events not just because it's good for her to go, but so that she can talk with other students and get their thoughts on SGA activities and decisions. She should make every effort to interact with students about the processes of the SGA.
Through campaigning and talking to many students in dining halls and throughout campus, Ellison has already shown promise that she will fulfill these expectations. At the end of next year, when Ellison has finished her term, students should be able to see and articulate clearly just what it is she has done as president of the Smith College SGA.
If students know more about what the SGA actually does, more of our campus would be involved in the decisions that directly affect them.
Ka'Neda Ellison, the SGA president-elect, has made a lot of promises, as many SGA presidents have made before her. The problem is that SGA presidents are only in office for a year, hardly enough time with which to evaluate their performance. If she expects to be successful in the goals she has set forth in her platform, then one of the things she must do is make the SGA more accessible to the average student so as to increase the visibility of the changes she intends to make.
For instance, Ellison has proposed getting a more diverse group of students placed on committees so that more student voices will be heard in campus decisions. But she has not addressed the general sense of apathy that pervades much of the campus. How can students be involved if they are not properly informed?
She has said too that she will address the issue of dining and house community, but again the main problem is transparency. We know that dining changes will be happening in stages, but no one really seems to know the specifics.
One of the most important and distorted issues right now is the impending Green St. construction. Most people simply do not know the facts. She must work with the student body to clarify the issue and to get rid of any rumors that are floating around.
Ellison also needs to make it clear why the SGA is important to everyone on campus. We had six candidates with very different platforms, so she must work to unify students under one agenda.
Another hot topic in the coming year will be party policy. This is an issue that is especially important to the student body, and what was begun this year must continue. But this and many other working projects must be made accessible to students.
The SGA president should be more than just a figurehead. She should go to events not just because it's good for her to go, but so that she can talk with other students and get their thoughts on SGA activities and decisions. She should make every effort to interact with students about the processes of the SGA.
Through campaigning and talking to many students in dining halls and throughout campus, Ellison has already shown promise that she will fulfill these expectations. At the end of next year, when Ellison has finished her term, students should be able to see and articulate clearly just what it is she has done as president of the Smith College SGA.
If students know more about what the SGA actually does, more of our campus would be involved in the decisions that directly affect them.