The Student Government Association Senate meets in TAC 260 on Jan. 28. During the meeting, the SGA executive board reviewed committees to ensure everyone was well-equipped before their meetings with members of the student body and administration, as last semester it was kind of rushed, Executive Vice President Jacqueline Justiss said. Photo by Oliver Evans
The Pepperdine Student Government Association (SGA) passed a new resolution, discussed committees and provided details on the upcoming Town Hall during their Jan. 28 meeting.
There is a danger that the organization will become obsolete if no one knows what SGA does, Sophomore Class Senator Dani Cutler said. Increasing awareness and visibility is really important.
“We have a few priorities here,” Executive Vice President Jacqueline Justiss said. “One being the town hall, but also the second being committees.”
Late Night Lineup and SGA Town Hall Collaboration
The SGA Town Hall will take place Feb. 29 at 8 p.m., President H.L. McCullough said. Student Activities will provide Raising Cane’s, and the event will be set up similarly to Late Night Lineup.
SGA Adviser Danielle Minke met with Sharon Beard, interim vice president for Student Affairs, to discuss what the Town Hall will look like, McCullough said.
Adrianna Cañas, the vice president of administration, said SGA will not be posting the class hoodies before the Town Hall, describing it as a “you have to come to see it type thing.”
“We’re scared that it’s going to be competitive,” Cañas said. “Why would I come as a sophomore if the seniors and freshmen have a better hoodie?”
McCullough said the executive board wants people to get a hoodie and be excited about their class. If hoodies are published before the town hall, only people who like a particular hoodie will show up, leaving SGA as a whole with a less representative sample.
Minke said the executive board is using funds from the community engagement fund, which is $6,000, for the Town Hall. She wants it to be abundantly clear that SGA members will be working at this event and should allocate time from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.
Passing a New Resolution
Freshman Class Senators Elijah Ahmadi and Christian Soulos proposed creating a biweekly or weekly SGA newsletter to address a lack of understanding of what SGA is and what it does as an organization, according to the resolution. Resolution #01 – S25 was passed with a majority; 12 in favor, 3 abstained. Senior Class President Julian Moghaddasi, Senior Class Senator Katherine Hsu and Senior Class Senator Gavin Legos all abstained.
“An overwhelming amount of people had no clue what SGA was,” Ahmadi said. “By creating a weekly newsletter, we can show students what we’re doing.”
Moghaddasi said he had concerns that the resolution was too vague and would not actually accomplish anything concrete.
“A big question we all have is, ‘Does this body think students would read it?'” McCullough said.
Justiss said while she likes the idea of posters, there are currently multiple SGA platforms all trying to do the same thing; the previous vice president of administration created a website, for instance. People are not necessarily going to those avenues to look at what SGA is doing.
Committee Kick-off
Committees started Feb. 4, at 9 a.m., according to an SGA email. The purpose of committees is to find ways to improve student life through advocacy and policy.
The existing committees are Student Life, Dining Services, Health and Wellness, Spiritual Life and Athletics, Justiss said.
Justiss said when she met with SGA members, she discussed pursuing new ideas, and said among those, some are still being explored. It is important for them to meet with peers to develop those ideas.
SGA launched their new Athletics committee, Justiss said. A major concern is increasing student engagement with athletics; game retention, for instance, is one problem, but not the sole problem.
The marketing of committees has started, Sophia Lee, director of social media and marketing, said. SGA will also start making video reports at the end of meetings.
Additionally, Senior Sunset is in the early planning stages, Moghaddasi said.
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Contact Oliver Evans via email: oliver.evans@pepperdine.edu