SGA | Photo by Sarah Cavender | The Wright State Guardian
The Student Government Association (SGA) will host its first meeting on August 25, 2020.
Because of coronavirus, elections have been postponed until the end of September. Until then, the previous members will continue to hold their place.
What it does
The SGA is made up of three branches. They are the executive board, cabinet and senate. Through these, they find problems within the Wright State University (WSU) student body and bring it to the attention of those higher up. Resolutions are created and passed in order to call upon those in power in the administration or faculty senate to change situations.
SGA is a way for students to lobby for issues that they see at WSU.
According to SGA advisor and Program Manager of Student Organizations Courtney Mullins, it allows students to advocate for specific areas or departments that mean the most to them so they can leave a legacy on campus and have their voice heard.
“I want to help them drive student issues forward,” said new Dean of Students Chris Taylor.
How to be involved
Students are encouraged to be involved because it is beneficial to their growth as a student and as an adult. Being involved helps with leadership development, time management, organization and communication skills. There are a variety of ways for students to get involved and potentially make their mark on the university.
“If you have a personality and an opinion, you should join the student government,” said Mullins.
Lake Campus representation
While there is no geographical representation of the Lake Campus within SGA, each academic field is represented no matter where they are located. SGA has senators for education, nursing and liberal arts, to name a few. Every student is represented within that capacity.
“We did have a senator from the Lake Campus. Because of the commute, they hardly ever made it in person, and we tried video conference for the meetings, but those never really worked either. Between all of the other distractions in the past couple of years at Wright State University, be it faculty or budget cuts, it has not become a priority,” said Chief of Staff and Speaker of the House Nathan Price.
However, in recent years, previous campaigns have visited the Lake Campus and have spoken to students. All students can vote for the SGA elections and are encouraged to participate.
“If there was a real interest and people at the Lake wanted to have this conversation, then we would have no problem with opening that door again,” said Mullins.
Virtual meetings and conferences have become a way for organizations to connect with one another without having to be together physically. With this, there is hope that Lake Campus will be able to rejoin SGA in a “Brave New COVID World,” as Nathan Price coined.
