Student organizations will have direct access to the Student Government Association through a new program offering monthly meetings between organization representatives and SGA members.
The SGA Delegates Program, organized under the Office of Engagement, offers student organizations the opportunity to assign two members the role of delegates. Delegates will meet monthly with SGA officials to communicate about organization plans for the current and upcoming semesters.
During these meetings, delegates will have the opportunity to seek help from the SGA regarding financial support and connections to other organizations on campus.
Morgan Mullen, president of Resonance Show Choir, said she thinks the Delegates Program will benefit organizations that are not typically centered on campus.
“I know our group can sometimes feel disconnected from the central flow of the University,” she said. “Being able to communicate freely with the SGA would help us feel more connected on campus. We would benefit greatly from more people knowing about our existence.”
Planned to launch later this year, the Delegates Program began as an additional outlet for students to share their ideas with and effectively seek out support from the SGA. Matt Calderone, SGA president, and Chase Burnham, SGA director of engagement, were integral in creating the program.
“Developing a program where students could more effectively have their voices heard in the political process on campus was a major platform of Matt’s campaign,” he said. “Upon my appointment as SGA director of engagement, our office took that idea and did everything in our power to develop a program that gives every student organization on campus a seat at the table. With UA Delegates, we’re hoping to bring together the diverse range of students on this campus in order to have a more positive impact on the campus as a whole.”
All organizations are eligible to appoint a junior and/or senior delegate for regular meetings with the SGA. The junior delegate can be any new member within the organization, and the senior delegate can be any returning member. No class restrictions apply in order to participate as either level delegate, meaning any organization member from freshman through senior standing could hold either or both positions for any given organization.
Meagan Bryant, SGA executive press secretary, said the SGA hopes organizations will use the Delegates Program to become educated on available resources.
“Of the funds allocated in last year’s budget for the same purpose, $45,000 went unclaimed by student organizations for reimbursement or financial support,” she said. “UA Delegates will help to prevent this from happening again by ensuring sufficient communication is occurring between SGA officials and on-campus organizations.”
Interested delegates can apply by filling out a form via a brochure distributed to each organization. Applicants can pick up forms from the SGA office, download the brochure from the SGA website or send an email to the SGA Engagement account at [email protected].
