This article was written by Trevor Dameika and Daniel Yu.
At the end of September, several students became Student Government Association (SGA) Senators after elections were held to vote in new members. First-years who have joined the SGA and became Senators include: Aditya Bhangale, Nicole Certisimo, John Graham, Michelle Jacob, Benjamin (Benny) Katz, Andrew Krasinski, Olof Persson, Arminder Singh, Nicholas Smith, Alexander Stanczak.
There were also vacancy elections for sophomore, junior, and senior classes, which resulted in the election of sophomore Jason Yu and junior Charles Beall. No new seniors were elected.
Bhangale, Katz, Yu, Graham, and Persson detailed their experience to The Stute about their time in the SGA so far. Jacob and Certisimo were also contacted, but The Stute did not receive a response.
Q1. How have your first few weeks been as an SGA Senator?
Bhangale: “My first few weeks as an SGA Senator have been mainly learning about the roles in student government and how I’m going to fit into that, as well as getting to meet new people in the organization. I’ve enjoyed getting an insider look into the intricacies of our school.”
Yu: “The first few weeks of being an SGA senator have been great. You really get to see the inner workings of how stuff like events get organized, how funds are being dispersed to clubs and other organizations, and more.”
Katz: “I actually really like it […] At first I was very intimidated, but so far it’s been very fulfilling working behind the scenes and seeing how the school works.”
John Graham stated he has enjoyed his first few weeks as an SGA senator and he’s “been learning a lot about how the SGA works at Stevens and all of the roles and responsibilities of senators.”
Persson: “They have been pretty fun, because I have discovered how much power we have as students to make the change we want at Stevens.”
Q2. What are your impressions on the structure of the SGA?
Bhangale: “I think that the structure of the SGA seems mostly efficient, with the elected positions allowing for a streamlined system for leadership combined with the chosen cabinet ensuring that qualified people lead specific efforts.”
Yu: “The SGA meetings are run very professionally and done well. My only critique is that they are on Sunday nights but there’s nothing we can do about that.”
Katz: “I think it’s pretty bureaucratic and structural, but it sort of has to be. I did student government in high school so I have experience with how it works so it’s not too bad. I think that the upperclassmen and senior members do a good job teaching the new senators how it works.”
Graham: “Overall, I’m impressed with the scope of influence that the SGA has. My high school’s student government did nowhere near as much as the SGA does. I really appreciate how the SGA can effectively advocate on behalf of the students.”
Persson understands that the structure of the SGA is set in place to make changes, but he has “noticed that there isn’t enough interest by [students] outside of the SGA. The amount of things that the SGA can do to help the student body should [encourage] more people to participate in meetings and give their own opinions so we can work on improving Stevens.”
Q3. What are your plans going forward in the SGA? What initiatives do you have in mind?
Bhangale: “I personally want to see more opportunities and directions for starting clubs as well as just generally more involvement in SGA as a whole. I currently don’t have any set initiatives per se, but I do plan on being involved in legislating and working on the SGA constitution to enact some of the changes that might make the organization a better flowing and more effective governing body.”
Yu: “Going forward, we plan to have new events, install new things on campus, listen to the student body’s concerns and questions, and more.”
Katz: “Right now I want to put garbage cans in Pierce and for there to be more hand sanitizer dispensers around campus, I feel bad about having to throw my trash out onto the conveyor belt.”
Graham: “I’m already a member of the SGA’s budget committee, and I plan on joining the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, and I hope to gather a lot of ideas for initiatives from my work in these committees, as well as through communicating with my peers about their experience at Stevens.”
Persson: “I am working on right now trying to get the final exam schedules to be released earlier. [This is so that] out of state students like me would be able to schedule flights and such earlier at cheaper prices. This would also help people that live close by too.”
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