Representatives from the Stevens chapter of the global organization, Amnesty International, presented their case for acquiring the title of Full-Status Recognized Student Organization (RSO) to the Senate of the Student Government Association (SGA) this past Sunday.
Hoping to graduate from the New Organization Process (NOP) and shed the title of Probationary RSO, Amnesty International told Senate members about its past and current campus impact and prospect for growth achievable through the title of full RSO. Amnesty International was highly successful, clearly covering all bases, since its presentation was followed by zero questions from the Senate and a unanimous vote of approval.
The NOP, signed into SGA law in 2016 by former President Tommy Daly and rehauled last semester by the Committee on Student Interests, is the SGA mechanism for overseeing new campus clubs and organizations. It allows the SGA to monitor each organization’s constitution-drafting process, introduce budgeting, and measure interest and attendance for new clubs.
This process includes four steps: the interest period, “Starting RSO,” “Training RSO,” and “Probationary RSO.” Each step affords the new organization increased independence and the opportunity to receive funding and to create a DuckLink Portal. Designed by the Committee on Student Interests to be a relatively slow process, filled with checks, the NOP ensures that each organization has true potential.
However, don’t mistake this process as a way for the SGA to impose itself negatively by slowing down the development of organizations. As Vice President of Student Interests for the SGA Dakota Van Deursen explained, the process should be relatively difficult so that complete RSOs can stand as official organizations, tried and true by many campus decision-makers, such as the Office of Undergraduate Student Life in Step One, the Committee on Student Interests in Step Two, and the entire SGA in Steps Three and Four.
Additionally, completion of the rigorous NOP is met with immense reward and opportunity for growth. Dakota Van Deursen continued to explain that full RSOs “do not have a budget cap” and “are able to freely request budgets of any amount from the Senate Budget Committee.”
The advantage of an increased budget and the need for growth were echoed by Penelope Halkiadakis, President of Amnesty International, and Kelly McGowan, President of Poetry Club, a full RSO. Halkiadakis mentioned that Amnesty International was seeking RSO status so that it would not have to collect membership dues, thereby becoming more accessible to all Stevens students. Surely, an increased budget would help Amnesty International reach this goal.
On the other hand, McGowan praised the NOP for allowing the newly-formed Poetry Club to gauge interest for an arts club on campus and stated that becoming an official RSO “ensure(d) [Poetry Club] could reach a wide range of students, from business students to engineers to CAL students, of all grades.” Accordingly, the NOP has provided the necessary structure for those seeking to establish organizations on campus.
What drove Amnesty International to its success on Sunday night? Amnesty International is an international organization which seeks to educate the Stevens community in global human rights crises and defend human rights by motivating students to take part in grassroots activism. Its presence on campus is felt through discussion-driven coffee chats and collaborations with other campus organizations.
Last year, it received the Program of the Year for Advocacy Award for its Oxfam Hunger Banquet and the Program of the Year for Educational Impact Award for its collaborative International Women’s Day Symposium, co-hosted with Stevens Lore-El Center for Women’s Leadership. Already an established force on campus, Halkiadakis explained that Amnesty International sought full RSO Status to “solidify itself as a campus staple” and to “enable future generations of Stevens students to […] contribute to the positive impact Amnesty has worldwide.” Considering this information, it is not difficult to believe that Amnesty International would be confirmed as a full RSO. The future of this organization includes attracting outside speakers and continuing its quest for social justice.
As the New Organization Process matures, it will be interesting to see how these new organizations become part of campus club culture. Van Deursen stated, “RSOs are a living litmus test of the campus climate. As students come and go, the tastes of the student body vary. Without a process of creating new organizations, it would be nearly impossible for Stevens students to showcase their many talents, ambitions, tastes, and aspirations. The creation of new RSOs and existence of current RSOs can also help show faculty, staff, and administration that there is an active component to the student body attempting to fill the gaps in programming offered by the university.”
Hopefully, the NOP will help Stevens students not just find groups that share their interests, but also plant the seeds to watch these organizations grow, mature, and become lasting hallmarks of Stevens culture.
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