Student Government Association started the semester with many changes, including the organization’s first-ever executive order in SGA history.
Trae Trousdale, SGA President, said one of his campaign platforms last year was the implementation of programs and projects to increase the sense of community within OCU. Executive Order 001 and the SGA Budget for the 2019-2020 school year are attempting to fulfill those promises.
The budget has several differences from last year’s, with a focus placed on special projects that aim to improve student life and offer more opportunities for students to participate in the school community. Executive Order 001 aims to create five new commissions focused on gathering student opinions and communicating them to SGA.
Executive Order 001 addresses the formation of five oversight commissions: Campus Environmental Sustainability; Mental Health Awareness; Multicultural Inclusion; Sexual Assault & Prevention; and Religious Life. Each commission is intended to foster communication between administration, SGA and the student body as a whole. The commissions, which will meet once a month, will be comprised of a minimum of three to four non-SGA affiliated students, appointed by the Executive Branch and approved by the high officers.
The SGA Budget for the 2019-2020 school year has changed since the 2018-2019 budget. The amount allotted by Student Affairs for the organization ($50,000 for 2019-2020) is less than last school year’s budget of about $180,000. This change comes from across-the-board budget cuts throughout OCU. Last year’s budget covered SGA, the Student Activities Council, and the OCU School of Law’s Student Bar Association. This year, SAC and the Student Bar Association are not included in SGA’s budget. Drafted by Trousdale and Erik Rangel, secretary of finance, the budget has been approved by both the Executive Committee and the Steering Committee and was accepted with a unanimous vote by the Student Senate on Sept 5. Within the budget, the salaries of SGA members are being increased, and the President and Vice President no longer receive tuition waivers. These new amounts are intended to reflect the amount the average student professional would be making.
Special projects have also received a significant increase in funding; $6,000 are allotted this year, compared to last year’s $1,000. Among these projects are Pads and Tampons, a project aimed to provide feminine hygiene products in Tom and Brenda McDaniel University Center restrooms, with future plans to expand campus-wide. The Service Animal Waste initiative will focus on cleaning up animal waste left on-campus.
The project receiving the most funding is Constellation, an initiative aimed at community growth.
“It is probably our largest shift in SGA,” Trousdale said. “It is a community-building initiative that aims to create a sense of community and connectedness among our entire student body, and to break down these silos that we’ve constructed around our colleges or around our friend groups.”
Constellation’s first event in campus was Big Yell on Aug. 22.
Natalie Gregg, education senior, said she was receptive to the contents of Executive Order 001. She said she also expressed a desire for SGA to communicate more information about their functions.
“I know a big buzzword for last year was transparency, and I know that information about SGA, things like when their meetings are, and who our representatives are, is available, but it’s not easy to access,” Gregg said. “I say that as someone who has tried to figure that out before. I’d really like to see that, too.”
With new changes underway, Trousdale said he’s looking forward to growing SGA and improving campus life for students.
“I’m very excited to see the role that SGA can play in renewing the sense of community,” Trousdale said. “I’m also very excited to see what our students have to say untapped, and what OCU really thinks. I think it’s going to be phenomenal, and it’s going to direct SGA where we need to go for the school year.”
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