The Student Government Association (SGA) is a way for students to give complaints or suggestions on how campus can be changed for the better. One issue happening within SGA is a lack of College of Informatics (COI) Senators. This is an issue because there is a lack of representation compared to other colleges on campus.
SGA President Collin Jarrell thinks the issue is because students are not aware of the structure of each college having a representative.
“So we sent it out to the Deans this year to try to get some more interest up that way. And I guess that hasn’t been the best tactic, so we might be trying to find some different avenues to reach out to students like that.”
There has been one student who has stepped up recently, Danny Komjathy, second year Information Systems Master’s student with a focus in Business Analytics at COI.
Komjathy said he joined because “I want to advocate and be a voice so that other students know they have their own voices, so that way we can contribute greatly to our communities, together.”
SGA senators have a huge impact on NKU’s campus. “They are the voice. The resolutions go through only them, and then they come to me for my signature. But the majority of the ideas and the debate and the discussion happens with senators. So they really are the voice of the student body,” said Jarrell.
To become a senator, the applicant first goes through a brief interview with the Secretary of Administration, Mitchell Wolking. Then, the application is sent to the Student Senate to be approved. After being approved, new student senators are sworn in and start getting right to work.
“We try to make it a pretty easy process, so that people aren’t super intimidated by it,” Jarrell said.
When one becomes a senator, “You have an office hour every week and in that office hour, you work on projects and other assignments that you want to achieve,” Senator Chance Baugh said.
SGA, in general, has a huge impact on campus. They are the “bridge between the students and administration,” Jarrell said.
Student senators meet with members of the President’s Cabinet and the president to come up with ideas that students want to see during committee breakouts and SGA’s weekly meetings, as well as throughout the week when senators are working in the office.
These ideas are taken to the president, the provost or senior administrative officer, Vice President for Student Affairs and whoever that topic involves.
SGA also works on resolutions. The process of reaching a resolution is that the Senate will first pass a resolution for the implementation of some form of improvement they want to see happen on campus.
Then that undergoes the legislative process. The legislative process is a series of steps a government takes to turn an idea into a law. This involves introducing the idea, debating it in committees and holding floor votes. Once it passes, it is sent to the administration or campus departments and officers.
It is up to them to make those decisions. SGA is very persistent, and they will still remind these administrations of what the students want to happen and work on resolutions to make it happen.
“I think students at NKU and SGA need to get students involved, and it doesn’t matter if that’s going to sporting events, joining clubs. But I think we can really up the campus atmosphere and make it a place that people want to come to,” said Student Senator Chance Baugh.
The main message the SGA is trying to get out is one of unity. “Everybody is welcome regardless of their academic status or what background they come from, what student organization they come from, if they are involved in one,” Jarrell said.
The Student Government Association meetings are every Monday at 3:30 pm in Student Union Room 104, and anyone is welcome to attend.
For any questions regarding the SGA or applying to be a senator, email sga@nku.edu