DeKALB – The Student Government Associations’s 8 minute and 35 second long State of the SGA Address took place Friday, where the SGA expressed some of their achievements to no students.
The State of the SGA, according to their one Instagram post, which was posted a day prior to the event, is supposed to give students an opportunity to voice their concerns and improve their campus.
“Empower your voice, shape your Campus! 🎓 Join us at the State of the SGA Address to hear about our achievements, and future plans. Be part of the conversation, because your voice shapes the student experience! 🗣️,” the Instagram post said.
This caption was meant to advertise the event, but it had an adverse effect. No students were there to empower their voice or shape their campus.
Olivia Newman, president of the SGA, said the absence of student voices was because of a lack of marketing.
“I think that we did put out our marketing a little late so it didn’t give the chance for all students to actually see it and actually come. And it was on social media, we could have probably printed out flyers,” Newman said.
In Article III Executive Branch, Section 3 Duties and Responsibilities of the Executive Branch, in the Student Government Associations’s Bylaws, it states “The President of the SGA shall address Northern Illinois University’s student body and the Student Government Association’s Senate by speaking on the state of the student government and student interest.”
Although it does not explicitly state when State of the SGA Addresses have to occur, it took President Newman a semester and two and a half weeks to finally address the “student body.”
“The first date didn’t work out for the room we got, it was double booked,” Newman said.
The SGA did acknowledge some of their own achievements during the address.
Deputy treasurer Landon Larkin spoke on some of the achievements the SGA and himself have done so far. These included the implementation of a “more accessible funding program,” funding over 35 organizations during the fall semester and working with President Newman to “support large campus initiatives.”
“The strength in our student government lies in the collaborative efforts of each and every student,” Larkin said, while staring down at his notes on the podium. “Together, we can continue to build a vibrant community that supports all students on our campus.”
Newman acknowledged other achievements such as SGA providing over $2,000 at the Student Work Conference, presenting at the Power Retreat, sponsoring the Family Weekend Barbecue, helping host “some” of the 116 homecoming events and Newman said she got five SGA directors approved by the senate.
Speaker Cole Hensley also spoke at the address, and pointed to the SGA’s approval of 22 new organizations as one of their accomplishments.
Hensley said changing the culture surrounding SGA continues to be a goal it strives for.
“This summer we walked right into a culture of complacency, laziness and unaccountability,” Hensley said. “We have and are still working on changing this culture so the SGA is continually working hard to represent students around campus.”
