SAGA is Broken, but a Name Change is Not the Answer

Without a doubt the Student Association General Assembly needs to be improved, however the greatest pitfall awaiting the General Assembly is being overly concerned with the body itself. The motivations behind the founding of SAGA was to advocate for the student body not to make incessant changes to little known governing documents. The forthcoming elections will provide you not only an opportunity to choose who will represent you on the Student Association and Program Board, but also to voice your distaste with question of whether or not to change the name of the Speaker to President. This particular issue is indicative of a larger inwards looking tendency that threatens to undermine the entire basis upon which SAGA has been built. I encourage each of you to vote no on March 30th and to sign the online petition here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvg7lRsCVJ8.

Instead of changing language I will, if elected, put an end to the practice of filling any vacancies on the General Assembly by appointments by the class delegates in which the vacancy occurs. This practice is not representative of the variety of interests present in each class, and encourages current members to fill vacancies with those who agree with them, rather than those most qualified to hold the office. I therefore propose that vacancies be filled by special elections within 30 days of the vacancy in question. Although post appointees have served admirably the legitimacy of the General Assembly requires drastic change to this practice, which perpetuates the image of SAGA as an "insiders organization."

SAGA also needs to give student organizations a seat at the table when deciding policies that will affect them, specifically in regards to funding. The Student Representation Council proved oddly unrepresentative and did not acknowledge the simple fact that student organization leaders are busy people who do not need to be told to come to another meeting in order to have there say. These leaders are crucial and should feel comfortable both approaching their delegates, and if they feel under-represented by the body, running themselves. I truly believe as a member of several student orgs that the best student government is one that does not demand overbearing regulations but instead promotes pragmatic funding policies designed to protect the newly augmented Student Activity and Club Sports Fee from inappropriate use.

If we want to improve SAGA from within, lets improve the means by which SAGA reaches out to the student body as a whole by appointed a Communications Director (a post that is currently vacant) and setting a full agenda at the beginning of each year. The Speaker could then summarize the goals of the body this year in an address they is mandated to give to the public each year (has not been held to date).

In conclusion SAGA does need some internal improvements, but this is not the primary goal of the body. These changes should be undertaken as soon as the new body is sworn in and an agenda should be compiled for the upcoming year through the office of the Speaker. Changing the Speaker's title to President will not provide legitimacy to SAGA but rather represent the worst stereotypes currently held about SAGA. We can fix SAGA, but more importantly we can help fix the problems actually affecting students as well.

Improving Study Abroad, By Students for Students

Studying abroad is an incredibly opportunity offered to students at CUA. Although I still have a month left in London I can already tell that this will be one of the highlight of my time in college. This experience can literally take you anywhere from Hong Kong, to Greece, and even one of three European Parliaments. From my conversations with other students in both my own, and other CUA programs I have found that the big picture things are incredibly well organized, yet there are still issues in the details. The General Assembly for the last two years has had minimal involvement with the academic workings of the University. Simply put this dynamic needs to change if SAGA is to be a permanent force for the betterment of the student experience at CUA.

In order to achieve these two ends I propose the that at the first meeting of the next General Assembly, SAGA commissions reports on each program (organized by the liaison to the Center for Global Education) using information provided by those people who completed the program the previous Spring (right now). I firmly believe that having students provide an honest critique of the services provided by Catholic University while abroad is the most efficient means of improving study abroad. For example in London I had a terrible time getting a Student Tube Card (a process which could have been completed prior to my arrival) and has resulted in extra charges of nearly $75. Minor issues such as these could be exposed by an examination organized by SAGA, the results of which would be presented to the Center for Global Education. This process will not only improve studying abroad for the nearly 175 students who go each semester, but will also create a conversation about further SAGA involvement with study abroad programs.

The General Assembly has got to build upon the strides taken in opening the library 24 hours during finals and the Speaker's Task Force on Politics to engage with the academic programs offered here at CUA. Making study abroad more convenient and easier for students studying in other countries is a first step for the General Assembly to reaffirm its commitment to the improving the quality of all academic programs offered by The Catholic University of America.