The 53rd Student Government Association (SGA) convened for its first legislative meeting on Monday night to unanimously confirm members of the SGA Executive Board.
Mikko Biana (21C), who was confirmed as chief of staff, spoke about the importance of having a diverse student government.
“I am really passionate about student leaders being reflective of the student body,” Biana said. “And what I noticed with not just last year’s past SGA, but past governing bodies in general, was that certain demographics were not represented.”
Biana said that he hopes that he will be able to institute “good practices of student government” again.
“This past year, a lot of students have become apathetic or have distrusted the student government,” Biana said. “I think that this year we can take back the notion that student government serves all students and is truly reflective of the vast diversity that is found in our student body.”
Ben Wiener (21C), who was confirmed as vice president of finance, said he would prioritize providing accessibility to clubs’ payment processes and setting up financial institutions to better support club funding.
“Hopefully … we can get … every club on campus the funding that they all deserve to have,” Wiener said.
Ronake Desai (21C) was confirmed as vice president of diversity and equity, promising to bring his personal perspective into his position.
“I come from a first-generation American family,” Desai said. “[Being the] first in my family to go to college, being low-income and being part of the LGBTQ community has all made me passionate about these issues.”
Co-Vice Presidents of Communications Kate Monger (21C) and Karen Lee (21C) were confirmed along with Vice President for Student Experience Julia Esposito (22C) and Secretary Victor Chatterjee (22C). Qiao Jiao (22C) and Oscar Escobar (20C) were confirmed as co-vice presidents for international student affairs. Escobar was not present at the meeting, as he is studying abroad in South Korea.
Confirmation for Danielle Collett (18Ox, 21C) as the vice president for programming is scheduled for the next SGA meeting. Collett could not attend the meeting due to class.
Julia Esposito is a writer for Arts and Entertainment. She was not involved in the composition or editing of this article.
