The 50th Legislature of the Student Government Association (SGA) convened Monday night to discuss criteria for funding proposals and participate in the Georgia Chamber of Commerce’s survey of the 2030 workforce, a questionnaire that explores the opinions and needs of the rising student workforce. College Council’s (CC) Executive Body also passed a new bill requiring that 10 percent of its “rollover” funding go toward the Student Experience Fund (SEF).
SGA legislators completed a survey for the Georgia Chamber’s 2030 Listening Project, a statewide initiative designed to gauge “the priorities and goals of the demographic that will lead our workforce in 15 years,” according to Elizabeth Harwood, government affairs manager at the Chamber.
Alexa Cleveland, Oxford-Emory liaison and Oxford College sophomore, asked about enforcement of SGA’s new attendance policy because several legislators were absent.
“A resolution may be necessary to [officially] ratify the new policy,” Speaker of the Legislature and College senior Justin Sia said.
The SGA attendance policy, which limits legislators to two absences per semester, is in effect.
Legislators discussed the term “University-wide,” which appears in SGA’s constitutional criteria for funding approval.
“Adhering to ‘University-wide’ depends on everyone having input, regardless of the [topic’s] effect on them,” Legislator and Goizueta Business School junior Mark Neufeld said.
Past legislatures disagreed over criteria to determine which funding proposals met the “University-wide” standard, Sia said, explaining that those disagreements reduced the efficiency of reviewing proposals.
“Although it might not be affecting your subset, if it isn’t hurting anything and helps the majority of people … [funding] should be considered,” Jessica Falletta, legislator and Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing senior said.
Legislators presented reports from their committees. CC Liaison and College senior Taj Singh reported that CC’s Executive Body passed a bill requiring that at least 10 percent of its annual “rollover” funding — unused funding from the previous year — go to the SEF, which covers event fees for financially challenged students who otherwise would be unable to attend. The bill went into effect this year.
SGA members, including CC Vice President and College junior Cassidy Schwartz and former SGA President Raj Tilwa (16C), donated much of last year’s rollover to SEF, according to Singh. The exact amount, which will be announced by the end of the month, will “get the ball rolling” on SEF, Singh said. He expressed hope that other student groups will also contribute to SEF.
