SGA Report | 90th session holds first fall senate meeting
SGA Report | 90th session holds first fall senate meeting
Senators, justices sworn in as the organization gets business underway for the academic year.
Editor’s note: News writer April Powls will attend, cover, and report on SGA’s biweekly meetings. You can follow her on Twitter for up-to-the-minute coverage of all the organization’s happenings.
On Sunday, Student Government Association president Taylor Dashney opened the organization’s 90th session. This was the first session of the academic year where senators and associate justices were sworn in for the ensuing two semesters.
SGA welcomed Elysia Guzman, Destyne Kelly, and Isaiah Smith as freshman senators, Akindotum Ogundbiyl (DT) as a sophomore senator, Jesse McMichael as a junior senator, Isabela Diaz as a senior senator, and Lucy Buller as a commuter senator for 2022-2023.
Returning senators this year include Gabby Fields and Hayden Wallace as sophomore senators, Vanessa Torres as a senior senator, and Kelsie Kreutzer as a commuter senator. This leaves two junior senator seats, one senior senator seat, and all three at-large senator seats vacant.
Associate justices Madison Bliss, Victoria Esquivel, and Peter Buller were also sworn in and will be working in conjunction with Chief Justice Tanner Wallace.
At the meeting, led by vice president Joshua Kennell, the group discussed updates and changes within the organization. This included an update on the Justice Department’s progress on the new constitution which will replace the current constitution at its completion.
“[We’ll] keep working on the new constitution making it as good as possible for the student body as well as everything that goes within that so you know how to create more accountability for each branch of SGA and how to make SGA run as smoothly and effectively as possible,” Wallace, senior from Chickasha, Okla. said.
The group also discussed moving forward with new projects this semester. President Dashney discussed the emergency blue light project SGA has been working on the past few years as well as some goals she’s set for the group this year.
“I’d like to get the talk-a-phone project finished this year,” Dashney, senior from Edmond, Okla. said. “There’s one that was put up by Goering [Hall] and it’s almost finished. We’re looking at getting one more installed on campus, so I’d like to get that wrapped up and get campus safety taken care of.”
She continued, “I’d also like to end up eventually replacing all of our old water fountains with new ones. They don't have to be the [bottle-fillers], but just to get everything replaced in that regard.”
Dashney also plans for SGA to participate in the Red Flag Campaign, which works to prevent sexual violence on college campuses.
“It’s going to be interesting, but I’m excited to see if the Senate wants to get involved and other clubs on campus want to get involved,” Dashney said.
SGA members will go through training next weekend and will return for their next session on Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. in the Will Academic Center, room 203.