By Dana Bitto
October 16, 2013
Being unable to complete goals has been a predicament for previous Student Government Association boards. This year’s executive board has brought big ideas to the table but has also received some setbacks. Most recently, the Office of Student Involvement shut down SGA for not following policy on registration for DU Fest and last minute notifications for event space.
While SGA was only officially shut down for two days, the organization is currently on probation and must attend eight DU Leadership workshops. Though the anticipated deadline for the opening of SGA’s “Operation Recreation Center” has already passed, their current status has added to the postponement.
“The SGA shutdown has caused a delay, but we’re working on meetings to further work on the center,” SGA President Berto Aguayo explained. “We’re still on the background stuff, the building blocks of how to get things done.”
In addition, SGA has been trying to make progress on whether or not the CTA U-Pass initiative should be implemented. Suggestions of creating a student survey have been mentioned, as well as meetings with the Commuter Student Association to determine how U-Pass will work and whom it will ultimately benefit.
David Dolence, professor of political science, believes this year’s board is on the track for success.
“SGA in the past has been ‘thank you sir, may I have another’ and this one is at least trying to move,” he said. “I may not approve of everything that they have done, but a journey of a thousand miles starts with one step, and this SGA has made it clear they are walking, so good for them.”
Dolence also expressed his disapproval for OSI’s ability to shut down what he calls the “governing voice of the students.”
“They [OSI] waste more of our students’ time than any process on this campus and emphasize attending meetings and conferences and filling out paperwork without ever trusting a student with actual responsibility and allowing them to make mistakes,” he explained.
Though SGA has faculty support, the question still remains on whether or not the executive board’s expectations will actually become a reality for the DU community by the end of the school year, let alone the end of their probation status.