The Student Government Association (SGA) is a group of elected students at American International College which holds meetings every Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in the Campus Center Auditorium.

In this college association are representatives of every class, every school, a commuter and a campus relations representative. Their mission is to represent the student body and improve the college experience.  As such, the Student Government Association serves as the official mechanism for information gathering and dissemination with a commitment to transparency, accountability, and leadership.

The meetings are guided by Rebecca Gray, the speaker of senate.

“I plan the meetings and agendas and enforce parliamentary procedure,” Gray said.
“As a representative of the student body, I am determined to make sure every students’ voice is heard and a positive change is made.”

But what does the typical meeting look like?

Every meeting has a similar schedule, which is handed out before the session begins. The meeting starts with the approval of agenda, followed by the nomination or confirmation of new members. Next come the reports. This starts with the executive committee report, followed by the class cabinet reports, the finance committee report, the school representative report, the campus relations report and last but not least, the commuter representative report. After all these reports from the representatives, the members of SGA talk about ongoing business. This is the part of the schedule which changes every week, depending on what is going on. Then there is an open forum where people can bring in new ideas or new business. The last three points on the schedule are the advisors’ comments, the announcements and the adjournment.

Alexander Lee Clark does not take his job as Student Body President lightly.

“Being Student Body President means everything to me and is something I take very seriously,” Clark said. “AIC has a lot of students that play sports, and I always like to say that Student Government is my sport and my position is Student Body President.”

Taking the President of the SGA as an example, this shows how students at AIC care about what is going on and wanting to create the best environment possible for themselves and their friends.

“My vision for next year is that Student Government becomes the common ground for all students at AIC. It will be a place where students can voice their concerns and SGA can advocate for change for the student body,” Clark said.

The SGA organizes different events on campus for students. Last Wednesday, there was an event called “Wake Up Wednesday” which was organized by Brittany Chalmers, sophomore class president of SGA. “Wake Up Wednesday” included a table offering bagels, muffins, juice and coffee. And the best thing usually comes last: Everything was for free. Members of Student Government Association were on hand to talk to students and ask them what they want to change on campus.

Sierra Naughton is the junior class president. She knows that the SGA is an important part of the AIC community.

“I personally participate in student government because I want to be the change I want to see. Nobody can fix the issues everyone sees and complains about if someone doesn’t voice them,” said Naughton. “I love AIC and want to improve it to be the best it can be. Without the students we wouldn’t be here; therefore everyone’s input is important.”

Since the goal of SGA is to represent the voices of AIC students, it needs to have members. The SGA would love for more people to come and attend. To become a member, students would have to reach out to anyone on the executive board or Zachary Beaver, Director of Engagement, Leadership and International Student Life. A GPA check needs to be done to see if the person is eligible or not. After that there is a nomination followed by a positive senate vote for an election.