Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

GUSA Reforms: Several Steps at a Time

The Georgetown University Student Association Senate was created with the intention of being both a fast-moving legislative body and an accountable student advocacy organization. It doesn’t require a keen observer of Georgetown student politics, however, to see that, in the past, the Senate has suffered from a lack of attendance, a listless agenda and a procedural backlog that has belied the body’s attempts to handle multiple issues at a time.

As The Hoya reported on Sept. 15, GUSA received an abysmal 6.6 percent approval rating from those who responded to this summer’s survey from the GUSA executive branch ([“GUSA Cuts Senate Seats for Oct. Election,”](https://www.thehoya.com/news/gusa-shrinks-senate-seeking-reform/) The Hoya, Sept. 15, 2009, A1). The student body has told us that it deserves better, and we have heard their voices. As a result, over the last few weeks the Senate has launched a two-part initiative to begin to fulfill its mandate.

The first part of this initiative has been put into action in the past few weeks. In a series of productive meetings, the Senate has approved a number of changes to its bylaws to ensure that the Senate becomes a more productive, more equitable and more accountable body. We have reformed the way we appropriate funds and made that process one of the most transparent and accessible on campus. The student body should expect nothing less from its representatives.

We have also affirmed the Senate’s role as a co-equal branch of the student government, ensuring that it gives its advice and consent to appointments by the executive branch. The student body should be able to depend on its elected representatives to be accountable.

ost fundamentally, this past week we changed the makeup of the Senate to ensure that those who are most interested in serving the student body are the ones who are able to obtain seats in the Senate in the Oct. 1 election. By decreasing the number of seats in the Senate from 36 to 25, upcoming elections ought to be more competitive than ever before. I believe that this new spirit of competition will breed excellence, and that the most passionate and idealistic candidates will emerge to take their places as the new body of senators. In addition, the creation of four at-large Senate seats will allow any student dedicated to serving the whole student body to run and obtain a Senate seat that represents the whole campus.

This change leads to the second part of the initiative: a call to action to the student body. If the new Senate is to succeed, we need as many students representing as diverse a coalition on campus as possible. The Senate needs organization leaders, diversity leaders and, more generally, student leaders as members of its new assembly. Too often we have only seen such leaders attend Senate meetings when in confrontation with the body. The student body would be even better served to have them among us as members, bringing their opinions and experiences to the table – and shaping student policy accordingly.

A word to new students as well: Now a sophomore, I won my first election to the Senate while very new to the Georgetown campus and culture. But when I arrived in the Senate, it became clear that if you speak, you will be heard. New students can often have the freshest take on what a campus lacks, as well as the means by which students can improve campus life for all. I strongly urge you to consider running for election if you feel that you have something important to say and feel the urge to say it.

When I look at the example set by other student governments around the country, I see no achievements that the GUSA Senate cannot match with a membership passionate and motivated enough to make real change. While the Senate has passed these early reforms, this progress is only sustainable if we can recruit the new and opinionated members we need. I encourage any interested student to attend one of the upcoming election information sessions.

The GUSA Senate is honored to serve you, and I hope that over the next year, we can make you proud. Hoya Saxa.

Adam Talbot is a sophomore in the College and a GUSA senator.

*To send a letter to the editor on a recent campus issue or Hoya story or a viewpoint on any topic, contact [opinionthehoya.com](opinionthehoya.com). Letters should not exceed 300 words, and viewpoints should be between 600 to 800 words.*”

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