STUDENT GOVERNMENT GUSA Plans To Re-invent Leavey Office Student Resources To Be Focal Point By David Foldvary Hoya Staff Writer
olly Burgwinkle/For The Hoya One of two Georgetown University SafeRides vans.
GUSA officials plan to transform its office space in Leavey Center into the GUSA Advocacy center, a place that student leaders say will be a hub of student resources.
Though the advocacy center will occupy the same space as the current office, the new setup will allow students to more easily utilize GUSA’s resources, advocacy and services, student government officials said. GUSA hopes to have the new Advocacy Center operational within the next two weeks.
“As a preview of what the GUSA Advocacy Center can be, the office will be used this week both for students to receive free flu vaccines and as a place to store the AIDS Memorial Quilt when it is not on display in the program room,” GUSA Vice President Brian Walsh (COL ’02) said.
According to Walsh, one of the primary goals of creating the GUSA Advocacy Center is to improve the perception that students have of GUSA. By creating more direct interaction with students and more ways for GUSA to serve its constituents, Walsh and GUSA President Ryan DuBose (COL ’02) hope to reduce the stigma that some students have with the student association.
“I’m very hopeful and excited for what the mission of GUSA can be – a place where all students know they can turn to if they have an issue or a problem,” Walsh said.
In a Nov. 5 memo from Walsh to the GUSA assembly, Walsh wrote, “All students should feel like they can come to GUSA with a problem or a concern, and GUSA will listen to them and be able to offer assistance. To this end, the GUSA office in the Leavey Center should be a physical place where students can come for help and information.”
One of the more noticeable changes will be the office’s expanded hours. The GUSA Advocacy Center will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays. Weekend hours will be implemented during second semester.
GUSA representatives will hold at least two office hours per week; advocacy committee chairs and vice chairs will hold at least one office hour per week. The general student body is also welcome to volunteer time in the advocacy center. GUSA plans to provide training to students who wish to volunteer, as well as to its own members, so that those staffing the advocacy center can be most effective in meeting students’ needs.
“We need to build an enormous body of knowledge, learning how to respond to the various needs of students – we don’t need all the answers, but we need to be able to point people in the right direction,” Walsh said.
In the office, and ultimately online, there will be forms available for students to fill out regarding their concerns or complaints. It will then be the responsibility of GUSA representatives to read through the forms and write letters on students’ behalf when necessary.
A feature of the GUSA Advocacy Center will be a literature rack that will be easily accessible to students. Advocacy committee chairs will be responsible for stocking the rack with literature from the different departments with which they interact, creating a comprehensive set of information. Ultimately, GUSA hopes to display literature on the outside of the office for availability 24 hours a day.