By Elaf Suliman
An impressive number of students, many of them freshmen, voted in the Student Government Association election last week, according to the club.
SGA said 223 students voted, more than half of them freshmen.
“The turnout for this election was tremendous for a fall election which typically draws less students to vote,” said Colin Loiselle, SGA vice president last Wednesday, just after election results were in. “What is even more exciting is the number of students who got their name on the ballot.”
Positions available for students were the commuter at-large seat, nine class of 2018 senators seats, one class of 2017 senator seat, two class of 2016 senator seats and four class of 2015 senator seats. Nineteen freshmen ran for the nine seats.
The students elected were Jonathan Phillips for commuter at-large; Victoria Ireton and Stefanie Aguiar for the class of 2016; Cameron Viola for the class of 2017; and Jonathan McTague, Emily Johnson, Sean Walsh, Colby Weron, Nicholas DeSouza, Nelson Mendez, Levi Smith, Kimberly Ginsberg, and Caitlin Hankard for the class of 2018, according to SGA.
No students ran for the senior senator seats. All positions were contested, excluding the class of 2017.
SGA has three major sectors: student affairs, commuters, and the housing and facilities committee. Each sector of the association prioritizes their goals to effectively advocate on the students behalf.
Loiselle said this type of turnout was a promising sign for a strong future in the SGA.
Suffolk University is a commuter school and the public relations committee is working to spread awareness of events to increase student involvement in the activities. This year, newly elected freshman senator Caitlin Hankard said she and her fellow senators intend to create programs that work on the inclusion of commuter students.
The commuter population is something that almost all SGA members take interest in. Jonathan McTague, another new freshman senator, pointed out that “most Suffolk students commute.” He said, “I want to direct more activities towards them while they are on campus before they go home at the end of the day.”
Member of the public relations committee Nick DeSouza sees incorporating commuter students into campus more as an important initiative, “specifically closing the gap between commuter and students who live on campus.”
The incorporation of New England School of Art and Design students into Suffolk’s main campus is another issue SGA wants to face head-on.
Emily Johnson, another of the new freshman senators, plans to maintain the quality of life at Suffolk by setting the goals of the student affairs committee, “to continue the NESAD project from the previous year, this involves showing the artwork of current students in the library and making progress in the student center.”
Cameron Viola, senator for the class of 2017, was also a senator for SGA last year. His initiatives, he said, “are simply to be the voice for not only the class of 2017 student body, but also to use my knowledge to make sure that every department is fulfilling every students’ needs and potential.”
Student affairs committee member Jonathan Phillips’ primary intentions revolve around, “the pursuit of a commuter lounge/student center, reason being remaining on campus during often conflicting schedules remains a dominant hindrance among commuters.” The commuter lounge would be a place for students to socialize and network with other students, it would be an additional option to the library or cafe.
The initiatives representatives of each sector of the club have, whether they are geared towards the commuter population or affairs right here are on campus, are built on a framework that addresses the needs of the majority of students.
