The Student Government Association (SGA) constitution has undergone some major and minor revisions that will be made available to student voters at the end of this month. This marks the first full revision since 1980, according to SGA President David Cavell.

“The purpose, the name, the membership, and the composition of SGA have not changed,” said Cavell. “We’re just trying to better serve the students, and we’re trying to open this organization up to be more student-friendly as well as offer more of an opportunity for students to get involved.”

The changes being proposed involve some changes to structure, clearly organizing the SGA into three governmental branches, and revisions of criteria around eligibility to run for certain offices. According to SGA Coordinator Beth Richardson, these revisions also included streamlining the language used in certain sections and removing superfluous portions.

“It was nothing that changed our function or how we are structured that was deleted,” said Richardson. “It was sections that were no longer necessary, stuff that would confuse people, and they would get lost in it. And then you’d lose the point.”

One specific change is one that will add a Senate chair to the vice president’s responsibilities, in addition to serving as chair of the capital outlay committee and assisting the president.

Also, SGA Senators will now serve 500 rather than 300 students in their respective colleges, reducing the number of Senate positions in the hopes of encouraging elections and competition. According to Cavell, the SGA has encountered problems before with filling and maintaining Senate positions, as few people ran and individuals holding the seats resigned. Increasing a position’s student responsibility and the further decrease of voting requirements to fill vacancy from two-thirds to simple majority are together hoped to help the SGA maintain a more consistent and accountable SGA Senate, according to Richardson.

Eligibility criteria that were revised include those surrounding SGA presidency. Before, very limiting SGA participation requirements, minimum GPA and enrollment hours stood in the way of some interested persons running for SGA president.

“It was really confusing,” said Richardson. “Some people in the committee brought up a very valid point, that it was easier to run for president of the United States than it was to run for president of SGA.”

Now, students are more easily able to qualify for presidency, and the student body is able to vote on a candidate they feel is capable of fulfilling responsibilities, according to Cavell.

“SGA has been, for as long as I’ve been here, trying to define the word ‘experience,'” said Cavell. “To everybody, experience is defined differently. To you, it might be the number of years you served in this organization. To me, it might be what leadership roles you’ve had. To other people, it might be what your knowledge on this matter is. And now, this gives the opportunity for the students to define experience.”

(Other revisions can be found by reviewing the copy of the SGA constitution included as an insert in this issue of The Lion’s Roar.)

Vice President of Student Affairs Marvin Yates gave the task of organizing the revisions to Richardson toward the end of the 2010 spring semester. She coordinated the formation of a faculty and staff committee to review the constitution and later sent the document and suggestions for change to student leaders for further review. Once the whole process was completed, the SGA Senate voted on each individual proposed change.

“Some didn’t make it, some did,” said Richardson. “Some were a compromise, but in the end, the student Senate’s voice wrote the draft.”

The revised constitution can be voted on in full during Homecoming elections, where it will be placed on the ballot for a simple “yes” or “no” vote regarding acceptance or rejection of the full document. These elections will begin at 8 a.m. on Sept. 27 and end at 4:30 p.m. on Sept. 29, and a simple majority of the votes will determine whether or not the revised SGA constitution will go into effect.

“I think it will draw students who don’t normally vote in the Homecoming election to do so, which could change that so it’s not just everyone’s friends voting for them,” said Richardson. “It will also bring people who maybe may have not cared about voting for the constitution to vote for the constitution because they’re there to vote for Homecoming.”

Cavell further emphasized the need for votes, citing Senate elections where a position was won based on a single vote over opposition.

“We just encourage students to get out and vote and educate themselves on the changes  being proposed,” said Cavell. “This is as much their organization as it is mine, and I’m the student body president. Get involved with it, and know what’s happening.”

The SGA office can be contacted by phone at 985-549-2296 for more information on the voting process and the proposed revisions.