Newman University’s Student Government Association (SGA) has been working hard for the past semester to improve life on campus for students of the university — and they aren’t finished yet.
Marisa-Nicole Zayat, SGA president at Newman, elaborated on the organization’s success over the past months and the opportunity to organize efforts.
“I’m especially grateful for the opportunity to participate as a member of SGA,” commented Zayat. “I have definitely learned a lot and grown as a leader, and I have loved the entire experience so far!”
Zayat, a junior at Newman who is serving her first term as SGA president, said the organization had some goals when they began thinking about ways to improve Newman for the students they represent.
“There were a few goals that we had in mind going into the fall semester. We wanted to boost professionalism, improve communication and reorganize the SGA webpage on Newman’s website.”
The first step for members of SGA’s executive committee was meeting with the leaders of Newman’s administration. Over the summer, Zayat, along with her vice president, Thao Nguyen, met with Newman University President Noreen M. Carrocci, Ph.D., as well as the vice presidents of the university.
Zayat said, “We were eager to introduce ourselves and present our ideas for the future to the administration. This was our starting point for all the progress we have made over the past semester.”
Since the summer meetings between SGA executive members and Newman’s administration, there have been several changes implemented on campus.
“Some of our changes have helped us when it comes to marketing, such as making a new logo for SGA to use on shirts and name tags. We have also created events to help improve communication with the student body,” Zayat said.
Two events SGA implemented are Dining with SGA and Free Ride Friday.
“Dining with SGA provides four students, two senators and one executive committee member with dinner (paid for) by SGA. The students and senators are chosen through a raffle and there are 15 different restaurants to choose from.
“We also have Free Ride Friday, which gives rides to students to and from their classes while senators and members of the executive committee collect suggestions and concerns from the student body.”
Zayat added these events also provide members of SGA with an opportunity to find potential future senators and executive committee members.
“We broadcast our meetings on (the Newman University) Facebook (via) live stream and we encourage all members of the Newman community to participate in SGA by making themselves aware of what we do on campus,” added Zayat.
SGA also maintains a collection of public documents for students, faculty
“We do whatever we can to improve life on campus for everyone here and we are always open to listening to suggestions and concerns from the student body.
“We really hope to fulfill our motto and create a better Newman.”
