by Justin Boulmay
Staff Writer
The Student Government Association has been accused of apathy toward
student needs in the past. On Feb. 3, that claim came from within
the Senate.
Newland Hall Senator Hunter B. Palmer addressed the Senate near
the end of last Tuesday’s meeting during a time of informal
discussion, and said the Senate has been characterized by inactivity
and apathy.
“It’s the end of the semester, and we’ve passed
two pieces of legislation, one of which was constitutionally required,”
Palmer said, in reference to the Senate approving dates for the
2004 SGA presidential elections.
While Palmer said SGA has accomplished some goals, such as adding
sushi as a food item in Cascades Cafe and parking after 2 p.m. in
the Stadium Lot, he also said the goals that have been accomplished
have largely come from ideas set forth by the Cabinet.
“[The] Senate is full of bright minds,” Palmer said
Thursday. “But somehow, the ideas don’t get formulated
properly.”
Palmer said another catalyst for apathy was a lack of leadership
within the Cabinet, which he described as “largely ineffective.”
Palmer said the Cabinet was not the only reason for apathy.
“The Cabinet not being great leaders is half the equation,”
he said. “Or maybe it’s less than half, because the
legislature is the largest part of the organization … and
it’s done the least.
“I think people haven’t dedicated enough time. I think
you have to place equal part of blame on the Cabinet and the legislature,”
Palmer said.
Director of Student Affairs Emily L. McDermott said the blame should
not rest on the Cabinet or the Senate, but on the certain senators
who join SGA for the wrong reasons and then do not own up to their
responsibilities.
“It’s kind of disheartening, because people need to
take credit for their own actions,” McDermott said.
“I’m not saying that’s the case with everyone,
but with certain people, they blame it on authority figures and
say: ‘Oh, it’s the leader’s fault.’ We can’t
do everything on our own,” McDermott said.
Director of Internal Affairs Callie J. Hargett said some senators
have been fired for not doing their jobs.
McDermott said her committee had started with 22 senators. That
number has gone down to four, making it harder for her committee
to accomplish its goals.
Hargett said senators might not be able to judge how much work the
Cabinet does, since some senators are in the office only one hour
per week and Cabinet members are required to hold 15 office hours.
She also said SGA has accomplished some goals, but has not used
the legislation process as much as it has in previous years in order
to do so.
Palmer also said people tend to judge the amount of success SGA
has had by the number of pieces of legislation that have been passed,
but forget to acknowledge what is done without legislation.
Palmer said unless SGA did something to change, they could soon
be labeled as “irrelevant.”
He added: “I want to be proven wrong. Desperately.”
Last year, a poll conducted by The Appalachian showed 78 percent
of the 91 students polled did not know the name of one of their
representatives. |
