The full SGA executive team posed together at the Student Leadership Reception held at Regina House in Oct. 2024. (Left to right) Carsyn Rivardo, Teresa Haigh, Ryan Appleby, Tim Katic, Ava Dean, Dustin McMullen, and Gina Veltri. Provided by Dustin McMullen.
Written by: Summer Griffin and Rachael Cameron
After a lull in student participation, Seton Hill University’s Student Government Association (SGA) is reimagining the role of the association to best meet the needs of students.
Evan Ditty, the director of student leadership and involvement and the advisor of SGA, attributed this to a “high level of attrition,” with graduating and transferring students stepping away and “leaving no student leaders” in their respective positions
“This is our first year back on our feet, really, for SGA”, said Dustin McMullen, the president of the Student Government Association. “At the end of last year, we had a folding table set up with a folding chair, and now, we have a fully functioning office.”
Along with the new office space, SGA has also worked to construct a student senate. “The student senate is kind of the legislative arm of the student government association,” said Ditty, adding that the senate is comprised of “representatives from the academic schools, The school of Business and Technology, Natural and Health Sciences, Humanities, Visual and Performing Arts, and Education and Applied Social Sciences.”
“This is our first semester with a Student Senate,” Ditty stated, “They (members of SGA) worked in the Fall with the Deans and administrators to identify” which students would make up the senate.
“The Senate was a huge thing we did this semester,” stated McMullen, “we’re excited to see where it goes.”
Other than the curation of the Senate, SGA has also worked to implement changes to issues on campus that students brought to their attention via “surveys,” “open door office hours,” and “social media,” according to McMullen.
“A lot of our focus is just trying to get the voices of the students who might not have any other role in Seton Hill,” McMulled stated, “they might not know the correct avenues or how to talk to the right people to get their voices heard.”
Some noticeable changes around campus that SGA implemented include the standing desks in the learning commons, the frosted window coverings in Boyle, and the newly approved bus shelter to be placed at the Brownley shuttle stop.
With this year’s elections already completed, Ditty suggests that he would “love to see more students get involved”, hoping for more “competitive races in the future of student government.”
“The best way to make change happen is by actually getting involved in making the change,” Ditty said.
McMullen likewise encourages more student involvement, stating that “the door (to the SGA office in Lowe) is always open,” imploring students to “email us with any questions or concerns that you may have.”
You can find out more about SGA @shu.sga on Instagram and on the SGA page located on SHINE.