Under Wisconsin statute 36.09(5), the students of the university “shall be active participants in the immediate governance of and policy development for such institutions”. During the fall 2009 term, the Student Government Association (SGA) of UWMC has the authority to represent the student body in the affairs of the university and has focused its efforts on the task of creating and implementing programs that benefit students.
The SGA began its efforts to improve student participation in campus activities this semester by creating incentives for attendance. The Community Involvement Takes Initiative (CITI) program, provided students with two gas cards or a movie ticket in exchange for attending at least six campus events. Executive Director Jake Kuehl believes the program has been successful. At least 15 students have received incentives from participating in CITI. The incentive program may change during the spring semester to reward students with a raffle entry for a single large prize, according to Kuehl. The change will make the CITI program less expensive to operate and should improve its appeal to students who might not otherwise participate in exchange for a small prize, according to SGA Vice President Corey Swinick. He believes the program is particularly important at a two-year campus, where commuting students are less likely to become involved in campus activities.
A convention of the United Council will be hosted by the UWMC and SGA in February. The United Council is an organization that advocates on behalf of student government in the state legislature and UW Board of Regents. SGA has been preparing for the convention, during which United Council leaders will answer questions from member campuses and report on advocacy efforts. The United Council will use the convention to set the agenda for the following year, hold leadership development workshops and provide training to student groups. Kuehl said the SGA intends to ask United Council leaders about textbook rental programs and the impact of budget reductions on the library.
This fall, the SGA created a suggestion box that is located at a table in the round room of the student union and was proposed by Gender and Women’s Issues Director Pa Vang. So far, six responses have been received. Kuehl hopes the box will provide another channel of communication between SGA and the student body.
Jeff Heise
SGA President Jeff Heise has assumed the role of President of the UW Colleges Student Governance Council (SGC), the governance structure for all thirteen UWC campuses. We asked Heise about his new responsibilities as SGC President in a Q & A discussion:
The Forum: When and how did you become President of SGC?
Heise: Three weeks ago, I learned that SGC had leadership positions available. I was asked if I was interested in a position and informed that my knowledge of and experience with institutional governance would be beneficial to SGC. I attended the election meeting of SGC, spoke to my qualifications and was elected by a vote of 7 to 6, over candidate Sana Khan of Waukesha, who then was elected to Vice President.
F: What responsibilities do you have as SGC President?
Heise: The responsibilities of SGC President include a position on the UW Colleges Senate Steering Committee, being a voting member of the UW Colleges Senate, presiding over the meetings of SGC, appointing students to senate committees / taskforces (in order to promote and maintain WI State Statute 36.09-5), being the official voice of the students of the UW Colleges and being a “go between” for the students and upper level officials such as the Chancellor and Associate Chancellor.
F: What are some of the issues that SGC has been working on under your leadership?
SGC has not had an official full meeting this year, (the meetings will be decided upon at the first executive meeting of SGC which will be held on Wednesday, December 9th) which makes it difficult to tell you exactly where SGC is headed, but I as well as other SGC members feel that a restructuring of SGC is necessary. This is a big undertaking, as each aspect of SGC will need to be examined. Once it is decided how SGC should be restructured, the actual restructuring can begin. The goal of the restructuring will be to improve the ease of operations of SGC, establish a better rapport with the colleges, improve communications with the colleges (SGAs and Students) and outline clear goals and functions of SGC to allow new SGCs to operate smoother and more effectively (all in efforts to improve and maintain the student representation that students in the past have fought so hard for).
F: Do you feel the UWMC SGA has had a successful fall semester?
UWMC’s SGA has had an enormously beneficial year. We started the year looking at ways that we could go above and beyond our normal duties. The program that has developed from this drive for excellence is the CITI program. Without going into too much detail, the CITI program rewards students for attending on campus events (with a raffle at the end of the year, as well as extra credit available in some classes). This program is one that we hope will benefit students for years to come; we think it is advantageous to students not solely because of the rewards students can receive, but also the sense of community that is gained by students attending on-campus activities. Another great program that has been waiting in the wings is the website SGA has developed called “The Daily Jolt.” We have just received confirmation that this website will be on the tabbed browser of the on-campus computers. Look for the SGA’s “Daily Jolt launch party” when the spring semester begins.
