Jake Donnell, Vice President of SA
The Student Association has faced many difficult and sensitive issues this year and both the Senate and Executive Board have done their best, but their term is nearing an end and a new Executive Board is going to have to step up and lead the student body into the next semester and coming years. So, with that said, Executive Board and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court petitions are available beginning March 1. They will be available in the SA office, in the basement of Hunt Union. In order for the petition to be certified, a candidate must gather 100 SA fee paying members’ signatures (25 signatures for Chief Justice) and submit a 100-word blurb about who you are and why you should be elected to [email protected]. The petition and 100-word blurb are due by March 16 at 4:30 p.m. The petition must be handed in at the SA office, and the blurb must be sent to the aforementioned email address.
The Executive Board positions available are President, Executive Vice-President, Vice President of Finance, Vice President of Central Affairs and the newly formed position Vice President of Activities. Also available is Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The duties of each of these positions are briefly summarized below.
President: The President of the Student Association acts as the Chief Executive Officer of the organization and as president to the student body as a whole. The person in this role is charged with coordinating and overseeing the entire student government structure and with serving as the primary representative of students to the faculty and administration at SUNY Oneonta and to the Oneonta community. The President also serves as the Chair of the Student Association Executive Council, which is made up of the Executive Board and the Senate-elected directors. Additionally, the President serves as a member of the College Council, OAS Board of Directors, and the College Senate.
Executive Vice President: The Executive Vice President of the Student Association serves as the Chair of the SA Senate and is charged with the duties and responsibilities normally assigned to one in such a position. They also oversee all directors and ensure that all standing committees of the Student Association are performing effectively and efficiently. The person in this position is also responsible for executing and directing all transportation programs and policies of the SA, including designating the distribution of vans and gas packets as well as serving as the liaison to Oneonta Public Transit (OPT). The Executive Vice President also serves as Chair of the Elections Committee and Scholarship Committee.
Vice President of Finance: The Vice President of Finance acts as the Chief Financial Officer of the organization. They are responsible for executing all financial policies of the SA, including keeping and maintaining any and all financial records of the SA and approving all club expenditures. The Vice President of Finance also serves as Chair of the Finance Board, which reviews club requests for money from the Special Allocations and Capital Equipment funds as well as creating the following year’s budget.
Vice President of Central Affairs: The Vice President of Central Affairs serves as the primary liaison to SA-recognized clubs and organizations on behalf of the Student Association. The person in this role serves as Chair of the Central Affairs Committee, which is responsible for reviewing any new clubs’ recognition proposal or any proposed changes to existing clubs’ constitutions as well as performing investigations into discrepancies within or between clubs and/or the Student Association. They are also responsible for coordinating the maintenance of an accurate inventory of all SA properties.
Vice President of Activities: The Vice President of Activities is the newest addition to the Executive Board. This person shall serve as Chair of the Student Association Activities Council (SAAC), formerly CUAC, and be responsible for activities programming on campus. They will work closely with the officers of SAAC and the college’s Director of Campus Activities to create programming that will be beneficial to the entire college.
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: The Chief Justice serves as the head officer of the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is charged with resolving any and all discrepancies within the Student Association, including ambiguity within the SA Constitution, the constitutionality of any action by any club or organization (including the Student Association itself), and review any grievances, election disputes, breaches in policy and conflicts that may arise within or between the Student Association and its recognized clubs and organizations.
As anyone can see, the responsibilities of the Executive Board and Chief Justice are not to be taken lightly and a necessary amount of experience is necessary. With the recent approval of the Constitution, one must have either served on the Executive Board, served as a Student Association Senator for at least one year, served on a standing SA internal committee for one year, or attended at least 2/3 of the SA Senate meetings for an academic year in order to be eligible to run for President, Executive Vice President, Vice President of Finance or Vice President of Central Affairs. For Vice President of Activities, one must have attended a NACA conference (or a conference of similar character) or have attended at least 2/3 of activities council meetings.
Much sacrifice and dedication is required to be on the Executive Board of the Student Association, so before deciding to run, think about the obligation that you would have to the 6,000 students that attend SUNY Oneonta and how your possible actions will affect them all. Good luck and happy campaigning!
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