As we begin another school year, many of the student organizations are ramping up for a great year. This is no different for Simpson College’s Student Government Association (SGA) as we are ready to dive right into another full year of serving the campus community. I am personally excited for the opportunities that lie ahead for SGA and the campus community as a whole.

I have some personal goals that I would like to see SGA accomplish this upcoming year. The first goal is to re-make the image of SGA and create a stronger channel of communication between SGA and the students. Look for SGA communicating with students in more creative ways such as social media, contests and other avenues. This will help SGA discover what is truly important to the students here at Simpson College.

My next goal is to make SGA a stronger group in supporting all of our student organizations around campus. One of SGA’s main responsibilities is to fund and support student run organizations that provide some of the best experiences to our students. I want a stronger connection with these organizations that goes beyond funding to help them out with various problems they may have.

A new organization that will be in the works this year will be Org Board. As Simpson transitions to a new campus center it is a great time to enhance programming and opportunities offered by our student organizations. Org Board will have duties such as offering supplies and equipment that multiple groups may need; educating groups on how to schedule and plan events; and offering organizations a common place to come share ideas in the hope that it will encourage more joint programming.

As always SGA is open to ideas and suggestions on projects to work on. Recent SGA projects include: Storm Squad, digital billboards, working closely with faculty on the Engaged Citizenship Curriculum and running a student campaign in support for the Indianola Wellness Center. SGA will be planning and implementing other substantial programs like these through the year.

A program that we need feedback on is providing a shuttle service into various areas of Des Moines that students would like to visit. Email me at [email protected] with your feelings on this program.

We are also on Facebook, Twitter, and have our own comment box attached to all the meetings minutes.

As I said earlier, I am very excited for this year and the amount of work SGA can accomplish for the campus community. We look to better the students’ experience through working with student organizations and providing programming of our own. If you ever have any comments or feedback for SGA, seek out your class representatives.

I wish everyone the best of luck this year. Go Storm!