Town hall meeting attendance low

The Student Government Association answered student body questions and concerns in a live broadcast during the Nov. 11 town hall meeting.

Out of the 74 senators elected this semester, roughly half did not attend. Most of the 20 students who attended did not pose questions, though several questions were submitted beforehand by students.

SGA President Brandon McNary gave information on what to expect in the next fiscal year, and said that students should expect to vote on the new gender identity referendum in the spring.

“We will hold the referendum sometime during the spring semester,” McNary said. “We want to make sure students have a voice in the decision-making process.”

McNary said many students might not be aware of all of the facts surrounding gender identity issues. Originally he did not know a lot about that particular subject either. He said after spending some time educating himself about the issue, he decided to support the bill.

“Beginning next semester, there will be other student organizations who will be educating students about the issue before the vote, and we will also be reaching out to students to address possible concerns and answer any questions they may have,” McNary said.

The SGA executive panel answered several questions from students during the hour-long town hall meeting, which was sponsored in cooperation with Sidelines and MTTV.

The topics discussed ranged from issues such as the gender identity bill and the incident involving the preacher on campus, to food prices, campus safety, budget cuts and student participation.

Although no one from the school administration or faculty attended the event, McNary said school officials do appreciate input from students and listen to their concerns about campus issues.

In a submitted question, an unidentified sophomore asked the SGA officers if the SGA is just another “rubber stamp organization” for the administration, or if the government body truly represents the students.

“We are the voice for the students,” McNary said. “We’ve passed resolutions that the administration has not always agreed with, but we did because the students felt that it was important.”

Vice President and Speaker of the Senate Heather Rawson, a senior marketing major, said SGA senators have worked hard to represent the students, and include them in campus related issues, events and activities.

“Our senators have done a great job reaching out to students,” Rawson said. “We try to do what the students want.”

McNary said that while there are a lot of Greek affiliated senators, he thought he’d done a good job in diversifying.

“We know that there has been a perception that the SGA is only for Greeks,” McNary said. “This year we took extra measures to include students from diverse backgrounds.”

McNary said he has personally reached out to nontraditional students and non-Greeks by asking them to either run for positions or to help out with committees. He said he has also appointed students to be senators from various backgrounds in an effort to bring more diversity to the organization.

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