In an effort to expand their contact with the student body, Youngstown State University’s Student Government Association has planned campus unity and student outreach programs for the new academic year.
Catherine Carney, president of SGA, said she does not have one singular issue she hopes to focus on for this school year.
“The problems within our university, with respect to the students, isn’t one big problem, so we can’t have one big solution. It’s multiple little things. So, I would rather get done 10 small projects versus one project, because that’s going to affect the most students,” she said.
The student body’s lack of contact with SGA is among these problems. Both Carney, and Michael Slavens, executive vice president of SGA, encouraged students to be aware of SGA’s priorities.
“We want everyone, students and administration, to know that they can come to us here at SGA and share ideas, and bounce ideas off of us,” Slavens said.
To encourage student involvement, SGA has implemented programs that introduce students to their SGA representatives.“We call these ‘meet the rep days’ where we’ll meet with students in Kilcawley Center and explain what SGA is all about,” Carney said. “We’ll have a few representatives from each academic building come in and talk to students in each college so we can get our name out there and find out what we can do to help them.”
SGA also plans to display informational bulletin boards throughout campus, add a student government tab to the MyYSU portal and revamp their website to further inform students of SGA happenings.
SGA has also encouraged students to explore downtown Youngstown by advertising student discounts available at local bars and restaurants. “We went to all the restaurants and bars downtown, and talked to the owners about getting the discounts,” Slavens said. “We’ve been passing out flyers and making signs to put in windows. If a student has their YSU ID, they can get 10–20 percent off at Avalon Downtown Pizzeria, Joe Maxx Coffee, Warehouse 50, O’Donald’s, Lemon Grove and more…It’s good for them to get more business, and it helps SGA get its name out there.”
Slavens said that SGA also hopes to combat decreased enrollment by working with the marketing department to consider ideas for student recruitment.
“There’s also been talk of continuing the student outreach program, which we call Freshmen Focus, with the local high schools. This was started the spring semester of last year,” Slavens said. “We’ve been talking with Erin Driscoll, Associate Director of Residence Life, about setting up a one hour course that would orient people to YSU, and they would get to know what the campus offers and the different programs we have.”