Eliyahu Gasson | opinions editor

The Student Government Association at Duquesne University is responsible for creating legislation that impacts the lives of students across campus. The South Side Shuttle, for example, is funded by the SGA and transports students between campus and the South Side Flats.

One of the requirements of being an SGA senator is to take part in at least two of the six standing committees, each with their own unique roles and responsibilities laid out in The Bylaws of the Duquesne University Student Government Association. These committes include: Student Life, Diversity, Inclusion, and Identity, Finance, Government Operations, Organization Oversight and Communications Committee.

The Student Life Committee is the first to be mentioned in the SGA bylaws. This committee is charged with initiating legislation around academics, healthcare, housing, nutrition, parking, transportation and technology services.

The Diversity, Inclusion and Identity Committee exists to discuss and bring up legislation around issues of race, religion, sexuality and gender.

The Finance Committee is in charge of discussing and managing the student government’s budget and bringing up legislation regarding appropriations to student organizations. They are directly responsible for maintaining supplies of the Student Organization Resource Center Room. Per SGA’s bylaws, no more that $500 of total non-budgeted items can be voted on by the senate without first being approved by the Finance Committee unless otherwise stated in the SGA Constitution. The Finance Committee is prohibited from directly appropriating funds to organizations outside of the university.

The Government Operations Committee oversees the legislative process of the SGA, including the Senate, Judiciary, Executive and Election Board. They are also responsible for initiating legislation around the Constitution, Bylaws, Election Code, Mission Statement and the standards of ethical conduct mentioned in the Constitution.

The Organization Oversight Committee assures that student organizations are in compliance with the SGA’s rules. They initiate legislation that: establishes standards for student organizations, grants or revokes recognition of outside organizations and monitors organizations’ compliance with SGA’s rules. They also communicate with outside organizations, track campus events and communicate that information with the Senate.

The Communications Committee shares information to the student body, student organizations, university administration and the general public. They are also responsible for maintaining the SGA website, social media, establishing an SGA newsletter and writing pamphlets. They are also in charge of publishing the University Directory.

The SGA Bylaws can be found on the SGA’s Campus Link page.