Katherine Repasky | assistant editor

Following the Student Government Association (SGA) election in March, President Mwango Kasuba, and the rest of the SGA executive board spent much of their summer planning ways to turn their campaign promises into changes for students to recognize across campus.

The Culture Party, which makes up the entirety of the SGA executive board, ran on a platform centered around changing campus culture by increasing student representation and making sure the unique voice of every student is acknowledged.

“We each wrote goals for not only the entire year together, but also our own personal goals, as a way for us to be able to reflect upon each other and say ‘What as a group and individuals are our values and how are we sticking true to them?’” Kasuba said.

With written confirmation of their promises, the board is hoping to accomplish their goals of forming better connections with student-run organizations, making more partnerships with city businesses and increasing student involvement in SGA.

One of the first places SGA has focused their efforts to accomplish these goals so far this year has been in dining.

During their summer meetings, the executive board met with Parkhurst dining management and university administrators to discuss current student concerns, which included a lack of dining options, increasing operating hours and making sure Hogan Dining Hall is always well stocked.

Those conversations have already resulted in changes, such as extended hours at Hogan, a revamped allergen-free section and new seating throughout the hall. Hogan is now open from 7 a.m. to midnight every day of the week.

A poster displayed in the dining hall highlights the new hours and flex spaces which invite students to not only dine when most convenient to them, but to also fully utilize the renovated location for activities, club meetings and much more.

Over the years, SGA has established a close relationship with many student organizations across campus, notably Duquesne’s Program Council. DPC works primarily to plan campus-wide festivities and manage appropriations to all student organizations.

DPC membership director, Kylie Iak, said “(add in quote about her relationship with sga and culture party so far)

SGA has also established discounts and partnerships with businesses off campus, including Carson Street Deli and Delanie’s Coffee, both located in Pittsburgh’s South Side.

Kasuba said the organization is continuing to work on additional partnerships. He said students should continue to send the SGA ideas for businesses they want to see partnered with.

“We are always open and looking for more student suggestions,” Kasuba said.

Outside of dining, Kasuba said another major goal is going to be working to change the culture within SGA itself by making sure each member of the organization understands that their position has a designated purpose.

“These roles are not simply symbolic,” Kasuba said. “Each role does matter and can make a change.”

The executive board strategically formed themselves to be made up specially of students who represent many different groups and experiences across campus, including minority groups, the Honors College, commuter students, international students, Greek life, student-athletes and club sport members.

“The goal is to use these 30 plus connections we have ourselves to make sure different groups have a direct way to communicate with SGA throughout the entire year,” Kasuba said.“I am a firm believer in that, it is hard to properly represent and advocate for your students if you are not someone that also lives those experiences.”

Representation is another major part of the Culture Party’s platform.

“Being more inclusive does mean a lot to us and every voice needs to be heard and everyone deserves a seat at the table, including those who work behind the scenes,” Kasuba said.

Last semester, the newly elected Culture Party collaborated with Duquesne’s chapter of Circle K, a national organization focused on community and volunteership. They collaborated to create personalized thank you cards for maintenance and facilities staff and hopes to continue similar efforts this year to guarantee no one on campus goes unnoticed.

Furthermore, SGA is looking to create delegates for different organizations, who will then serve as another form of direct communication between those respected groups and student government.

For Vice President of Communications Sadie Kim, increasing student involvement and representation starts by making sure students understand what SGA truly does.

“Student government is the platform where students can bring complaints to students, and we, also as students, will do something about it,” Kim said.

The first SGA meeting of the semester will be held Wednesday in the Gormley Student Union, and will serve as a meet-and-greet for students to learn more about the organization.

“Everyone is always welcome,” Kim said.

Those conversations have already resulted in changes, such as extended hours at Hogan, a revamped allergen-free section and new seating throughout the hall. Hogan is now open from 7 a.m. to midnight every day of the week.

A poster displayed in the dining hall highlights the new hours and flex spaces which invite students to not only dine when most convenient to them, but to also fully utilize the renovated location for activities, club meetings and much more.

Over the years, SGA has established a close relationship with many student organizations across campus, notably Duquesne’s Program Council (DPC). DPC works primarily to plan campus-wide festivities and manage appropriations to all student organizations.

DPC membership director, Kylie Iak, said the two organizations share a common goal for the year, that being “strengthening and improving the Duquesne community.”

“Many members of the DPC Executive Board, including myself, are also involved in SGA, creating an opportunity to build an even stronger partnership between our organizations,” Iak said.

SGA has also established discounts and partnerships with businesses off campus, including Carson Street Deli and Delanie’s Coffee, both located in Pittsburgh’s South Side.

Kasuba said the organization is continuing to work on additional partnerships. He said students should continue to send the SGA ideas for businesses they want to see partnered with.

“We are always open and looking for more student suggestions,” Kasuba said.

Outside of dining, Kasuba said another major goal is going to be working to change the culture within SGA itself by making sure each member of the organization understands that their position has a designated purpose.

“These roles are not simply symbolic,” Kasuba said. “Each role does matter and can make a change.”

The executive board strategically formed themselves to be made up specially of students who represent many different groups and experiences across campus, including minority groups, the Honors College, commuter students, international students, Greek life, student-athletes and club sport members.

“The goal is to use these 30 plus connections we have ourselves to make sure different groups have a direct way to communicate with SGA throughout the entire year,” Kasuba said. “I am a firm believer in that, it is hard to properly represent and advocate for your students if you are not someone that also lives those experiences.”

Representation is another major part of the Culture Party’s platform.

“Being more inclusive does mean a lot to us and every voice needs to be heard and everyone deserves a seat at the table, including those who work behind the scenes,” Kasuba said.

Last semester, the newly elected Culture Party collaborated with Duquesne’s chapter of Circle K, a national organization focused on community and volunteership. They collaborated to create personalized thank you cards for maintenance and facilities staff and hopes to continue similar efforts this year to guarantee no one on campus goes unnoticed.

Furthermore, SGA is looking to create delegates for different organizations, who will then serve as another form of direct communication between those respected groups and student government

For Vice President of Communications Sadie Kim, increasing student involvement and representation starts by making sure students understand what SGA truly does.

“Student government is the platform where students can bring complaints to students, and we, also as students, will do something about it,” Kim said.

The first SGA meeting of the semester will be held Wednesday in the Gormley Student Union, and will serve as a meet-and-greet for students to learn more about the organization.

“Everyone is always welcome,” Kim said.

Katherine Repasky can be reached at repaskyk@duq.edu