A letter to the future SG president

Dear Future SG President,

I am writing to you from the United States because I care about what type of SG executives we will have next year. In my letter, I will neither try to be a smart guy who tells you what you are supposed to do, nor will I criticize what our previous SGs have done. I will give an objective assessment of what could be the needs and challenges of our future SG.

Serving as a Representative in the General Assembly (Student Senator) in the Student Association of the State University of New York - and being a Student Senator in our SG for three semesters gave me sufficient competence to speak about what the SG really needs.

I am sure that you know that the existence of every organization is based upon achieving a vision by accomplishing some goals. Therefore, I hope that you will read the bylaw on SG Goals and fully implement it. This bylaw gives very useful guidelines on how SG goals should be set up, approved, executed, reviewed and evaluated. My suggestion is to perform a process of strategic planning within the organization, and produce an action plan which will match the SG goals with relevant activities and projects that the members will undertake. This way, the SG will have a written framework that will allow an organized and smooth functioning. Therefore, SG members will be easily evaluated on what they are doing and the executives will be accountable in what they did promise during the presidential campaigns.

I do not know whether you, the future president, looked at the Annual Action Plan of AUBG for 2010, but I will advise you to do that soon as there are many activities in which the participation of the SG is of great importance. Some of the initiatives assigned to the SG are supporting student clubs that foster social responsibility, supporting and promoting environmental projects, supporting conferences and competitions that strengthen University spirit, and promoting diversity initiatives. Therefore, you will need to form a team that will actively participate in the implementation of those initiatives, and in the Annual Action Plan in general. A successful implementation of the Annual Action Plan is a win-win-win situation for the students, administration, and the professors at AUBG.

I know that our Constitution and our bylaws are very good, but it does not mean that you should be legislatively lazy. Here, at Fredonia, we create, review, and improve Constitutional Amendments and bylaws almost every meeting. For example, you should seriously consider the idea of completing the SG structure by creating a third branch - an independent judiciary, responsible for passing judgment on the constitutionality of the decisions made by the legislative and the executive branches. Therefore, the students will be empowered to resolve the disputes with SG legally, not through rallies and "funerals." Implementing this initiative will furthermore develop the career opportunities in the SG because there will be more positions available for the students other than SG executives or senators.

There are also other problems and improvements that are waiting for you, when you assume your office. You should try to build a strong Senate that will work as a team, not as a panel of opposing interest groups. Maintaining good relations with the Senators, encouraging their initiatives in the SG and maintaining positive atmosphere in the Senate is a precondition for a successful team.

Also, keep in mind that 90 percent of the SG work is done outside of the Senate meetings. So, you should have regular informal meetings with the team and with separate members, representatives and committees. This will increase the interaction between the members and will allow more than four agenda items on the executive meetings. Having more issues on the agenda will consequently increase the number of students interested to attend the meetings, and in the same time involve them in the work of the SG.

I hope you will take my concerns and advice as friendly suggestions and implement them during your term. I am aware that the executives can not do miracles and resolve all problems of the student body or completely achieve all SG goals, but you should nevertheless try hard. I am sure that with a dedicated, organized SG, and team work, you will be able to accomplish a lot from internal structural improvements to functional improvements that will benefit the whole student body.

Sincerely,

Zhikica Pagovski