Letter to the Editor: SGA touts work, efforts on housing

The Lawrenceville SGA does not merely exist as the administration’s puppet. The SGA deals with a number of different issues, such as the housing policy discussed in the editorial entitled, “Housing shortfall sparks controversy,” which ran in the Feb. 15 issue of The Rider News.

Examining important issues such as the housing policy takes time and analysis, in addition to reviewing statistics regarding admissions. Unfortunately, SGA can’t review all the necessary components of an issue within a one- hour Senate meeting.

Since the start of the semester I, Brian Pawelko, the Lawrenceville SGA Vice President, have created six SGA Senate standing committees, each charged with a specific task, similar to the structure within the United States Congress.

The Senate committee entitled Legislative Affairs is currently taking the necessary steps to examine the issue. This committee is a separate entity from the actual Housing Committee. The Legislative Affairs committee is examining admissions statistics and the components within the proposed housing policy. It will then report its findings and suggestions to the Student Senate. After debate on the issue has occurred among the Senate members, a resolution will be sent to the administration specifically voicing the opinion of the SGA.

The SGA doesn’t want to just examine the policy ourselves, we also want the opinion of the general student body. Talks have already begun between SGA and Residence Life to possibly host a town hall meeting regarding the housing policy. I also encourage students to e-mail me at pawelko@rider.edu, as well as attend one of our weekly Senate meetings, which are open to the student body.

SGA does not just rubber stamp policies proposed by the administration; yet, these types of issues take more than a week to resolve. It is even more crucial we get the facts straight and properly explore the issue given the immense importance of the policy.

I think everybody must remember the numbers that have been thrown around with respect to affected students. While the early projections state 150 students will be waitlisted, the preliminary projections also say 10-59 students will ultimately not receive housing.

The most important thing students can do is get their housing deposits in on time. The SGA will continue to work diligently on this issue and make sure that we not only send an educated resolution to the administration, but one that is reasonable and represents the students.

— Brian Pawelko
Lawrenceville SGA Vice President