SGLC Centers Transparency in New Priorities and Initiatives

The Student Government of Loyola Chicago (SGLC) went on their fall retreat Sept. 12-13 to brainstorm initiatives and finalize priorities for the year. 

The fall retreat, an annual tradition, is an opportunity for the SGLC representatives to come together and consider the biggest issues or opportunities for improvement for the student body. 

At Loyola University’s Retreat and Ecology Campus (LUREC), which is a 98-acre satellite campus in Woodstock, Ill., they developed internal goals, like increasing transparency and accessibility, and external goals, like initiative and event development. 

It will be up to each committee to carry out the plans made at the retreat, according to Student Body President Boas Gelfand and Vice President Nawaal Butt. 

SGLC is Loyola’s official undergraduate student government with a 35 member senate and elected president and vice president. There are seven representatives from each undergraduate year and seven full-body representatives who are elected regardless of year. 

Each member is on one of the six subcommittees — Academic Affairs, Allocations, Justice, Campus Life and Operations (CLOC), Safety and Wellness and Programming and Outreach. 

After fall retreat, Gelfand, a fourth-year philosophy and sociology major, and Butt, a fourth-year psychology major, introduced new and continuing initiatives. One was a Thrift-a-palooza — a large sustainability event that would combine the multitude of thrifting and upcycling events hosted by sustainability clubs throughout the year to create one large-scale thrift extravaganza. 

First-year entrepreneurship major Ana Lucia Nieto said she loves to thrift and thinks the Thrift-a-palooza would be a great opportunity for students who love to thrift or want to try it out. 

SGLC just passed the Newsletter Act, allowing them to send out a semesterly newsletter updating the community on what the SGLC is working on, according to their Instagram page. They’ve also been working with Information Technology Services to develop a student hub that synthesizes apps students use like Sakai, Brightspace and LOCUS to create a more seamless technological experience. 

Butt said internally, one of the SGLC’s main priorities moving forward will be increasing transparency and accessibility on campus to better serve and represent students. 

“We want people to actually understand what student government is and how much it can mean,” Butt said. “At the end of the day, we are here for you, and we want to hear your voices.”

To increase their accessibility, SGLC is working to create an on-campus drop-off box where students can submit feedback on provided paper. Butt said an in-person option was important for creating a more physical presence on campus. 

To increase transparency, Gelfand said SGLC is taking steps to inform the student body on the processes and projects taking place. 

Students like first-year biology major Jack Buboltz find themselves confused about what the SGLC is, how it operates and how to gain more information about what the organization is doing in the school. Students who haven’t spoken directly to a representative or been involved may find it difficult to understand the SGLC’s role in the school, according to Nieto.

“I wish there was a more detailed description of what it is,” said Nieto. 

Gelfand said SGLC began posting information, updates, Senate agendas and committee meeting times and location to Instagram, so students can stop in and share complaints or feedback following the fall retreat.

SGLC is also working on making their office, located in Damen Student Center Room 210, a place where students can stop by and connect with members to provide them a look into what’s going on with the government throughout the year. 

Representatives are also involved in broader administrative initiatives, including developing sustainability practices for SGLC and Loyola events. The Justice Committee is working to incorporate the diverse identities and interests of students to promote inclusivity, while the Academic Affairs Committee is participating in academic and curriculum review boards as part of Loyola’s Program Array Review to provide student input according to Butt.

While they are focusing on increasing their external presence, the SGLC does a lot of its work behind the scenes, according to Butt. 

“We want to make sure people know what student government is rather than what we’ve done,” Butt said. “As long as people feel like their complaints and voices are being heard, that’s our utmost priority.”

By the end of the SGLC term, Butt said they hope students identify SGLC as a place where they can share their concerns, offer feedback and give ideas rather than simply an organization whose name appears next to campus events and activities.

According to Butt, the SGLC is less concerned with getting credit for each individual event they plan or initiative they roll out, but rather, they want the student body to identify the SGLC as a place to turn with concerns or questions.