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greybetaIn order to help my good Dutch LJ friend culculhen understand more about how student government works at the University of Tulsa, I will provide a short synopsis of how I think the system works.
Student government at the University of Tulsa is a rather complicated piece of political machinery. Each residence hall has its own hall government, which puts on programs specifically for its residents (the apartments have their own sort of hall government). Overseeing all the residence hall governments is the Residence Hall Association (RHA). Each hall gov't is supposed to send a rep to the RHA meetings to know what's going on with everyone else. Since it technically represents all the residents on campus, RHA is the students' liason with housing and dining services. RHA also puts on programs for the entire campus.
When I say I am a student senator, I am part of the Student Association (SA). SA represents the entire campus, so sometimes RHA and SA butt heads over how to change things. I'm familiar with how the Tulsa system works because at one point I was the vice president of my hall gov't, RHA rep, and a student senator.
Ideally, the residents or constitutuents will help you out. However, we follow the 20/80 principle...twenty percent of the people do eighty percent of the work. As VP for my hall gov't, I helped plan and set up all the events. I reported on matters both ways for RHA and my hall gov't. As a student senator, I deal with legislation to improve things on campus. As the senior chair of the finanical appropriations committee (this committee does so much work it requires two chairs to handle its business), I determine how much money should be given to the organizations on campus.
One day, I learned that I payed a lot of money in student activity fees. We only have four thousand students on campus, yet the budget for TU's Student Association is over six hundred thousand dollars (not all of it is student fees, but students do get to say how that money is used). I wanted a say in where that money goes, so I got involved in student government.
And I currently do it for free.
Student government at the University of Tulsa is a rather complicated piece of political machinery. Each residence hall has its own hall government, which puts on programs specifically for its residents (the apartments have their own sort of hall government). Overseeing all the residence hall governments is the Residence Hall Association (RHA). Each hall gov't is supposed to send a rep to the RHA meetings to know what's going on with everyone else. Since it technically represents all the residents on campus, RHA is the students' liason with housing and dining services. RHA also puts on programs for the entire campus.
When I say I am a student senator, I am part of the Student Association (SA). SA represents the entire campus, so sometimes RHA and SA butt heads over how to change things. I'm familiar with how the Tulsa system works because at one point I was the vice president of my hall gov't, RHA rep, and a student senator.
Ideally, the residents or constitutuents will help you out. However, we follow the 20/80 principle...twenty percent of the people do eighty percent of the work. As VP for my hall gov't, I helped plan and set up all the events. I reported on matters both ways for RHA and my hall gov't. As a student senator, I deal with legislation to improve things on campus. As the senior chair of the finanical appropriations committee (this committee does so much work it requires two chairs to handle its business), I determine how much money should be given to the organizations on campus.
One day, I learned that I payed a lot of money in student activity fees. We only have four thousand students on campus, yet the budget for TU's Student Association is over six hundred thousand dollars (not all of it is student fees, but students do get to say how that money is used). I wanted a say in where that money goes, so I got involved in student government.
And I currently do it for free.
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no subject
Date: 2004-10-18 06:34 am (UTC)