A New Era

A new era of Samford student life has begun. As Dr. Westmoreland said to the freshmen on the first day of Connections, college is a rare time in students' lives when they can hit the reset button and rethink who they are as a person. It is even rarer when a university gets to do the same thing. That is exactly what Samford is doing right now: hitting the reset button and rethinking how to provide a rewarding student life experience. This includes, but is not limited to, Samford's Student Government Association.

If you haven't already noticed, there is new leadership in place around campus. Renie Moss has taken the new Assistant Dean of Students position, Lacey Simpson has taken charge of events, and Janna Pennington is now fostering Student Leadership and Development. These ladies are already doing a phenomenal job.

Beyond administration, though, outstanding student leaders across campus are taking ownership of their organizations. Separate, all these leaders will do a tremendous job within their own organizations. But once they find a way to all work together, then they have the power to bring about change unlike that which has yet been seen at Samford.

Beyond vague optimism, there are tangible changes that are being made this year. Some of these changes are internal to SGA. For example, SGA is rethinking the Presidential Advisory Council (PAC). Instead of allowing it to remain as a faux-Senate with many crippling inefficiencies, they plan on making it a forum to bring student leaders together across campus. With regards to overall communication, SGA is going to keep pushing to find ways to reach students until we find something that works. Both an SGA blog (http://samfordsga.blogspot.com) and a twitter account (www.twitter.com/samfordsga) are in place.

Other SGA changes are much more external. This year's Welcome Back week was the best Samford has had in quite some time. Everything from the concert Sunday night to the plethora of events around campus, to the road trip to FSU just goes to show what SGA is capable of, and indicates great things to come.

All of this is possible due to students' financial generosity. Out of the around $900,000 that students have given to Samford in the form of a student activity fee, over $210,000 is going directly into the SGA budget. The rest will be used to improve and build student facilities around campus (think sand volleyball courts and BBQ pits), and to make larger events become realities.

Regardless of what student leadership gets accomplished this year, it will be for nothing if students do not get on board. Student Government and Student Affairs both have one key word in them: student. This isn't about us, it's about you. So what can students do to help?

Perhaps the most important way one can take part in student life is simply to participate. Come to events, come to concerts, come to meetings, and SGA will do everything in its power to ensure that they will be worthwhile.

Students should also run in the upcoming fall SGA elections, whether it be for a Senator or a class officer. Freshmen have the opportunity to govern their own class by running for class officer or taking part in Freshman Forum.

There is no better way to take ownership of one's school than to take part in SGA. Fall election and Freshman Forum sign-ups are in the SGA office and will officially end this coming Friday, Sept. 10.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, students can help by simply being honest. Be honest with SGA and be honest with yourself about how you feel about Samford and Samford life. SGA wants to hear your opinion and promises to do everything to make sure all voices are not only heard, but understood, by Samford's administration.

It's time that we took ownership of our university. Let's start a new era of Samford life together.