The start of June brought a new group of SUNY students to the Student Assembly executive cabinet who are dedicated to leadership, advocating, and being a voice for 64 campuses and 1.4 million students. At the end of June, the Student Assembly hosted the executive cabinet at a leadership retreat in Saratoga Springs, where new members were appointed through over twenty five resolutions to fill positions of directors, chairs, vice chairs and managers during Saturday’s business meeting.
The meeting began with reports from the President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary on their work following their elections at the spring conference in Saratoga Springs. Following their presentations, our advisor, Candi Griffin-Jenkins, gave a report and brief introduction to her position and work within the SUNY system.
Beyond the appointments, the resolutions that were passed regarded the following: the adoption of the Executive Committee Meeting Schedule, Recognition of President Michael Braun, Recognition of Chief of Staff Alex George, Establishment of and Appointment of Members to Various Committees, and Representative Allocation. You can find all of these resolutions in the resolution archive.
After the adoption of thirty seven resolutions, the committee jumped straight into workshops to assure their knowledge of the SUNY system. Robert's Rules of Order was presented by Parliamentarian Chester Bennett, in which he also covered the general structure of a meeting the executive committee itself, and general parliamentary procedure during business meetings. This presentation also focused on how to make resolutions and the process of writing and editing said resolutions.
Policy Director Maya Rudolph and Director of Government Relations Michael Stefanko gave a presentation about New York’s politics and how the Student Assembly’s agenda aligns with the state’s agenda.
Breakout sessions happened throughout the weekend, assuring that each group of the committee understood their position’s inner workings and expectations of their role within the assembly’s advocacy efforts. Chief of Staff Emeritus Alex George and Secretary Damilola Adesanya gave a presentation on professional conduct and etiquette. Their presentation reviewed proper attire to events, one’s presence online while representing any committee and how to properly speak through emails, phone calls, and simply in person.
Mike Braun and Alex George with B&G Consulting also held a workshop on value based leadership, providing insight on how to use one’s own core values to not only lead a group, but work effectively with colleagues.
The weekend was an opportunity for the new executive committee to discuss future plans and gain an understanding of how the Executive Committee and each position will work to reach goals set by the advocacy agenda in November, and provide representation for each student in the SUNY system.
Written by Jennie Mauk, SUNY Student Assembly Events Manager, Buffalo State