Since being sworn into office, Student Government Association (SGA) President Jadyn Maloney has spearheaded improvements to student and faculty outreach. Maloney elaborated on her goal of strengthening SGA’s relationship with students, faculty and on-campus RSOs.
Maloney, a senior communications major and member of Kappa Delta Sorority, has served on SGA since her freshman year.
“Originally, I just wanted to be a familiar face on campus,” she said. “I didn’t really know anybody coming in, and I thought that would be a great way to get involved. I quickly realized it was a lot more than just getting your name out there.”
During her sophomore year, SGA elected Maloney as speaker of the house for the College of Arts, Education and Sciences (CAES). After speaking with CAES faculty and students, Maloney helped organize the first Meet the Senators.
Meet the Senators is an event where students can meet their college’s dean and elected SGA representatives. Students can ask questions, present requests and build relationships with their deans and senators — all parts of SGA’s initiative to improve student outreach.
Along with hosting Meet the Senators, SGA plans to continue its Swipe Out Hunger initiative, which former SGA President David Hernandez started last year. Swipe Out Hunger allows any student to donate unused meal swipes to the swipe bank, helping students with food insecurity.
“I feel like a common misconception of not just SGA, but a lot of student organizations is that they stay in one place,” Maloney said. “But one thing that I specifically love about this senate that I have now is that everyone comes from a different background, and everyone reaches a different group of people. And I feel like that is beneficial to us because we able to hear all these different concerns.”
Maloney also sought to improve communication within SGA. According to Maloney, the Senate could accomplish more if every senator stayed informed of SGA’s initiatives.
Maloney praised her fellow executive council members for their united efforts.
“This is the first year in, I think, all of ULM that we’ve had an all-female executive council,” Maloney said. “I definitely have them to always lean on, and we all get our jobs done efficiently.”
