As another Student Government Association election season comes to a close, I’ve spent time reflecting on the power and potential this body has to drive change at the University. Candidates’ campaign platforms this year largely centered on GW’s response to Donald Trump-era policies and budget cuts. I’m very excited to see this advocacy play out. But as the newly minted president and vice president — MJ Childs and Aicha Sy, respectively — enter office, I urge them to take time to familiarize themselves more with GW’s finances, budget issues, the power of the Board of Trustees and where officials are limited in their ability to act on or communicate about pressing issues. If they don’t, they will risk failing to deliver on the meaningful advocacy they ran on.

In reading the platforms and interviewing candidates for our editorial board’s endorsements, we didn’t feel like any of the presidential or vice presidential hopefuls had a complete grasp on the state of GW’s finances. Most of my time is spent reading about GW’s actions and their issues with their budget — as well as the nuances of their decision-making. Understanding these issues and constraints in which they operate allows for more informed arguments and conversations with the GW administration. This is necessary for ensuring all parties have productive conversations that lead to tangible outcomes. 

As The Hatchet’s editorial board has argued in the past, the SGA has direct access to the GW administration. They are some of the only people in the student body who get the chance to advocate for students to officials — this exacerbates the need for our top SGA representatives to spend that time wisely and efficiently with officials. It would be unfortunate for the SGA president and vice president to spend their limited time with officials advocating for something that would not be possible to implement, given GW’s current financial situation or to approach officials without having a comprehension of what exactly they are asking for. 

Part of the reason it’s so important that the SGA’s top leaders have this understanding is so they don’t propose policies that are infeasible. For example, they must understand how and where officials can use the endowment because asserting that officials can use these funds to prevent budget cuts likely makes the University less willing to engage with student leaders on these issues. While neither Childs nor Sy mentioned using the endowment freely, it is still crucial to understand some of these details of GW’s finances. The same can be said for other initiatives like dining. Spending time advocating to fully open District House and the University Student Center dining spaces, when these places were more than likely closed because they are used much less frequently during the weekends and having a full staff would make the University lose money, is probably not the most efficient use of the SGA’s time with officials. 

Staying informed and seeking to understand GW’s limitations can also lead to asking officials the difficult questions that many students do not get answered. When there are concerns about GW being vague or making changes about a community or institutional matter, whether that be earlier this year with specific issues like the student code of conduct revisions — which the SGA did speak out about — or larger matters like the Department of Justice investigating GW, the SGA president and vice president should be able to question officials on their reasoning and ask them for more transparency and information. 

Now is when we need the main student advocates to learn to prioritize which conversations and questions need to be had and answered. This is not the time to be unprepared or unknowledgeable; this upcoming year needs to be productive and efficient in order to address student concerns and create meaningful change in the community. I am confident that Childs and Sy have the students best interests at heart and will help address many of the students concerns, but remember it is necessary to take the time to truly understand the GW administration.