{"617663":{"#nid":"617663","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Students Encouraged to Run for Office","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EElected representatives are essential players in community change \u0026mdash; including at the college level. This month, students are encouraged to consider running for a position within the Student Government Association (SGA), which has opened applications for both its Undergraduate House of Representatives (UHR) and its presidential ticket.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EUHR is made up of around 50 members representing each school and class level at Georgia Tech, as well as cohorts such as co-op and transfer students. They are tasked with attending weekly UHR meetings and representing their constituents \u0026mdash; whether it\u0026rsquo;s from their major or their class \u0026mdash; within SGA processes and responsibilities.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThat includes passing bills that fund student activities across campus \u0026mdash; SGA distributes a budget of around $3.5 million funded by the Student Activity Fee \u0026mdash; ranging from large-scale events to one-off endeavors, all of which are part of campus life for Tech students.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EKelly O\u0026rsquo;Neal, a sophomore representative and business administration major, had no prior student government experience when she got to Tech. After getting involved in \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/gtfreshga.weebly.com\/\u0022\u003EFreShGA\u003C\/a\u003E, a first-year leadership organization tied to SGA, she ran for sophomore representative at the end of the year.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;I try to be sure that when I\u0026rsquo;m acting in a role that\u0026rsquo;s speaking on behalf of the entire student body, I\u0026rsquo;m doing my best to know where my constituents stand,\u0026rdquo; she said.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThough SGA representatives use social media, office hours, and word of mouth to get input from students, O\u0026rsquo;Neal acknowledged that it\u0026rsquo;s a challenge. One channel that\u0026rsquo;s been particularly helpful this year is the \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/gatech\/\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech subreddit community\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to being a sophomore rep, O\u0026rsquo;Neal is also part of SGA\u0026rsquo;s public relations committee and is the voice of \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/user\/GT_SGA\u0022\u003EGT_SGA\u003C\/a\u003E on reddit. She\u0026rsquo;s proud of the progress she\u0026rsquo;s made in managing the account and talking with students there.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;I want to make people feel more comfortable with SGA and with Tech administrators,\u0026rdquo; she said. One success story this year was in listening to a student\u0026rsquo;s request to add baked potatoes as a staple in campus dining halls. It\u0026rsquo;s a small change that\u0026rsquo;s part of a larger effort to offer more vegetarian options.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EO\u0026rsquo;Neal plans to stay involved in SGA next year, and encouraged others to run for office.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;The best part has been the people you meet \u0026mdash; both in SGA and in meeting other students who are your constituents,\u0026rdquo; she said. \u0026ldquo;If you run, even if you don\u0026rsquo;t get the position you initially run for, there are lots of ways to get involved and you\u0026rsquo;ll find another role that\u0026rsquo;s great.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThose who apply for UHR representatives or presidential positions must be able to attend a required orientation session on Friday, Feb. 22.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThat is also the last day students can apply. Campaigning will take place from Feb. 24 to March 15, and elections will run concurrently the week of March 8\u0026ndash;15. All students are encouraged to vote when the time comes. Election results will be announced on March 15.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ELearn more at \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:http:\/\/www.sga.gatech.edu\/ug\/?q=elections%20?q=elections%20\\?q=elections\u0022\u003Esga.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E. If you have additional questions, contact elections chair \u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jgravesgt21@gatech.edu\u0022\u003EJosephine Graves\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"SGA Election Applications Now Open for 2019\u201320"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThis month, students are encouraged to consider running for a position in the Student Government Association, which has opened applications for both its Undergraduate House of Representatives and its presidential ticket.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"This month, students are encouraged to consider running for a position in the Student Government Association, which has opened applications for both its Undergraduate House of Representatives and its presidential ticket."}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2019-02-13 14:34:23","changed_gmt":"2019-02-13 14:02:11","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2019-02-13T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2019-02-13T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"595343":{"id":"595343","type":"image","title":"SGA logo","body":null,"created":"1504188874","gmt_created":"2017-08-31 14:14:34","changed":"1504188874","gmt_changed":"2017-08-31 14:14:34","alt":"","file":{"fid":"226885","name":"Screen Shot 2017-08-31 at 10.13.59 AM.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Screen%20Shot%202017-08-31%20at%2010.13.59%20AM.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Screen%20Shot%202017-08-31%20at%2010.13.59%20AM.png","mime":"image\/png","size":56915,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/Screen%20Shot%202017-08-31%20at%2010.13.59%20AM.png?itok=49HbsIsn"}},"617736":{"id":"617736","type":"image","title":"Kelly O\u0027Neal, sophomore representative for SGA","body":null,"created":"1550063928","gmt_created":"2019-02-13 13:18:48","changed":"1550063928","gmt_changed":"2019-02-13 13:18:48","alt":"Kelly O\u0027Neal, sophomore representative for SGA","file":{"fid":"235140","name":"oneal.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/oneal.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/oneal.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":166351,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/oneal.jpg?itok=faZObyaR"}}},"media_ids":["595343","617736"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.sga.gatech.edu\/ug\/?q=elections","title":"SGA Application Link"},{"url":"http:\/\/sga.gatech.edu","title":"SGA"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"},{"id":"63046","name":"Student Government Association (SGA)"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jgravesgt21@gatech.edu\u0022\u003EJosephine Graves\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ESGA\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}