2008 Woodie Awards
SGA appoints three new members
Amanda Bergeron
Issue date: 9/22/05 Section: News
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After some debate, three non-voting members were confirmed Tuesday at the first joint session meeting. Junior organizational and political communication major Lydia Bradley was appointed to the position of executive secretary, senior organizational and political communication major Brad Dye was re-appointed as the elections commissioner and senior organizational and political communication major John Hanlon was appointed as press secretary.
Non-voting members, responsible for providing input and assistance to the organization, are appointed by the president and then confirmed by the 12 voting members.
The three new members were all unanimously confirmed but some SGA members expressed concern over Hanlon's role, which will include heading a five-seat public relations team created this year by Daniel, a senior theatre education major.
"[There would be] too many cooks in the kitchen," said Katie Caponera, senior organizational and political communication major and SGA executive treasurer. During the meeting Caponera and others discussed that the duties divided among five positions could be condensed and distributed to fewer members.
Others, like Dye, said they think Hanlon and the public relations team will be vital to the SGA.
"I think John is going to be excellent," Dye said. "Our biggest challenge is relations with the press."
The goal of the team is to make the SGA more accessible in order to increase students' understanding of the organization's events and purposes, Daniel said. "It is really important that [the student body] knows what's going on in SGA, such as any event that deals with money," she said.
Hanlon feels his qualifications have readied him for the position.
"The past few summers, I worked in the Fitchburg Mayor's Office where I had to work with the press on a daily basis," said Hanlon, who is the former assistant opinion editor of The Beacon. "This should be a very enjoyable position. I look forward to working with The Berkeley Beacon."
Dye's position as elections commissioner will also be crucial, Daniel said. One of Daniel's primary goals is to generate interest in the organization and make races for SGA positions more competitive. During last year's elections, at least seven of the 25 elected member seats ran unopposed, according to the SGA's Web site.