DePaul’s Student Government Association (SGA) discussed the timeline for next month’s elections during Thursday’s general body meeting. 

Jane Pallos, SGA elections coordinator, said SGA will host five information sessions towards the end of this month. SGA candidate applications open April 19 on SGA’s website and are due May 5 at 5 p.m. Candidates running jointly for president and vice president must receive 50 student signatures. Candidates running for all other positions need 25 signatures. 

All candidates will have the opportunity to present their agendas during SGA’s “Meet the Candidates” event on May 7 at 5 p.m. Then, elections will take place the following week beginning May 10 at 9 a.m. and end May 13 at noon.

Ahead of its election season, SGA members talked about ways to improve voter turnout, including reaching out to student organizations on campus to inform students about the elections.

Green Fee Referendum

SGA voted to include a measure on the ballot in its upcoming elections asking students if they want the university to implement a quarterly $5 green fee meant to promote sustainability initiatives at DePaul. 

SGA Executive Vice President of Facility Operations Wesley Janicki said SGA had an Environmental Concerns Committee in the early 2010s that held a green fee referendum asking students if they wanted the university to implement a $10 green fee. The measure received 80 percent of students’ support despite students protesting tuition increases, according to Janicki.

 Janicki added that other universities in Chicago have green fees and the implementation of a green fee at DePaul would generate roughly $300,000 a year based on current enrollment numbers.

President’s Report

During this week’s president’s report, SGA President Alyssa Isberto said Elizabeth Ortiz and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion have been working on creating land acknowledgements meeting with members of the DePaul community and alumni that are indigenous. Isberto added that SGA is considering adopting this in its constitution.

In addition, Soumitra Ghosh, DePaul’s vice president of enrollment management, will join SGA during this week’s general body meeting.

Vice President’s Report

SGA Vice President Watfae Zayed said SGA, in collaboration with United Muslims Moving Ahead (UMMA), plans to create an educational video about Ramadan to support students during the month of Ramadan.

Zayed also encouraged students to complete community health’s Covid-19 Vaccination Survey.

Advising Report

Courtney James, SGA advisor and the director of the Office of Student Involvement, said SGA should consider restructuring its meetings to be more inclusive of students celebrating Ramadan.

James added that a senior sendoff will take place May 27.

T-Shirt Drop

SGA passed a measure to sponsor a t-shirt drop for close to 1,000 people. SGA treasurer Camila Barrientos said the shirts would cost $3.89 each. 

Other

SGA will have an in-person event on campus April 17 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. for SGA members to see each other in person.