RIC Student Community Government President proposes system reformations

Olivia Barone

Editor in Chief

The leading students in Rhode Island College’s Student Community Government (SCG) were flown out this month to attend the annual American Student Government Association (ASGA) conference in Washington, D.C. Upon his return to RIC, student body President Dante DiGregorio presented at SCG’s Oct. 22 parliamentary meeting proposing to reform parliament, its positions and processes and a thorough reflection of what he and his fellow Executive Council members learned while away. 

As an At-Large Representative of SCG, myself and the other present parliament members were given the opportunity to provide feedback on the ideas proposed by DiGregorio and fellow Executive Council members. After discussion and consideration, these changes could be gradually implemented over the next three years in an effort to both make parliament more accessible and distribute some of the responsibilities of the Executive Council.

Parliament members attending a meeting, posted by @scgric on Instagram

At its current state, parliament is composed of six administrative and faculty representatives, an alumni representative, a diverse body of student representatives and five cabinet members: the Chief of Staff, Student Organizations Coordinator, Public Relations Director, Elections Commissioner and Comptroller. At the helm, SCG’s Executive Council: President Dante DiGregorio, Vice President Tess Sullivan, Secretary Marina Colonis, Treasurer Miguel Hoyos, Speaker Benjamin Tomany and Deputy Speaker Jack Doyle. 

However, the future of SCG has a potential for more roles and responsibilities distributed among student representatives. DiGregorio introduced the idea of parliament roles “to strengthen collaboration within SCG and expand opportunities for involvement.” This involves creating four new cabinets to work under the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer positions while altering the Speaker and Deputy Speaker roles entirely. 

Each cabinet belonging to the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer would be led by a Chief of Staff or Vice position responsible for the organization and coordination of their respective cabinet. Each of these four new cabinets would then be composed of three new positions. Let’s break it down. 

The President’s Cabinet would house the Speaker role, which would be removed from the Executive Council, but would otherwise stay the same and continue to run parliament meetings. Next, the Academic Officer would serve as the SCG representative for all academic affairs, building a bridge between the social and academic aspects of campus. Finally, the Committee Coordinator would oversee the various committees that create SCG and manage committee member appointments. 

The Vice President’s Cabinet would be now made up of an Outreach Officer, responsible for SCG’s recruitment strategies, a Town Hall Coordinator who would run semesterly Town Hall meetings and an Elections Commissioner who would manage student body elections for the Executive Council positions. 

The Secretary’s cabinet would include the Conditions Controller, serving as SCG’s source of data collection, a Student Resource Officer responsible for all Student Resources including Learning for Life, Career Development and the Student Help Desk and a Historian position that would serve as a resource for SCG history and documentation. 

Lastly, the Treasurer’s cabinet would be made up of a Student Government Association (SGA) Coordinator responsible for communication with a network of student governments from other campuses, an ASGA Liaison dedicated to working with the ASGA and a Legislative Aide who would work with parliament members to draft proposed resolutions. 

“These roles provide Parliament members with meaningful ways to contribute to SCG operations, policy development, outreach, and project management. They also create a pathway for members to gain hands-on experience, develop professional skills, and run for higher office based on demonstrated impact,” DiGregorio shared in his presentation. 

SCG Executive Council at the ASGA conference, posted by @scgric on Instagram

Additional changes could include the removal of the Deputy Speaker role as its responsibilities would be largely taken over by members belonging to the four new cabinets and the creation of an entirely new Judiciary branch including three Justices and its own host of duties: overseeing student conflicts, enforcing SCG’s Code of Conduct and more. Further, DiGregorio proposed the addition of three new SCG committees: the Strategic Planning Committee, a Legislative Commission and Academic Affairs Commission. 

However, the change that would affect the student body most would be the implementation of campus-wide voting for SCG elections. As is, elections for SCG officials are voted on only by parliament members. Opening the vote would increase student involvement in campus affairs, both socially and academically, creating a democratic process similar to real-world elections. 

Both The Anchor and SCG’s Executive Council want your insight on the potential future of SCG. To share your thoughts, visit @rictheanchor or @scgric on Instagram.