The Saint Anselm College Student Government Association has begun the school year looking to build a strong relationship with the student body and school community. Led by President Sal Parent ‘25 and Vice President Diego Benites, SGA is looking forward to creating new initiatives and events for the upcoming school year.
One initiative Parent and Benites want SGA to emphasize is strengthening mental health awareness on campus. SGA has worked with Maura Marshall, Director of Health Services, on getting a table at Fresh Check Day on Friday, September 29 on Joan of Arc quad. “We want to show the student body that SGA is a really big advocate for mental health on campus,” President Parent said.
In addition to mental health awareness, SGA is looking to take on a bigger role in promoting community service initiatives at the college. Parent cited the Anselmian Engagement Committee that formed last year as one of his projects that he believes will help SGA be more involved with community service. “We’re looking to get more and more SGA activity out there, specifically in community service and we want to show that we are out there and active in the community,” Parent said. Vice President Benites reiterated this idea by saying, “We are big believers in lead by example. Having people of leadership taking action is so important. Students seeing us actually doing things out there in the community would make them more inclined to get involved too.”
One project that both Parent and Benites praised was the fundraiser set up by Class of 2024 President Jackie Labovitz and Vice President Luke Chadwick. They organized a fundraiser for the class of 2024 where students could buy a raffle ticket for $10 to win a faculty parking pass, meaning that they would be able to park almost anywhere on campus. The winner of this raffle, Matthew Sincerbeaux, was announced on September 26. Having had been a problematic topic on campus in recent years, Labovitz and Chadwick knew that there would be a lot of interest in this pass. “They (Labovitz and Chadwick) have been doing an amazing job from what we’ve seen. They just put together a fantastic fundraiser. It should bring in a lot for the class of 2024,” Benites said. The money raised for the class of 2024 will go to senior year activities.
Looking ahead, SGA is working on establishing a scholarship program for the EMT’s on campus. As part of trying to help out the student body, SGA is looking to address the need of more emergency personnel on campus. “They are in dire need of new members. We are trying to help by allocating some money this year to put forth towards those new members,” Parent said. Another issue that has been brought to the SGA is the lack of presence from faculty and professors at athletic events. They have received input from students saying that they feel that the student-professor relationship hasn’t been as strong as it has in years past, most notably because of the COVID transition that took place over the last four years. SGA has worked with their athletic representatives to reach out to all sports teams and professors and faculty members to try to rejuvenate the already strong sense of community on campus. “We want to make the campus feel a lot more connected. We have heard that the student-professor relationship hasn’t been as strong as it was pre-COVID and we want to change that by reaching out to people personally and get this going,” Parent said.
Parent and Benites are beginning their first full academic year leading SGA. Both have taken time to reflect on their already enriching time as President and Vice President and are looking forward to serving in their roles and supporting students and the college community. “For me, it is all about giving back,” Benites said. “I feel like the community has done so much for me and I think to myself ‘How can i give it back’.” President Parent shared a similar sentiment, saying, “So far, it’s been a lot about learning and building relationships. Building relationships with people in SEAL and Dean Finn has been fantastic. I am looking forward to creating even more bonds and getting a lot done going forward.” SGA will update students frequently and is excited to host events throughout the year for all members of the college community.
