Welcome back from SJU Senate
This is the opinion of Durran Thompson, SJU senior.
Welcome Back, CSB+SJU. The St. John’s Senate (SJS) is thrilled to see our campus return to its vibrant nature filled with smiling students, faculty and staff. Both CSB and SJU senates are filled with excitement looking at the academic year ahead of us—a time to re-write the “norm,” enhance the student experience and foster a sense of community more true than ever as we enter this new phase of integration.
If you aren’t aware, The SJS is the sole student–governing body for St. John’s University students. We are made up of eager students who want to make SJU the best place it can possibly be. We have an Executive Board—which many of you voted for last semester—and other senators to represent different issues or groups on campus. We meet weekly from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Monday nights in Sexton 200 on the second floor of Sexton Commons. We also have an office in Sexton 300, which is found on Sexton Commons third floor.
The current SJS Executive Board, of which I serve as President, campaigned to revive our campus as a community of wonderful individuals who long to belong again. This, as we are all aware, will not be an easy task. Luckily, our Executive Board is composed of some incredibly intelligent and tenacious individuals who have the best interests of SJU in their hearts. I’m incredibly happy with the direction we’re headed.
As a team, we’ve come into this academic year prepared to make the best decisions for our student body — and that means all our students. We want to hear from all of you regarding what you wish to change at SJU. While we can’t promise everything will change, or that it will change quickly, we can promise a listening ear and a flame that won’t die when we’re standing up for our students and what would make SJU a better place.
Our Executive Board has spent much of the summer crafting a strategy for achieving our goal of revival. Working with the CSB Senate, we hope to build and foster a thriving community of Bennies and Johnnies. One of the ways we aim to accomplish this is through clear, concise and transparent communication with our student body and our faculty.
Communication is the foundation of every relationship in our lives, and we feel it is even more necessary when discussing the relationships built at CSB+SJU between students and those who govern our institution. Clear communication leads to a sense of trust built by all parties involved, which is another cornerstone we are aiming to achieve through this academic year. We all know these past two years have been brutal for many of us as we try to navigate a sea of endless change. We know trust can be a challenging thing to foster when so much change is upon us, but the SJS is ready and committed to bringing trust back to our campus.
In the meantime, we’d love to hear from you. Feel free to reach out to us at sjusenate@csbsju.edu or stop by our meetings, every Monday at 7:30 p.m in Sexton 200. With that being said, let’s have a great year.
All the best.
*Editor’s Note: After receiving Thompson’s opinion, The Record reached out to CSB Senate president Andrenique Rolle. She declined the opportunity to write this week, but plans to author an opinion in the future.*