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Apathy
     No matter if the school is large or small or public or private, the number one problem that frustrates SG leaders still is apathy. And the growing populations of commuters and nontraditional-aged students seem to compound the problem. "There’s no simple remedy," says Senate President Avia Rice, who attends the largely commuter North Campus of Florida International University. Rice says FIU’s Student Programming Council sponsors multicultural events, lectures, and comedy shows featuring local and nationally known acts that have drawn as many as 400 of North Campus’ 9,000 students. "We take into consideration that our average student is between 26 and 28 years old, and we have programs at different times of day to draw them into the university center," Rice says. For instance, she says working students enjoy weekly evening entertainment from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Blue Moon Café, which serves up food, dance lessons, open mic poetry, and community speakers.
     Because returning students typically work, have families, and take classes, planning low-cost, kid-friendly events after-hours may encourage their involvement. At Florida Atlantic University, SGA leaders hope the recent addition of a Nontraditional Programs Chair will help them plan events that are appealing to students of all backgrounds. "A third of our students are nontraditional, and the position is geared toward planning activities for students who have families or jobs outside of the university," says Richard Viens, director of spirit and entertainment. "We hope to implement picnics and family haunted houses and try to get some of our events geared toward nontraditional students, so they can feel the spirit of FAU, too."
     Hillsborough Community College student leaders are giving students exactly what they want by planning events based on feedback from 300 surveys. "Each month, we’re trying to do things in the coffee house," says Emily Maddux, SG secretary. HCC kicked off the year with performances including an alternative singer and an Irish folk singer. "We’re trying to incorporate it all, so that all students will want to be involved. In October, we’ll have a Hispanic festival with mariachi bands and flamenco dancers."
     Innovative advertising and increased campus events such as concerts and barbecues get students involved at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, according to SG President Sherry Ortiz. "For the SGA Jam Slam Student Shag Fest, we have live music and a ska band coming," she says. "We got Trojan to donate 3,000 condoms for games. We’ve also gotten a lot of free things like airplane-shaped stress balls, and we bought SGA lanyards." Ortiz says having a diverse e-board also helps get different campus groups involved. "Our VP is an RA, so she’s always talking to residents. Our chief justice is in the Greek system. Also, we have a new treasurer, and he’s involved in the Caribbean Student Association," Ortiz says. "It really worked out magnificently."

Campus security
     As students take an active role to keep their campuses crime-free with late-night patrols and escort services, other decision-makers are reevaluating the security services their tuition dollars already buy. "Crime is pretty much nonexistent on our campus," says Christopher Finney, 98-99 legislative liaison at St. Petersburg Junior College-Clearwater campus. "When we saw how much was being taken out of our tuition for security, while we’re talking about losing sports teams, we asked, ‘Are they providing that much of a service?’"
     SPJC’s Student Government conducted a survey to find out what students thought of campus patrols. "The responses were mainly negative," Finney says. "They wished it was more visible, and students said they’re never there when they needed them. We were concerned about that, especially when we had other programs that could really use funding."
     For more information about campus security measures and college crime statistics, visit campussafety.org.

Parking
     When Pensacola Junior College students complained to SGA about a lack of parking, student leaders took the issue directly to administrators with a solution. "We’re developing more land to make a parking lot," says Chris Massey, 98-99 SGA president. "Now that the campus is growing, so is the need for parking. We were talking about developing a nearby field to create about 100 spaces. We have over 200 acres and most of it is woods." Massey says students brought their complaints directly to student leaders, and now SG is working with administrators to implement the plans. "At least you’ll be able to park your car without getting tickets."
     At Edison Community College, commuters have never been charged a fee for parking. Last year, the college even forgave most old citations. "When you register they give you a decal," says Karina Khan, SGA president. "You don’t have to purchase anything to be able to park on campus, and each club president gets their own space."
     University of Florida students can flash their student ID cards for a free ride on city buses, says Brent Gordon, SG president. SG allocated the funding to alleviate campus parking problems and encourage students to catch the bus outside of their apartments. Last fall, buses gave more than a million rides to Gators, according to RTS Transit Supervisor Gerald Fleming.
     For more information about parking progress, visit www.parking.uci.edu to learn about how officials at the University of California at Irvine streamlined the school’s process, winning the RIT/USA Today Quality Cup for education.

Student retention
     While ensuring every student’s success might seem like the administration’s problem, campus leaders at Florida Atlantic University are making retention a student issue. "We just had a student summit about it, and a lot of the complaints we had were about a lack of campus life," says Boca Raton Vice President Christian Momm. The purpose of the summit, he says, was to find out "why we have so many students leaving after their freshman year and why they’re transferring to other schools. A lot of students complained about getting the runaround from some of the administration as far as getting things done such as tuition. People send them to 10 different places. But the main reason we came up with for them transferring was they almost consider it a community college." Momm says many local students will enroll at FAU, then transfer to a college away from their hometown. "If you have people coming in and leaving, it says something about the school and the reputation of the school—a poor education, no life on campus, no activities for students, or that the school is really not there for students," Momm says.

Respect for others
     "All you can do is open a dialogue between the opposing communities, attempt to explain the struggles and problems of the discriminated-against minority, and hope an intelligent soul listens," says Michael Tipton, 98-99 director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Student Union at Florida State University. To educate students about what Tipton calls "a group that was misunderstood by everyone," LGBTSU sponsored open forums and invited the entire campus community. "Some people just hated gay people, some thought we could be fixed, some were just confused, and some people thought it was a trend or cool thing. Once a month, we tried to have an open-air forum discussion inviting anyone on campus to come participate, even if they wanted to come call us names. We would put it in a well-known place on campus that everyone knew how to get to."
     Tipton says the forums helped open students’ minds. "There were literally people who came and said, ‘I’ve never seen a gay person before.’" With the ground rule: "Don’t ask anything you would be embarrassed to answer yourself," Tipton says the discussions brought out compelling personal testimonials from group members. "Finding out that some families kick them out, disowned them, or pretend they’re dead put a human face on a social problem that some would rather just stick back in the closet," Tipton says, adding the group occasionally partners with the Black Student Union, the Women’s Center, or Jewish students to show the parallels of other struggles for equal rights.

What’s the most important quality for a leader to have?
"Perseverance."
"…the ability to motivate others…"
"Honesty, integrity, and morals."
"…committed…They have to be willing to…sacrifice…"
"Empathy."
"The ability to make more leaders. You have to replace yourself."

What’s the biggest challenge when it comes to working with other members or officers?
     "Listening. A leader must accept constructive criticism and input from others in order to be a team player.
—Gwendolyn Corso, president, Student Government, Valencia CC-East

     "If they are not compensated at least a little, it is hard to get students to put in the hours and 100 percent."
—David "Tex" Saunders, student relations chair, Student Government, University of West Florida

     "Leadership styles often vary among officers. It is essential that good leaders understand that there are different styles and how the styles can work together for an end goal."
—Sonia Borrell, executive secretary, Student Government, University of Miami

     "Communication. Making sure that I understand their goals and motivation and that they understand mine."
—Darren Springer, director of academics, Student Government, Florida Atlantic University

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