Why Join SG?

Common amongst all members of student government is a commitment to improving our campus. The core mission of student government is to advocate for students to decision makers at RIT. Our long standing relationships with RIT faculty and staff allow us to affect campus wide decisions and make meaningful changes to the campus. 

 

There are four general branches of student government: Cabinet (executive), Senators (college representatives), committee chairs (Advocate for issues related to a specific topic(s)), and RSOs (represent groups of student organizations with a common identity). All of these branches represent different parts of the student body and are responsible for different parts of our advocacy.

 

How Do I Join SG?

The first step to joining SG is picking the branch you are interested in as each has a different process. At a high level positions that represent groups of students (senators, president/vice president, RSO eboards) are elected democratically by their representative groups. Elections for these positions will typically occur in the spring semester the week before and after spring break. More internally focused positions are proposed by the winning president and vice president and confirmed by the standing sg administration. 

 

Senators, President/Vice President, & RSO Presidents/Vice Presidents

Each college has a senator whose job is to advocate for students in their college for both college specific and campus wide issues. The president & vice president run together as a ticket and represent all students for campus wide issues and select cabinet and committee chairs. Each RSO president/vice president advocates for the student organizations that make up their RSO. For all positions you must be a member of the specific group you represent.

Two Phase Election Process

• Petitioning: During this phase interested candidates collect signatures of confidence from their constituents. Students of their college for senators and students from every college for president/vp tickets. 
• After acquiring the required number of signatures and eligibility being confirmed (good standing at RIT & GPA >2.5) campaigning begins.
• Campaigning: Candidates have a set number of days before voting opens to campaign for votes. There are specific rules for campaigning which can be found on the SG website.

Committee Chairs & Cabinet

Committee chairs and cabinet members work on student government objectives. Committee chairs and cabinet members are hired by the incoming President/Vice President  in the spring after elections have closed. Cabinet positions typically are selected for a preference towards previous experience in student government as they are more internally facing. 

Committee Chairs

Committee chairs are responsible for advocating for students on specific focus areas. The current list of committees and their advocacy topics can be found on the student government website. One of the main ways issues are brought to SGs attention is through pawprints. Pawprints will be assigned to a committee and it is the committee chair's responsibility to advocate for a solution.

Cabinet

Cabinet members are responsible for a specific part of student government operations. Many of them manage other parts of SG or have hired teams they hire and manage. A general breakdown is below.

 

President: Manages Cabinet

Vice President: Manages Senators

Director of Student Relations: Manages Committee Chairs

Director of Partnership & Governance: Manages RSOs and internal mediator

Director of Operations: Manages internals of student government

Director of Finance: Manages Student Government Financials

Director of Marketing: Manages SG marketing and SG’s marketing team

Director of Technology Services: Manages SG services and SG’s tech team