Associated Student Government released its Quarterly Report on Thursday, outlining new projects spearheaded by the current executive board.
The report points to the organization’s new structure and steps to improve transparency, as part of an ongoing effort to change ASG’s image and role within the Northwestern community.
“ASG is prepared to hold itself accountable for developing legislation representing the needs and concerns of the student body,” ASG President Neal Sales-Griffin said in the report.
Sales-Griffin, a SESP senior, said in an interview that a report like this is nothing new, but sharing it with the student body is.
“Apparently ASG has been doing this for years; we’ve always had a report on a current basis for administrators,” Sales-Griffin said.
The report highlighted some of the student government’s plans currently in the works, such as One Northwestern, an ad-hoc committee to organize events fostering school spirit.
“One Northwestern is ultimately a collaborative, student-run project that seeks to bring Northwestern together,” ASG Treasurer Claire Lew, a SESP sophomore, wrote in the report.
Other notable novelties include work on a 24-hour campus space and a diversity-themed week during Fall Quarter.
The quarterly report provided a platform for members of the executive board to present their recent achievements, such as NU Decides, Big Bite Night and the pilot Chicago Express shuttle.
Following Sales-Griffin’s electoral promise to restructure ASG from the inside, pilot vice-president and human resources director positions have been created. These currently vacant positions are to be tested for a year.
According to Sales-Griffin, he and the executive board “plan on hopefully addressing Senate again with some potential constitution changes” if the positions prove to be successful.
The human resources director title has become especially relevant as the selection process of Senate committee members is now done through interviews, another recent organizational change.
“It’s been a huge hassle right now in terms of trying to figure out committee applications, interviewing, people-management within the organization and recruitment outside of it,” Sales-Griffin said.
“I personally have taken that position up myself to some capacity, but I was not able to fulfill it in the way that we envision this position going forward because I have a lot of other commitments as ASG president,” he said.
ASG will also send out weekly senator updates and event guides to students.
“It’s not something that we perfected yet in terms of distribution,” he added. “But I think it’s saying a lot in terms of transparency that we’re willing to put all this information out there and trying to make sure that it reaches everyone on campus.”