In its last meeting of the semester, the Student Government Association (SGA) filled five senator seats, passed a resolution to clarify the responsibilities of the scholarship committee and commissioner and approved the 2025-26 budget.

Four at-large senator seats, a junior senator seat, continuation commissioner and a sustainability liaison position were filled during the meeting. 

Jake Williams, SGA president, said he looks forward to meeting the new senators.

“We’re really going to encourage an open-door policy,” the sophomore business administration major from Piggott, Arkansas, said. “Our office is always open to come talk and chat and I really think that helps build personal connections and help build accountability.”

Senator John Volpe was elected continuation commissioner. 

Volpe, a junior English major from Little Rock, said the role of this position is to ensure resolutions passed by SGA are implemented and any changes are carried out. He said he did not expect to be nominated for the position.

“I am very thankful to be put in that position,” Volpe said. “I see myself as being someone who is really straightforward and pushes to make things get done.”

The senate passed SR 24/25-04, a resolution to amend a previously passed resolution that created a scholarship commissioner and committee.

Reese McCallum, scholarship commissioner and junior marketing major from Jonesboro, presented the resolution.

McCallum said the amendments would clarify the oversight and responsibilities of the scholarship commissioner and committee by adding that the commissioner is responsible for being in communication with the Cooper Alumni Center. The Cooper Alumni Center is able to distribute privately funded scholarships through private donors. 

“The commissioner is responsible for meeting with the Alumni Center and explaining to them the needs for scholarship in different areas, whether that be housing or just institutional scholarships,” McCallum said. 

She said the scholarship committee and commissioner is also responsible for relaying scholarship concerns from students, pursuing privately funded scholarship funding with the Alumni Association and advocating for the needs of the students. The committee will not have the ability to allocate or distribute scholarships. 

For the fall, McCallum said she plans to work on establishing housing scholarships.

The 2025-2026 budget, which has remained unchanged in two years, was passed by the senate. Williams said the structure and distribution of the budget lets SGA spend funds effectively.

Next semester, Williams said his administration will still be invested in transparency, collaboration and innovation, the three areas they highlighted during the 2025 SGA election.

“For Fall, I think spirits are high. Morale is high. We have a great group of senators and a great group of student leaders and I think we’re going to do amazing things in the fall and I’m super excited to see how everything goes,” Williams said.

Shayaan Sayeed | Special to The Herald, contributed to this report.

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