Student Government Association

The purpose of the Student Government Association is to listen to the student body, to create and maintain relations between the student body and the greater Smith community, and to advocate for student needs.
Every student is a member of the SGA, which is responsible for taking up campus issues and responding to student concerns. The SGA also acts as a liaison for students and organizations to the college’s administration and the board of trustees, and allocates money to organizations and students for activities.
Senate Meeting Minutes: The Smith Social Network contains the meeting minutes under Documents.
Cabinets
The SGA Cabinet refers pertinent issues to the Senate for legislation, and to the administration for policy resolution. The SGA Cabinet also works to ensure the financially stability of the SGA and allocates money to support events, groups, and individuals who are benefiting the Smith College community. Each class has a cabinet, which includes the class president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, historian and social chair. Class cabinets work together on class events and fundraisers. Cabinet members are elected in campus-wide and class-wide elections in the spring and fall.
Meetings for 2023–2024 will take place on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. in Campus Center 204.
Class Cabinet Descriptions
Senate
The student senate provides an open space for anyone to come with ideas and concerns about the Smith community. As a governing body for Smith, they aim to be transparent, effective and efficient with every decision they make. Senators are responsible for approving the charters of new student organizations, as well as overseeing the bylaws and guidelines of various SGA committees and groups. They have the opportunity to sit on issue-based committees, with interests ranging from dining to disability services.
Meetings are open to all: Thursdays at 7 p.m., Campus Center Carroll Room
Get Involved
There are numerous ways to get involved on campus. Each house offers a variety of possibilities for students to get involved and participate in house council activities under the umbrella of the SGA.
Have an idea for an organization at Smith that would have lasting relevance to the community? Is there enough student interest to support such an organization? How do you get an organization started at Smith College? The SGA Chartering Committee can help.
Submit a Proposal
1. Gauge interest among your peers. Start a list of interested members for your organization. If the list is greater than 10 people, you can start the process of chartering or recognizing your organization.
2. Decide if you want to charter or recognize your organization. The difference between these two types of student organizations is further explained on the SGA Website under “Chartering Committee”.
A recognized organization is able to have a Smith email address, have space on the Smith Student Social Network, reserve space in campus buildings, and use campus vans for transportation.
A chartered organization has all of the same resources as a recognized organization. In addition, a chartered organization is able to submit funding requests to the Finance Committee for events, projects, supplies and equipment.
3. Start a charter for your organization using the sample charter provided. We encourage building off of the current format and not taking away any of the pieces currently in the sample format. In the charter you must:
Fill out organization name and information where it says ‘xxx’
- Describe the goals and purpose of the organization
- Describe the frequency of meetings and specifically what will occur during meetings
- Choose to be funded or not funded by the Finance Committee (recognized or chartered)
- Choose a nondiscrimination policy (will you allow 5 College Students to join)
4. Schedule a meeting with the Chartering Committee Chair. They will offer advice, explain the chartering process, and answer any questions about the charter that still remain or pertain to your student organization. Use this calendly link to schedule a meeting.
5. Share your charter Google Doc with the Chartering Committee for review. The Chartering Committee will help you revise your charter, so that you can be approved. If you want to be a recognized organization, you are now done with the process and are now officially recognized by Smith College. Congrats! Once approved, the Office of Student Engagement will be in touch about the Smith Social Network and Organization Leader Training.
6. If you are looking to be chartered, you will be scheduled to attend a hearing at a SGA Senate meeting; this is your opportunity to present and defend your charter. You can set up an additional appointment with the Chair of rules committee to go over your presentation and answer any last questions about chartering, the hearing, and the process.
7. The week after your hearing, the senate will vote on your student organization. Once approved, the Office of Student Engagement will be in touch about the Smith Social Network and Organization Leader Training.
Fall 2023 Election Timeline
Registration: September 6-16
Campaigning: September 17-20
Voting Days: September 21 and 22
Results: September 23
First Senate Meeting: September 28
More Information
All questions about the elections should be directed to the SGA Elections Chair
Academic Honor Board Class Representatives
Contact: Alexandra Keller, Dean of the College
One representative from the Sophomore, Junior, Senior, and Ada Comstock class is chosen by the Academic Honor Board each spring to fill open vacancies on the board. All class representatives are selected through an application and interview process, and have tenure until their graduating year.
Advisory Board for the Resource Center on Gender and Sexuality
Contact: The Office for Equity & Inclusion
The Resource Center on Gender and Sexuality provides a space for many different communities at Smith to come together. This board is looking for students who would like to help foster a space for queer community and focus on activism here at Smith. The board is very interested in supporting the queer organizations on campus as well as forwarding and expanding discussions on diversity at Smith.
Bookstore Advisory Committee
Contact: Jill McGrath, Controller
The Bookstore Advisory Committee deals with issues regarding the Smith College bookstore. Student representatives will engage in conversation with the bookstore management team along with other members of the administration and faculty. Through this committee, students will learn more about the bookstore industry and its constituent roles and responsibilities. The committee meets two times per semester.
Campus Safety Advisory Group
Contact: Julianne Ohotnicky, Associate Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students
The Campus Safety Advisory Group is made up of students, faculty, and staff to help guide the policies and practices of the Department of Campus Safety. The committee meets monthly.
Committee on Missions and Priorities (CMP)
Contact: Elena Palladino, Secretary of the Board of Trustees and Assistant to the President of the College
The Committee on Mission and Priorities is made up of two student representatives and members of the faculty and administration who advise the president on strategic, financial, human and physical resource planning for the college's next decade. The committee solicits, generates, and reviews proposals for major projects and initiatives; assesses progress in achieving the goals of current initiatives; and recommends priorities for the allocation and reallocation of resources. The committee meets regularly with the Committee on Academic Priorities, the Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation, and the appropriate committees of the Board of Trustees, both to be informed by and to be informed of the work of those committees. Periodically the CMP reports its findings and recommendations to the Smith community at large. Meetings are generally held once a month on Wednesday or Thursday afternoons. Two students (a junior and a senior) serve on the committee, each with staggered terms of two years. Time commitment: two years. Only rising juniors are eligible to apply.
SGA Curriculum Committee
Contact: the SGA Vice-Chair of Appointments
The Curriculum Committee is responsible for keeping the student Senate and the campus at large informed of curriculum concerns and changes. The committee assists the administration with the college's mandatory faculty teaching evaluations and holds forums to discuss timely educational policy issues. The Curriculum Committee serves as a resource for academic representatives, department liaisons, and the student body at large - traditional and non-traditional students alike.
Library Advisory Committee
Contact: Susan Fliss, Dean of Libraries
The Committee shall review the Library operating budget, capital budget requests, space, staffing, long-range planning, and other Library matters. The Committee may make recommendations on these matters to the Provost and Dean of the Faculty. It shall consider the way in which the Library's policies and practices can best meet the curricular and scholarly needs of its users.
Finance Committee
Contact: the SGA Vice-Chair of Appointments
The Finance Committee consists of the Chair of Finance (aka the Vice President for Finance), the Vice Chair of chartering (aka the Vice Chair of Rules Committee), the SGA president, and ten liaisons. The Vice President for Finance is elected by the student body in the spring of each year. The Vice Chair is elected internally by the Finance Committee in the fall. Eight liaisons are appointed in the fall through the Committee on Appointments. Two Senator liaisons will be elected in the fall through the Senate.
Serving on the ORC is a one-year commitment. Organization chairs, presidents and treasurers cannot serve on the board.
Technology Steering Committee
Contact: Samantha Earp, Chief Information Officer and Vice President for Information Technology and Service
The Technology Steering Committee (TSC) is the senior governance group for technology issues at the college. The committee guides and advises Information Technology Services and senior management on strategic information technology matters. In collaboration with the CIO, the committee recommends IT priorities, policies and strategies. Throughout the year the committee will: evaluate, review, and recommend changes to IT policies; recommend annual technology investment priorities; provide guidance on the balance of central and departmental responsibilities for technology; monitor ITS plans to sustain the necessary capacity, security, and recoverability of the college's technology infrastructure; and review and make recommendations on new opportunities for Five College technology collaborations. The TSC is co-chaired by the provost and the vice president for Finance and Administration, and is staffed by the CIO.
Campus Planning Committee
Contact: Matthew Tomaszewski, Associate Vice President for Campus Planning and Sustainability
The Campus Planning Committee shall consist of, the Provost or the Associate Provost, the Dean of the College (or designee), the Vice President for Finance and Administration (Chair), the Associate Vice President for Facilities and Operations the Associate Vice President for Campus Planning and Sustainability, the Director of the Botanic Garden, five members of the faculty, two staff members, and one student. Faculty, staff and student members are appointed by the president and serve three year terms when possible
The Committee provides feedback and makes recommendations to the president on campus landscape and exterior design, including considerations of accessibility. The committee shall review all building and renovation projects with exterior design changes, make recommendations related to implementation of the Landscape Master Plan, recommend standards for campus signage and outdoor furniture, inform decisions regarding campus traffic and parking matters, and make recommendations about the installation of outdoor works of art.
Inclusion Council
Contact: Floyd Cheung, Vice President for Equity and Inclusion
The mission of the Inclusion Council is to offer grounded perspectives on how inclusion, diversity and equity -- inherent in the relationships, practices and activities of students, staff and faculty -- are playing out at Smith College. The members of the council shall advise the Vice President for Equity and Inclusion on what’s working well and how the College can improve. The Council has a student from each class year represented and new members are appointed as positions are vacated.
Vendor Code of Conduct Advisory Committee
Contact: TBD
Smith College is committed to conducting its business affairs in a socially responsible manner consistent with its educational mission and commitment to diversity. To this end, this code of conduct is a working document to guide vendor and institutional purchasers of apparel. The vendor code is a work in progress and will be revised through an active participation in the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC) and the Fair Labor Association (FLA). Smith College recognizes eight cardinal principles as the basis for effective performance under this code of conduct: full public disclosure of factory addresses, commitment to fair wages, independent monitoring, freedom of association and collective bargaining, safe working conditions, no forced labor, no child labor, and women's rights. Smith College expects affiliated vendors and institutional purchasers to conduct their business in a manner consistent with these principles and to follow workplace standards that adhere to this code of conduct.
Please contact the SGA Vice-Chair of Appointments with any questions or concerns.
Committees
Student Funding
There are two types of funding available for students through the SGA. The Conference Fund is allocated each year by the SGA Cabinet from the current SGA budget. This fund is to assist students attend conferences off campus.
The Sawyer Fund is an endowed fund for events held on the Smith College campus that are free and open to the community.
Fall 2023 Funding
Students applying for 2023-24 funding should use the 2023-24 Universal Conference Fund Application to apply for individual student conference funding and the Fall 2023 SGA Funding Application to apply for organization funding, organization conference funding and Sawyer Funding. Both forms are available under forms on the Smith Social Network.
Five College Funding
Additional funding can be found through Five College Funding for student events and lecture opportunities.
Chartered Organizations Funding
All chartered organizations can apply for all funding through the SGA Funding Application.
Chartered organizations that would like to attend a conference as a part of the organization may apply for the Organization Conference Funding, also on the SGA Funding Application. Organizations are limited to four students if the conference includes hotel accommodations and seven for day conferences where no overnight accommodations are necessary.
Organization funding come from the student activities fee.
These funding policies will help you and your organization better manage the event planning process
Organization Discretionary Fund
Available to any SGA funded chartered organization. Its purpose is to cover qualified expenses throughout the year on a continual basis, at the Finance Committee's discretion. Questions should be directed to the SGA VP of Finance.
Organization Equipment Fund
Available to any SGA chartered organization. Its purpose is to cover any one-time expenses for equipment associated with the functioning of that organization, as the Finance Committee determines appropriate. "one-time" expenses can include those that are necessary every five years or more.
Apply for Funds
Log into the Smith Social Network to access the SGA Funding Application. No retroactive applications will be accepted.
Please Note: You must turn on your notifications in the Social Network as this is how the Finance Committee will contact you about your funding request.
Deadline
Applications must be submitted by Monday at 5 p.m. to be heard the week they were submitted. Late applications will be saved for the next meeting.
The Finance Committee Chair (who also serves as the SGA VP of Finance) will present the request to the committees for review and will be available for consultation and assistance to students during the entire funding process.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long in advance should I submit the Universal Funding Application?
Applications for funding should be turned in, at a minimum, two weeks prior to the event.
When does the money allocated get transferred?
Money allocated from the discretionary/equipment fund application should be transferred by the end of the week as long as the event has been registered in the Smith Social Network..
May student organizations apply to the SGA funds?
All chartered organizations should apply to Organization Funding first. They may apply to other sources of funding for the difference in what the Finance Committee has allocated.
What happens to the money that is not spent?
The money that isn't spent will go back to Organization Discretionary Fund in order to fund more student events.
What does "tabled" mean?
Tabled means that the committee was unable to make a decision on your request due to lack of information and will look at the application on the next meeting. Meanwhile, it is the responsibility of the organization to provide the requested information for the Finance Committee.
What should I do if I need funding for forks, napkins and utensils?
Forks, napkins and utensil expenses are included in the food allocation are funded according to Organization Funding guidelines.
How long does it take for the allocated money to be on the org account?
Money transferred by the end of the week as long as the event has been registered in the Smith Social Network. Contact the Office of Student Engagement for more information.
What goes into a Finance Committee decision?
The Finance Committee makes a decision according to the guidelines outlined in the Organization Funding Policies document.
What is a complete budget request?
Submit all documents by the submission deadline. Any additional information submitted during the budget hearings will not be considered.
I have been asked to attach a Business Plan for my budget request. Is there an example of what they are looking for?
Business plans are an important part of a fundraising request. Here is a business plan example of what the committee is looking for.
How do I get help with my application and event planning process?
For help with your application please contact the SGA VP of Finance. For help with event planning, please contact the Office of Student Engagement.
What happens to my funding if I am charging for my event?
The revenue will be deducted from the total requested amount. If the revenue exceeds the cost, the request will not be funded.
The Universal Conference Fund helps fund Smith students attend a conference that is taking place off campus. Individual students apply through the Universal Conference Fund Application. Organizations apply to the Organization Conference Fund through the SGA Funding Application. Both applications are found on the Smith Social Network.
The Conference Fund is for individuals; the Organization Conference Fund is a fund for organizations looking to go together as an organization to a conference. The limit on the number of people is one SGA van full (seven people, including driver) or 4 people. The organization's treasurer would apply for the Conference Fund if the org wants to take a SGA van.
The SGA sets aside a contribution from their operating budget to support the Universal Conference Fund to assist students in need of financial support to pursue outside academic opportunities in the form of conferences. There are limited funds available for the Conference Fund. Students must state whether or not they have applied and successfully received Conference Fund funding previously in the academic year for which they are applying. Students must outline the differences between each application and explain the necessity for going to each event.
Application
The 2022-23 Universal Conference Fund Application is available through the Smith Social Network.
Please Note: You must turn on your notifications in the Social Network as this is how the Finance Committee will contact you about your funding request.
DEADLINE
Applications must be submitted by Monday at 5 p.m. to be heard the week they were submitted. Late applications will be saved for the next meeting.
The SGA VP of Finance will present the request to the Finance Committee for review and will be available for consultation and assistance to students during the entire funding process.
The SGA Sawyer Fund helps fund an event held on the Smith College campus. Any individual or organization in the Smith community may apply. The event must be free of charge and open to all Smith students and the larger community.
Bringing Speakers to Campus
If bringing a speaker from outside of Smith, signed contracts with invited speakers should be filed in the Office of Student Engagement.
Application
Students may apply for the Sawyer Fund using the Fall 2023 SGA Funding Application.
Please Note: You must turn on your notifications in the Social Network as this is how Finance and ORC will contact you about your funding request.
Planning an Event
Once your request has been approved, a member of the Office of Student Engagement can advise you on the managing of the logistics of your event, from locating the space to planning refreshments.
SGA Budget
The operating budget for the Student Government Association comes out of the Student Activities Fee, which is a part of every student’s tuition.
The Operating Budget briefly describes each SGA account; how much money each account was allocated last year; how much money each account spent last year; and how much money the SGA has allocated for the current year. Open the Student Government Association 2023–24 Budget (PDF).
Any questions regarding the SGA budget should be directed to the vice president of finance.
Student Vehicle Usage
Smith College has a pool of Facilities Management vehicles that student groups and houses can reserve. If you have questions or concerns, please contact sgaoffice@smith.edu or 413-585-4950.
We have a comprehensive guide on how to reserve vans. If you have any further questions, please email sgaoffice@smith.edu. When making van reservation requests, please include VAN REQUEST in the title of the event, especially if your organization doesn’t usually request vans, so that the SGA Office is aware it is a van request and can process it accordingly.
Organizations can use the vans for off-campus events and trips. You may not use vans for hauling equipment or for personal reasons.
We ask that van requests are submitted at least one week before the date of van use. If requests are received less than a week before the event, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to process the request.
Maximum Vans Per Request
Typically, we are only able to accommodate two vans per request, especially on the weekends. Requests for three vans will be reviewed on a case by case basis.
Each van needs two registered drivers. Registration is valid from August of one year to August of the next. Any drivers who were previously registered but have not re-registered since August 2023 need to update their credentials and re-do the class. We have a PowerPoint presentation that gives step-by-step instructions on how to become driver credentialed as well as other van policies and guidelines.
We have a strike system for the vans. An organization may obtain three (3) strikes in a semester before its van usage privileges are revoked until the first day of classes the following semester. Strikes include missing van reservations, forgetting to return key packets, last-minute cancellations, and other situations as they arise. The organization will be notified once it has incurred two strikes and is at risk of losing van privileges. After three strikes, the organization’s van requests for the remainder of the semester will be canceled, and it cannot submit another van request until the first day of the next semester. For example, if you lose your van privileges during the fall semester, you won’t be able to request vans until the first day of classes of the spring semester.
Cancellation Policy
In the event you need to cancel your van reservation, please contact the SGA Office immediately. For a cancellation within 24 hours of the reservation, please email both the SGA Office and Facilities. There are other organizations in need of vans, and we often have a waitlist. If we know about a cancellation in a reasonable amount of time, it will not count as a strike against your organization.
Weather-Related Cancellations
We’re reaching the point in the semester where the weather is starting to change. Facilities reserves the right to determine if it’s safe to drive the vans or not, especially as it gets snowier, and will be in contact through the Social Network about canceling van requests due to high-risk weather. We ask that you regularly check the email associated with your van requests as well as the Social Network during inclement weather events to remain informed of changes to your reservation. These cancellations do not count as strikes because Facilities determines whether or not it is safe for these events to happen.
Contact Student Government
Campus Center Lower Level
Smith College
Northampton, MA 01063
Phone: 413-585-4950 Email: sga@smith.edu
Facebook InstagramOffice Hours
Monday-Friday 9 a.m.–5 p.m.