Representing SUNY Fredonia at the SUNY Student Assembly spring conference were (from left): Morgan Martin, Jordan Stephens, Isabelle Price, Dakota Richter, Hayley Mercer, Melisa Bonilla and Cassidy Pierce.
Seven SUNY Fredonia students joined more than 350 students throughout SUNY at the SUNY Student Assembly spring conference.
The system-wide assembly represents all 1.4 million students enrolled in SUNY and oversees all 64 student governments. During the conference, held April 25 to 27 in Syracuse, NY, students were able to speak with Chancellor John B. King Jr. during a panel as well as hear his initiatives for students.
Dakota Richter, president of SUNY Fredonia’s Student Association (SA) and a senior Biology major from Fredonia, NY, defeated the current incumbent secretary in a April 26 election.
Votes are based on the voting delegates of schools. The number of voting delegates is assigned in a ratio of one for every 4,000 students. SUNY Fredonia only has one voting delegate out of a total of 114 throughout the system. In most cases, the SGA president on each campus is the voting delegate, however, if there are more the president can choose who represents the school.
SUNY Fredonia had one resolution with co-sponsorship from SUNY Geneseo President Orquidia Geraldino and Monroe Community College President Angelo Romero. The resolution was in support of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, LGBTQ+ rights and reproductive freedom in the SUNY system.
The purpose of the resolution is to reaffirm the SUNY Student Assembly’s commitment to protecting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, providing access to gender-affirming care and reproductive healthcare across the SUNY system and calling on the SUNY Board of Trustees to advocate fiercely for these rights in light of recent political attacks at the federal level.
This resolution passed the Student Assembly with the SUNY Fredonia campus voting in support.
Two Fredonia members – Cassidy Pierce (current chief justice of the SA), a senior Communication: Public Relations student, with a minor in Leadership Studies, from Buffalo, NY, and Jordan Stephens (current chair of Sustainability and next SA president), a junior Business Administration major from Silver Springs, NY – were looking forward to running for SUNYSA representative positions to represent the University Center. There are only three positions available, however elections were postponed and will be happening over Zoom due to time constraints.
The secretary position as well as these representative positions will be key in advocating for local issues as well as issues throughout the entirety of New York state.
All seven SUNY Fredonia Student Association members attending the conference addressed representatives of all 64 campuses and shared their concerns on multiple occasions throughout the conference.
They included: Melisa Bonilla (chair of Diversity Relations and president of Latinos Unidos), Morgan Martin (Sophomore Class president), Jordan Stephens (chair of Sustainability and next SGA president), Isabelle Price (Junior Class president), Hayley Mercer (speaker of the General Assembly), Cassidy Pierce (chief justice) and Mr. Richter (Student Association president).
During the conference, SUNY Fredonia students also managed to form a strong connection with Jamestown Community College SGA and look forward to working with them more directly.
