If you cannot view this poll click here.
June, 2010
21
Jun 10
#SGAChat #1
Hello World! My name is Andrew Schwartz and I will be your moderator for wednesday’s chat. So, I know we have a little bit before it starts but since this will be the first chat I moderate, I would like to get a feel for what this blog is all about. As some of you may have found out, I am a high school student. I have been highly active in Student Government activities for 7 years and on friday will be attending my second NASC (National Association of Student Councils) Conference on Leadership and Student Activities. I love being active at my school and I love being a leader. But there is one issue that came up during my schools previous election that I personally would like to get your opinions on. my blog is anschwartz.wordpress.com. please feel free to read and comment. Now lets be clear. I will in no way try to sway the discussion in any way I like. I plan on tweeting from two accounts. I will tweet my opinions from my personal account, and tweet questions from the admin account. Ok, lets get to the point. I want to hear from everyone who reads this. Tell me what you like about this blog, what you like about this chat. What did the last moderator to to impress you/tick you off? I want to get as much information from you guys as possible so I can be a great moderator. Happy tweeting!
21
Jun 10
Who controls a high school election?
A high school principal in Westchester County NY recently decided that presidential candidates would not be able to present their speeches to the school before elections. This was because he felt that the speeches were too focused on entertainment and not enough on student government issues. Here’s the question: should a high school principal be able to control what is supposed to be a democratic election? is taking away those speeches give one candidate an edge over the other? do you think the outcome of the election would have been different if the speeches were read out to the school? Here is an article from the local newspaper on the subject;
What do you think?
16
Jun 10
#SGAchat tonight – UC Irvine Shuts Down Its Muslim Student Union
It was revealed this week that the UC Irvine administration is taking steps to suspend the charter of the UCI Muslim Student Union in the wake of the disruption of an on-campus speech by the Israeli ambassador to the US. (A copy of the administration’s letter to MSU can be found here.)
MSU is appealing the suspension, which is slated to take effect on September 1.
The administration’s move raises a long list of questions about campus governance, ranging from the issue of collective punishment to that of student government control over student organizations. It raises practical concerns as well: Will the administration bar student government from chartering a new MSU? If not, will it police the membership and officer rolls of any such group?
We’ll be discussing these questions and many more at tonight’s #sgachat, to be held at 8:30 PM Eastern Time (5:30 Pacific.)
If you’re new to #sgachat, here’s how it works: At 8:30, you sign into your Twitter account, search for tweets that include the #sgachat hashtag. When you post a tweet with the word “#sgachat” in it, your tweet will be visible to everyone else doing that search, whether they’re following you or not. Refreshing the search will show you responses to your comment, along with the rest of the conversation.
It’s that simple: Search, read, tweet. I’ll be facilitating the chat via the @sgachat Twitter account, and participating through @studentactivism. See you tonight!
2
Jun 10
SGA Chat Tonight: What’s a “Student Issue”?
The #sgachat is a weekly open discussion of student government issues, held every Wednesday on Twitter. Anyone can join, and everyone is welcome.
Tonight’s chat is being held at 8 PM Eastern Time (5 PM Pacific), and the subject is “student issues” — what issues are appropriate for student governments to take on, what should they set aside? Are all issues student issues, or should student governments leave big social issues to others to address?
Here’s how it works. At one o’clock, you sign into your Twitter account, and do a search on the #sgachat hashtag. There you’ll see tweets from other participants. When you tweet something using that hashtag — by including the word “#sgachat” somewhere in your tweet — your tweet will be visible to everyone else doing that search, whether they’re following you or not.
It’s that simple: Search, read, tweet. The conversation goes on for an hour, with participants discussing and asking questions and the facilitator raising new topics whenever the conversation lags. You can also post tweets of interest at other times during the week to keep in touch.
It’s a great way to start a conversation, a great way to make connections with people who share your interest in student organizing, and a great way to find new people to follow — and attract some new followers of your own!
The topic of the weekly chat is normally chosen by vote, and the poll on this week’s topic is below. Join the conversation at 8 PM!
To receive updates about future chats and events, get the latest student government news, and find out about new posts on this blog, follow @sgachat on Twitter.
