Does it Matter? What College Student Governments Talk About

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to identify student governing bodies’ roles for decision-making. Data were collected from 73 student government association (SGA) agendas. Agendas were analyzed by three researchers with each conducting a separate analysis of topics and choices made by student governing bodies. Meetings minutes ranged from 53 minutes to 2 hours and 52 minutes. Prevalent topics discussed or voted upon included allocations for student fees, campus and business life issues, and academic procedures, endorsement of the Dream Act, student voter registration, and state funding for higher education.