Student Government Association President Kyle Harry can be seen all over campus, attending events, giving speeches and laughing among students. Certainly, he has a presence on campus: many students know who he is and have conversed with him at some point.

Despite his preseence, however, Harry’s job still remains elusive to many students – many do not know exactly what his position entails. The Ionian took the opportunity to ask Harry the students most asked questions, and quell any uncertainties that Harry is not up to the challenging task of representing the student body.

 

What is your position at Iona College?

I am the Student Government President. Essentially I act as the representative and advocate for the entire student body. This goes beyond clubs/organizations, and focuses on the positive development of the student body; ensuring that questions and concerns are being addressed in a timely fashion.

 

As president of the student government association, what does a typical day in your life entail?

Wow, loaded question, but on a serious note it is more of a weeklong job. At minimum, 11 hours of my time is dedicated to SGA. Everything from our weekly legislative meetings to my 1:1’s with my advisors. Unfortunately, this does not include the extra hours needed for various events, College Council meetings, meetings with President Br. James A. Liguori and extra office hours to catch back up on work. SGA aside, I enjoy spending the rest of my time at work in the Admissions Office or in class. This position can really be anything the beholder wants to make it: one can do just the bare minimum or go above and beyond.

 

How do your actions as SGA President affect the student body?

Indirectly, I affect the student body via my various meetings with board members and the members of College Council. Because I am the student representative, any decision I make is on the behalf of the student body. Normally I will not make a decision until I bring it to the legislature and poll for more information; however there have been instances that, due to time sensitivity, I have had to make executive decisions. I really think that representing the student body has been both an arduous yet fulfilling duty, for I truly believe that the students are the heart of this campus. I only wish that more students would get involved, or become much more responsive to questions that determine the ultimate direction that their college lives will take.

 

What do you hope to accomplish by the end of May?

My main focus is transitioning next year’s E-board, to be honest. There was a slight disparity between last year and this year, and I am looking to rectify that by ensuring that all members of the incoming SGA E-board know exactly what we have done, how things have been done and that these positions are not a matter of sustaining the norm, but rather taking one’s passion and really running with it. Save for that, I also hope to see the addition of new activity hours for the student body. I think that because we (as a campus) are developing at such a fast pace, we need to ensure there is space to do so. These activity hours are used for more than club meetings, but rather as a time to focus on the development of the self through events, meetings with professors and advisors or even just to get lunch.

 

What do you enjoy doing in your time away from campus?

Well, I am huge into music. It is my life and I cannot imagine a world without it. For those who have actually gone to the SGA website, or just personally know me, they would be aware of my obsession with the Dave Matthews Band. Alongside that, I love reading, huge into philosophy, big fan of the show Californication and given nice weather, I am either at the beach or jogging in the woods.

 

Anything else that you would like to tell the student body?

Remember that your education really does continue outside of the classroom. We come here as students thinking that the our sole purpose is to achieve something close to a 4.0 and to memorize everything that has to do with our field so that we may be the best, but it is so much more than that. There are a vast amount of opportunities available here at Iona, and even just to be aware of them is a lot better than nothing at all. Most importantly, remember to have fun. Life is way too short to drive yourself crazy over the small stuff, and everything seems to work itself out in the end anyway.