Sincerely, SGA: A month of advocating for student success, safety and a better Auburn

Dear Auburn Family, 

As we continue into this holiday season, we hope that you find joy and rest. SGA worked diligently throughout November, and we are pleased to share with you what we have accomplished.  

In this newsletter, we will cover Safety Walk, Better Relations Day with the University of Alabama, Breaking Barriers event, Canvas Mental Health Awareness Tab launch, the beginning of Spring Elections and Ring Night.

We kicked off the month by participating in the Safety Walk on Nov. 7. Looking for poorly lit areas, damaged sidewalks and re-evaluating blue light placements are just a few ways we ensured safety for all. We are committed to making our campus as safe as possible for all and are thankful to Campus Safety, Auburn Police Department and Auburn Communications for their partnership. 

This year, we had the honor of hosting the University of Alabama’s SGA during our annual Better Relations Day on Nov. 9. In hopes of fostering relationships and learning from each other, both SGA’s alternate visiting each other’s campuses annually. This event featured representatives from all branches of Cabinet, Senate, Judicial, Elections, Miss Auburn’s committee, Miss Homecoming and Miss UA. In total, 88 SGA members attended. 

It was a day of rich conversations. Several SGA members led breakout sessions on topics including Upholding Traditions, Better Relations within Student Government, Communication and Programming, Ensuring the Individual Student’s Voice is Heard and Enhancing the Student Experience.

We concluded the day with Auburn’s SGA President John David Jones and Alabama’s SGA President Collier Dobbs signing the 2023 agreement in honor of uniting the universities. We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to every individual who played a part in this day. 

The following week, SGA members participated in the annual Breaking Barriers Event on Nov. 14. The collective governance groups, BSU, ISO and SGA came together to discuss topics over ice cream. Building relationships and furthering unity are at the core of this event. The groups conversed about community, belonging, housing, mental health, recruitment, retention, affordability, safety and our organization’s outreach across campus. 

Our SGA Executive Team launched a mental health tab on Canvas for students, staff and faculty on Nov. 16. Including information regarding Auburn Cares, the Student Counseling and Psychological Services (SCPS) and mental health emergencies, this tab ensures quick availability to various mental health resources offered on campus. 

To promote the Canvas tab, SCPS and Auburn Cares collaborated with SGA on the Haley Concourse the afternoon of the launch. We had the privilege of hosting the SCPS therapy dogs and a portion of the SCPS counseling team, as we handed out promotional items to students. It is an honor to be working with our mental health services on campus and taking steps to make mental health care more accessible at Auburn.

The beginnings of Spring elections occurred this month as the Top 5 candidates for Miss Auburn were selected. Nominated by various organizations, eligible women were chosen to interview on Nov. 27. After the first round, the Top 20 were announced that night. The individuals then completed a second round of interviews with the Top 5 being announced on Nov. 28. In no particular order, this year’s Top 5 include: Grace Crim, Alexxia Carter, Lily Pounders, Claire Congo and Abbie Starr. Please keep your eye out for these candidates and our other major candidates on the concourse for campaign week Jan. 30-Feb. 2. 

As the month came to a close, SGA hosted our fall Ring Night for students receiving their class ring on Nov. 30. Ring Night welcomed Aubie, Aurea (War Eagle VIII) and other special guests to bring spirit to beloved traditions.

Lastly, we hope that you will join us as SGA hosts Up All Night. This finals week event treats students with late-night snacks and appearances from a few of Auburn’s special guests. The event will take place in the Ralph Brown Draughon library at midnight on the nights of Dec. 3-7. 

To the student body, we wish you all the best during finals week. Thank you for the honor and privilege of serving you, Auburn.