SGA passes multiple resolutions, but fails to pass big changes to Liberty Way

In April of last year, at the height of campaign week of Liberty University’s student body elections, soon-to-be elected Student Body President Caleb Johnson and Vice President Jared Cave drove home a campaign message of bringing practical, small-scale changes to campus.

These type of feasible changes, they said – like continuing to update the Liberty Today app and fighting for more meal swipe options at Dunkin’ Donuts – make the biggest impact on the lifestyle of Liberty students.

“I really want SGA to be about getting rid of minor inconveniences for students,” Johnson said. “If we focus on doing that, we can make a huge impact.”

There have been exactly 12 proposals aimed at removing such “minor inconveniences” that have been passed by the House and Senate of Liberty’s Student Government Association and placed onto Johnson’s desk. Six of these were signed by him during the first week of this semester.

One resolution to give students alternative ways to pay for on-campus laundry services, for example, was signed by Johnson last Wednesday, Jan. 24 after being passed by the House and Senate last semester. Two separate resolutions — one that allows students to use Flames Cash to pay for printing and another that allows Flames Cash to be used to purchase tickets — were signed on the same day.

He also approved one that calls for a walkway to be constructed outside an entrance and exit of Commons I, and another that prohibits off-campus students who are Virginia residents from being charged for on-campus health services.

A resolution that would allow students to use meal swipes to buy iced coffee at the on-campus location of Dunkin’ Donuts still sits on Johnson’s desk, though he said he hopes to sign it soon bearing that the logistics of the resolution are doable.

The resolutions that were passed by Johnson are not certain to be implemented, though. According to SGA policy, proposals signed by the student body president must also be approved by Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Mark Hine, who oversees Liberty’s SGA, and President Jerry Falwell to take full effect.

In an email sent to the Liberty Champion, Johnson stated that the six proposals he signed on Jan. 24 have yet to be approved by Hine.

Still, a busy start to the spring semester for Johnson contrasts highly to the pace of his administration last semester, his first semester leading SGA. Before Jan. 24, Johnson approved at total of four resolutions — two of which dealt with internal SGA affairs — and vetoed one.

Even so, Johnson said he is confident his administration will complete everything that he and Jared campaigned on by the end of the month.

An updated Liberty Today App, a curfew policy to allow late-night sign outs anywhere — which was pushed for by Johnson and Cave in spring 2017 and signed by former Student Body President Jack Heaphy — are among the promises that were central to Johnson’s campaign.

Another campaign promise, to build an online church database that students can use to find information on local churches, is currently in the works and should be available on Liberty SGA’s website soon, he said.

Such proposals and resolutions that are prioritized for their practicality have thus become the cornerstone for progress throughout Johnson’s administration, and it is what he and Cave hope to be remembered for once their term ends at the end of this semester.

“When people look back, we want them to remember us by being here for students and building tools for them to use,” Johnson said.

In SGA’s House of Delegates, a different mindset of robust, proactive change continues to prevail in the face of Johnson’s message of practicality. Whereas Johnson signed off on four resolutions in the fall semester, the House passed a total of 31, many of which sought drastic changes to the Liberty Way and overall landscape of campus.

Resolutions that would have permitted students to smoke, drink off campus, swear on campus, wear shorts to class, allowed men to wear nose rings and result in the abolishment curfew were among those resolutions passed by the House. The only resolution of these to also pass the Senate was HR56 — to allow off-campus drinking; it was quickly vetoed by Johnson.

For SGA Speaker of the House Caleb Fitzpatrick, the House’s strife with the Liberty Way is a manifestation of Liberty’s changing student body. With approximately 200 delegates representing every residential hall and off-campus students, the SGA House is built to best portray the thoughts and desires of students.

“I am convinced the type of resolutions that are taking shots at the Liberty Way are indicative of where the student body is at now,” Fitzpatrick said. “Regardless of my feelings of the Liberty Way, the mass opinion is that these changes should be made.”

Fitzpatrick pointed out that the resolutions which were killed in the Senate last semester remained dead. Rather than sending the unpassed resolutions back to the House with amendments, the Senate simply voted “no” on them, making it difficult for the House to craft legislation that can make it to Johnson’s desk.

“It’s essentially using veto power,” Fitzpatrick said.

Johnson, answering why he used his own veto power to strike down the off-campus drinking resolution — arguably the most contentious resolution to reach his desk — said he felt a personal moral obligation to do so and did not think the resolution was very achievable.

Asked if it is more important to represent the student body’s needs or stick to Liberty’s traditional standards, he said he feels a responsibility to ensure the wellbeing of the student body.

“I was voted here to represent the student body, but at the same time, I have to do what I think is right,” Johnson said. “There’s that balance; I have to make sure what the student body wants won’t be detrimental to them.”

The only resolution that was recently signed by Johnson pertaining to the Liberty Way was HR72, one to “limit penalties regarding self-harm and mental illness.” Currently, threatening to do “bodily harm” and engaging in “life-threatening behavior or language” are fineable offenses in the Liberty Way. A student can be fined $250 for the former and $500 for the latter.

The resolution, if put into effect, would change the language in the Liberty Way to penalize students who engage in “life-threatening behavior or language towards another person” to remove the notion that students can be penalized for self-harm.

Moving on, Johnson said he and Cave have decided to shift their administration’s focus to hosting more SGA events in the spring. He mentioned SGA’s football championship party to take place on Sunday, Feb. 4, and more “Breakfast for Dinner” events that will take place on the last Wednesday of every month starting Jan. 31.

By doing so, Johnson hopes to improve students’ perspective of SGA, which he said will be his gauge of success for what he and Cave have been able to accomplish.

“Do students see SGA as a little clique that is unattainable, or do they see SGA as being here for them?” Johnson said. “I’m really encouraged by seeing new faces coming into the SGA office and a growing number of members in the House; it’s a sign that things around here are getting better.”