Student Government Passes Legislation to Improve Campus Life for Liberty Students

Liberty University’s Student Government Association is working to improve students’ lives on campus by finalizing three pieces of legislation that implement filtered water fountains at the Jerry Falwell Library and Circle Dorms, replacement charging stations in DeMoss Hall and the addition of a 72 bus route stop at Commons 1 & 2.

After receiving Dr. Jerry Prevo’s signature, the legislations started to move toward fruition. According to Nathan Wehrly, the speaker of SGA’s House of Delegates, these small and practical changes around campus have a major impact on students. 

“I feel like there is no idea too small, to a certain extent, and if it helps even one student, then I feel like it’s worth it,” Wehrly said. “I feel like that’s the mindset that the House of Delegates brings to student government.”

According to Constance Schneider, Student Body president, the Filtered Water Fountain Resolution, written by Wehrly, is a great example of SGA working with other departments on campus. 

“We have been working with the Office of Residence Life for a while now, and they actually requested that we write a bill for filtered water fountains in the Circle and in the library,” Schneider said.  “So, they were the ones that brought us this idea, and they knew that they could ask administration, or it could come from students.”

The Charging Station Resolution is just one example of how a delegate’s experience on campus led to legislation getting written and passed. The bill was written by Delegate Austin Armentrout, who found broken cables in the charging stations in DeMoss Hall, according to Schneider. 

Wehrly said that this resolution is beneficial because if it was a problem for Armentrout, then it was probably an issue for many other students.

“If you’re writing legislation that would fix a problem in your life, it’s probably fixing a problem in 10 other people’s lives,” Wehrly said.

According to Wehrly, the 72 Bus Route Resolution, written by Delegate Dorien Porter, only adds about 50 more seconds to the bus stop schedule at Commons 1 & 2. Wehrly said that Porter saw the benefit of adding this stop and did something about it. 

“Students bring their own perspective to it,” Wehrly said. “If Delegate Porter wasn’t over there and didn’t see the major benefit of the bus could have stopping there, then this legislation might not have been written.”

Schneider said that the great thing about the House is that someone who lives at the Commons can notice problems happening in that area, such as the 72 bus passing by the Commons 1 & 2 bus stop each day.

“It’s so cool how we can have people in all areas of campus that know what needs to be fixed in each respective area,” Schneider said.

According to Wehrly, the main way in which SGA receives ideas for legislation is through staying connected with what students experience on campus. With about 180 delegates, the House is comprised of a diverse group of students.

“The whole function of the House of Delegates is really just trying to stay in touch with what average students want, and what average students feel that this campus needs and the improvements that it needs,” Wehrly said. “The House of Delegates does a really good job of that because of the wide variety that we have in the house.”

According to Schneider, two additional pieces of legislation were passed and signed by Dr. Prevo regarding the availability of specific courses for seniors taking their final classes and short-term absences for National Guard members.

SGA also has other legislations currently in the works, including a faded glass resolution that would implement paneling on the sides of a stairwell in the Library. According to Wehrly, this resolution was brought up by female delegates to fix a privacy issue. 

Wehrly said that other legislations in the works include allowing candle warmers in dorms, an outdoor Convocation resolution and a law school resolution that would allow for a convenient entrance for law students to enter the School of Law in Green Hall. 

“We are just trying to address the small changes that we can practically make that will benefit (students’) lives and their schedules,” Wehrly said.

According to Schneider, the two questions people always ask SGA are about what SGA is and if they actually do anything. To her, passing these bills is proof that the process works.

“Through bills like this, I think it shows publicly that we are getting stuff done,” Schneider said. “That’s why I’m excited because students hopefully will now see that their voices are heard, that they are represented and any ideas they have have the potential to reach Dr. Prevo’s desk. That’s huge.”

Mia Nelson is a News Reporter.

One comment

  • We always start with God…

    Matthew 22:37-40
    English Standard Version
    37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

    Galatians 6:2
    English Standard Version
    2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

    James 4:17
    English Standard Version
    17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

    God has forgiven us in amazing ways. Lord empower us to forgive others, especially those that do not deserve it.

    This December 31st my wife and I would have been married 5 years. Something I have learned over the years is that I consistently check to see how my wife is doing. It is great if I am doing well but if my wife is not just as well or better than I am then not well either. My wife and I have 2 sons. If either of them is not doing well that too affects the wellbeing of the family. Just last night our little boy of 7 months bent his finger back while we put on his jammies for bed. We figured it out in time but for those brief moments we were both concerned and upset. You see that’s how unity works. God has told us in Romans 12:15 to rejoice together and to mourn together. Again, unity moves together. Unity is not self-centered. Unity is about the whole not just one part. The students at Liberty University are just one part. I believe many will agree when I say we love them all. However, after reading this article my heart did not go to the students but the faculty and staff. I will be the first to say my heart is about the Y, Z, and Alpha generations a lot of the time but sometimes that is not what the Lord is showing me. Those that came before you, the X and baby boomer generations are still well in the picture and they too are parts of the body. All too often I hear people talking about the student body but not the employees (student workers, staff, and faculty). In the eyes and heart of Christ there is but one body that encompasses all believers. For many of us we adore ya’ll (the students). We really cannot help it. God made us this way and so we pursue lives that love Him, you, and others.
    Our walks with God are reciprocating circles of love. The whole body should be partaking in these same circles of reciprocating love. He loves, we love, He loves, we love. Are you a student at Liberty University and are doing well? Reach to those around you and love them. Are you a member of the faculty and staff and are doing well? Then reach to those, as the Lord shows you, and love them as yourself. Do not cheapen out and toss around your $0.02. God wants authentic/genuine love (Romans 12). No counterfeits. But if $0.02 is your mite then own it and God too will bless that. Money may not be the issue. Sometimes it is not. Encouraging one another daily could be the issue. Encourage! Exhort one another! Spur each other one daily. Spend time with one another as is possible. This amazing time of the year may be amazing for many but for some it is a reminder of what has been lost or what they never had. Pay attention. We have the power to change lives residing within us we just need to get out of the way and allow Christ to do what Christ does best: LOVE!

    With much adoration and love,

    Christ in us.

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