Dominic Giovanniello has been elected to serve as Shippensburg University’s Student Senate president. Dom, as most people call him, is a sophomore at SU pursuing a bachelor’s degree in political science.
Giovanniello has served as a student senator for two years. As the class of 2017 senator, Giovanniello was a critical player in decisions surrounding the Student Senate’s budget and finance committee for two of the university’s largest student organizations — athletics and Activities Program Board.
“I feel there are some major changes that need to be brought to Shippensburg University and especially changes that need to be lobbied for, such as the proposed tuition increase,” Giovanniello said. As Student Senate president, he believes it is his responsibility to represent the best interests of the student body and oppose the per credit tuition rate.
The Student Senate president’s responsibility is to represent the best interests of the entire student body and lobby for it collectively. The Student Senate president has a wide variety of tasks including leading Student Senate meetings, serving as a cabinet member to the university’s president and serving as the vice president of the university’s Student Services Inc.
After two years of senate service, Nicholas McClure, the senator of the class of 2015 would like to see the roles of the Student Senate defined. “The distinctions between senate and administration responsibilities become unclear and so the student population is not sure who is responsible and, accordingly, accountable for various actions,” McClure said.
Giovanniello agrees that administrative overlap and unclear roles have resulted in a slower timeline of accomplishments. Giovanniello plans to address this issue by ensuring that the senate as a whole is on the same page, heading into the 2015-2016 school year. Selecting goals and agreeing upon how the senate should proceed will improve the current murky situations that the Student Senate faces.
During his presidency, Giovanniello would like to get more students involved in student government.
“While Student Senate holds a considerable amount of power, I feel as though the attitude toward student government at Ship is largely apathetic,” he said.
During his senate presidency, Giovanniello plans to reach out to the incoming freshmen class at orientation this summer. He also encourages students to come and speak with the senators in the senate office, which is located in Room 201 of the Cedia Union Building.
“That was if information is unclear or students have a follow up question then students are able to communicate in person and not have to play email tag,” Giovanniello said.
“I am looking forward to working with the students over the next year to make Shippensburg University an even better place to live, work and go to school,” Giovanniello said.
For more information on Student Senate relations, the constitution and by-laws are posted on the Shippensburg University website. The senate also has a Facebook page, “Shippensburg University Student Senate” and a Twitter page, @SUStudentSenate.

Share