By Matt Clyburn
After the sudden resignation of former Student Government Association President Matt Vekakis last week, SGA senators took time to reflect on Vekakis’ decision and his tenure.
Freshman Senator Matt Hubbard said that Vekakis was a “great president.”
“I really enjoyed my first semester as an SGA senator with him as president. I’ll miss him,” Hubbard said in an interview with The Recorder last week.
“Matt stepping down was a shock to me,” said Senator Erika Dawson-Head. “When I received the email I thought it was a joke, until I saw the article on the Recorder’s online [edition].”
“Matt was fair as an SGA president and did not let his personal relationships with other senators interfere with his job as president,” Dawson-Head said. “Matt committed to the SGA 100 percent during his time on SGA and will be missed. I wish him all the best in the future and know he will do great things.”
“This entire school year, there has been a lot of ups and downs in the senate,” said Senator Ryan Baldassario. “There’s been a lot of infighting, sometimes there’s been a lack of cohesion. But I feel that even though sometimes there were low points, President Vekakis did help us get out of them.”
“He did his best to get us into the shape we’re in now – even though we’re a little rocky – because of him I think we’ll be doing pretty solid in the future,” Baldassario said.
Some Senators took the opportunity to criticize Vekakis’ decision.
“You have a contract between you and the students who voted for you. So, in my opinion, it would have been better if he fulfilled that contract he had with the people who elected him,” said Senator Albi Sako.
Still, others expressed gratitude for the decision so that the governing body could move forward with the work ahead of them.
“[Vekakis] did the honorable thing by stepping down when he decided he couldn’t follow through on his commitment” said Senator Tyler Zajac.
“It’s unfortunate that it’s all happening at once, but I think [Vekakis] did what he should have given the circumstances,” said Hubbard. “The Senate’s been going through a lot this year with the resignation of two-thirds of our e-board. Now more than ever, it’s crunch time.”
“We need to assess where we’re at, deal with what gets thrown at us, and just keep on moving,” Hubbard added.
“[The next step] is to move forward, group ourselves behind a new leader, reassess our values and really crack down these last couple weeks to get everything back where they should be. Get our constitution and bylaws in order, make sure the clubs get their funding and make sure that the upcoming spring elections go as smoothly as possible so that next year’s senators can experience a quality time together rather than the chaos we’ve kind of gone through this year,” Baldassario said.
The senate elected Senator Jamie Canny to the post of SGA interim president in a special election last Wednesday. Canny defeated Eric Bergenn and Justin Blain.
“Jamie is an excellent choice for an interim president; she is a candidate that will be fair, honest and really listen to both sides of the story. Jamie will create balance on the SGA now that Matt is gone,” Dawson-Head said.
“I think it’s time for somebody else to step up and I will gladly do my part as a senator to support [Canny],” Hubbard said.
Canny began her term during last week’s meeting and will serve until the end of the Spring 2011 semester. Elections for next year’s officers and senators will be held in April.