Don’t Start Over from Scratch!
There’s no need to reinvent the wheel! Use these ASGA resources to improve voter turnout, get more publicity for your SG, recruit more members, get students to care about your SG, learn your current strengths/weaknesses, and more.
Assessment Tools
Take these two ASGA tests and get a grade for your SG.
Effectiveness Test will quantify your SG’s strengths and weaknesses. When you complete the 13-question test, you will have a score for your SG. This is your chance to finally find out how yours stacks up against the best.
Before you start boasting, even the finest SGs have lots of room for improvement.
You must be an ASGA Member, and be logged in, to access the SG Test and its related information.
ow SG-friendly your college or university really is and how you can improve that relationship.
You must be an ASGA Member, and be logged in, to access the Administrator Test and its related information.
The 25 Worst Mistakes Your SG Can Make NEW!
Save your SG wasted time, money, and a lot of frustration.
The 25 Worst Mistakes
By knowing what to look out for, you can avoid mistakes that will drag your SG down.
Recharge My SG
Perfect if you are reforming your SG, forming a new SG, or just need help getting your organization back on track.
Jump-Start My Student Government
Is your SG struggling? Are you having trouble recruiting members? Are you unsure of what your role is on campus? If so, you’re not alone.
FACT 1:
Many Student Governments, no matter the size or type of institution, are either dormant or are struggling badly.
They’re marred by low attendance in boring meetings, poor participation in elections by voters and candidates, and a lack of real purpose beyond throwing parties, impeaching each other, and spending student fee money.
FACT 2:
Most students don’t care about their Student Government.
Many don’t even know they have a Student Government on campus.
It’s time to reboot and start fresh with a new plan to make your SG more effective and successful.
How to Make Your SG Really Suck NEW!
Want to be the worst SG in the nation?
The Art of SuckingFollow these 12 tips and you’ll become one of the worst Student Governments in the nation.
Great SG Documents
Compare your documents to SGs at similar schools, see templates, examples of great documents, and get private consulting & support.
Fix Your Documents NowMost student governments spend way too much time amending their constitutions, updating bylaws, and fixing election codes.
SGs should spend no more than 10 percent of your time on internal matters like these structural documents.
Why? Your time is better spent on solving problems and working on issues that matter to students.
The ASGA Minute
Every week, ASGA will offer a new short podcast that you can stream or download.
The ASGA Minute
Join Butch Oxendine for ASGA’s weekly one-minute podcast from the world of college student governments.
Free Webinars
ASGA offers free one-hour Webinars to ASGA members. Sign up for the upcoming ASGA Webinars, or stream previous Webinars at your convenience.
SG Training Without Traveling!
Great Training. No Traveling!
These one-hour Webinars are free to ASGA members and usually are led by members of ASGA’s great speaker team.
Sign up for the upcoming ASGA Webinars, or stream previous Webinars at your convenience.
Previous ASGA Webinars
If you’ve missed any of ASGA’s previous Webinars, you can view the following in their entirety.
Suggest a Topic
Have an idea for a future ASGA Webinar? Write info@asgaonline.com.
Step-by-Step Guides
ASGA has developed step-by-step guides to help you improve your Student Government on everything from how to make students care about your SG to surveying your students to how to improve your SG Web site.
APATHY
No More Apathy Allowed!
Saying your students are “apathetic” is a common excuse when students don’t participate in SG, attend your events, or vote in your elections. But you’re probably not giving students a reason to care about your SG.
TRUTH #1:
Most students don’t care about their SG.
TRUTH #2:
Many students don’t even know they have an SG!
Why?
ANSWER:
Your Students do not believe your Student Government is relevant to their lives.
To be RELEVANT to students, your SG MUST DO something that MATTERS: Signature Programs make students care about your SG.
COMPENSATION
Do You Get Paid to Serve?
Did you know that more than 77% of elected SG leaders get paid? They receive salaries, tuition waivers, scholarships, stipends, computers, cell phones, reserved parking, concert tickets, clothing allowances, class credit, and more.
ASGA’s research on the “great pay debate” has uncovered some clear trends over the past two decades:
- More than 77% (was 71% 10 years ago) of schools nationwide offer some sort of compensation.
- Among state universities, 85.88% of elected officers earn salaries.
- At private colleges, 54.11% (was 57.5% 10 years ago) pay their officers stipends
- 45.68% (was 65.71% 10 years ago) of community colleges offer tuition waivers or scholarships.
- The larger the enrollment, the more likely the schools are to pay: of the smallest schools (1,000 students), just 30% compensate their officers, while 87% of the big schools (over 30,000 students) pay.
ELECTIONS
More Voters. More Candidates. More Respect.
ASGA has compiled America’s number-one resource to help you improve campus campaigns and elections.
Learn how to:
- win your next campaign (and win ethically)
- increase voter turnout
- recruit more candidates
- promote your elections.
FINANCE
How to Manage Money
Student Governments should have the authority to allocate student activity fee monies to student clubs and organizations.
So SG leaders need to be able to manage money as well as pass legislation and lobby on issues.
This ASGA resource will help you be a good steward of those funds entrusted to you.
If your SG doesn’t get to give money to clubs, ASGA can help you earn that responsibility.
MEETINGS
No More Bad, Boring Meetings!
Do your own members fall asleep in your meetings? Have trouble getting more than a handful to show up, let alone participate? Do you have out-of-control members who are rude and monopolize the meeting? Is there way too much texting and talking going on?
Don’t have to settle for poor meetings anymore!
ASGA offers many resources to help you reform and enhance your SG meetings, including workshops, webinars, templates, how-to videos, and meeting critiques.
POWER
Strategy + Planning = Victory
Many SG leaders have great ideas for changes or improvements they want to make on their campuses.
But they’re destined to fumble, struggle, and even fail unless they have a plan to take an idea and make it a reality.
There is a plan and process:
- brainstorming an idea
- getting feedback
- surveying your students to gauge their interest
- researching peer schools
- creating a plan and executing it
How Powerful Is Your SG?
Most SG leaders are idealists: we think we can change the world. But reality is more pragmatic.
Even the greatest Student Governments in the nation are limited in their power and influence.
Your goal should be to determine what powers you have. Where do these powers come from (and can they be taken away)?
Then you can wield those powers effectively to improve your institution.
PUBLICITY
Get the Attention You Deserve
Many Student Governments struggle to get the attention, and respect, of their fellow students.
Many students don’t even know Student Government exists. Or worse, they don’t think SG does anything. Or is toothless and powerless.
Don’t assume that your students know what your SG is doing for them. You must, particularly in our modern marketing culture, have a marketing & advertising plan and then implement it.
SIGNATURE PROGRAMS
How to Start a Savings Program
A Discount Card will save your students money. And every time they use the card at a participating business, they’ll be reminded that your SG provided this service for them.
A discount card is the most common “signature program” that Student Governments offer nationwide. A signature program is a SG service/program that is respected, well-utilized, and appreciated by the entire campus community. ASGA stores hundreds of signature programs in the SG Database.
SURVEYING
Do You Really Know What Students Want?
When you tackle an issue, you must be certain that students want you and need you to work on that project.
Your SG can’t rely on word of mouth, a handful of private conversations, or the few responses you get from a survey at a table in the cafeteria.
Surveying in person is the ultimate way to spread the word about your SG and connect with your peers on a daily and personal level that they have never seen before from your SG.
Your SG must reach out to your student body constantly, daily, throughout your term of office.
You can’t expect students to come to your SG with their concerns. You must go to them!
TRAINING
Train. Practice. Become Great.
You have to train! Great athletes train constantly to gain an edge. Great musicians never stop practicing. Great artists never stop learning and improving.
It should be the same with your Student Government!
It’s not enough to offer a one-day training retreat for your new officers and members!
How can we expect to be an efficient and effective SG unless we intentionally train our members?
ASGA offers many training resources from retreat templates, workshops, and facilitation services, to training manuals and transitioning guides.
WEB SITES
Improve My SG Web Site
There are thousands of SG Web sites across America, but 99% are unspeakably bland, with broken links, and old officers from 1999.
Your SG site must have a reason for existing and must offer information that will inspire your students to visit, then come back.
Does your SG Web site need work?
Connect
You share our vision. You understand the importance. You know that this organization is special. You’re totally excited about ASGA. Now you personally can take your enthusiasm to another level by joining our ASGA Advisory Council.
Each year ASGA recruits 20 super-excited SG leaders nationwide to serve on the ASGA Advisory Council.
ASGA needs 20 Advisory Council members right away! Apply today.
What is the Advisory Council?
It’s a panel of ASGA supporters that gives helpful opinions, feedback, and advice so we can make ASGA better.
We frequently ask for Council members’ opinions on ways ASGA can improve. Council members suggest new features or services we can add for fellow members, clue us in on trends, and advise us on where to focus on SG research projects.
Council members can write articles for our Web site and official publications. They help with research and spur discussion and debate on the ASGA Social Networks.
Advisory Council Members Get:
- One free registration to ASGA’s National Student Government Summit in Washington, DC
- Private Advisory Council roundtable at ASGA’s National Student Government Summit
- Lunch at the National Summit with ASGA Executive Director and speakers
- Monthly conference calls to share new ideas and suggestions
- Free ASGA lapel pin
Publications
ASGA Issue Briefs are similar to “legal briefs,” providing in-depth information and offering positions and opinions on current hot issues and trends facing Student Government leaders.
Student Leader was the premier magazine for college student leaders. Featuring tips from experts and peers across the country, its articles advise students on how to manage organizations ethically and effectively. As the official publication of the American Student Government Association, Student Leader’s staff frequently wrote and reported on Student Government-related issues, concerns, and solutions as well.
Ask the Experts
Have a Unique Problem or Question?
Sometimes you have questions, concerns, or problems that are so specific to your institution or are so unusual that they warrant special personal attention.
That’s why we’ve recruited a panel of more than two dozen Student Government experts. Made up of veteran advisors, former super SG leaders, and top administrators, these experts are some of the nation’s premier authorities in their areas of SG expertise.
These panelists are committed to personally answering your questions.
Usually, our panelists reply within 24 to 48 hours. You’ll receive a personal reply by e-mail if your question is so specific that it won’t be useful to the other ASGA members.
- Ask a Question — Fill out the form in this section. Your question then will be forwarded to the expert we think is best-equipped to answer.
- See the Answers
- FAQ
For more information, call toll-free 1-877 ASK ASGA (1-877-275-2742) or write info@asgaonline.com.
