During the weekend of August 24-22, 2014, the Student Government Association (SGA) of Eugenio María de Hostos Community College of CUNY held its
Twelfth Annual SGA Summer Retreat) at the Edith Macy Conference Center in Briarcliff, NY. Fourteen of the SGA’s 16 elected members and several members of the Student Life staff participated in this event, which provided the attendees with leadership training based on the CUNY STAR Leadership Competencies model. Particular emphasis was given to the competencies that promote self-awareness and work-life balance. Under the leadership of facilitator John Cotto, the participants engaged in teamwork exercises designed to help them set feasible goals.
The SGA leaders sought to capture the essence of these goals through the following model, which they described as The Seven Pillars of Administration:
I - To promote resources at the College
II - To organize more educational field trips for students
III - To develop more internships to prepare students for their future careers
IV - To promote volunteer service for college branding and marketing
V - To promote student development by inviting guest speakers to the campus
VI - To provide more need-based and merit-based scholarships
VI - To develop a wider variety of events for students
As the weekend progressed, the SGA leaders were asked to develop an action plan by transforming these pillars into S.M.A.R.T. goals.
At lunchtime throughout the retreat, the SGA leaders had opportunities to share their concepts and ideas with members of the Executive Cabinet. Senior Vice President Esther Rodríguez-Chardavoyne, Provost Carmen Coballes-Vega, and Vice President Nathaniel Cruz welcomed these opportunities to exchange ideas with the students about such issues as funding for scholarships, recycling at the College, and the push for a new Allied Health Sciences Building.
Overall, the retreat was an inspiring and motivating event that we hope will transform the ideas and inspirations of the new SGA administration into activities and initiatives that will be of significant benefit to the College as a whole.
About Hostos Community College
Eugenio María de Hostos Community College is an educational agent for change that has been transforming and improving the quality of life in the South Bronx and neighboring communities since 1968. It serves as a gateway to intellectual growth and socioeconomic mobility, as well as a point of departure for lifelong learning, success in professional careers, and transfer to advanced higher education programs. The College’s unique "Student Success Coaching Unit" provides students with individualized guidance and exemplifies its emphasis on student support services.
Hostos offers 27 associate degree programs and two certificate programs that facilitate easy transfer to CUNY’s four-year colleges or baccalaureate studies at other institutions. The College has an award-winning Division of Continuing Education & Workforce Development that offers professional development courses and certificate-bearing workforce training programs. Hostos is part of The City University of New York (CUNY), the nation’s leading urban public university, which serves more than 480,000 students at 24 colleges.