Student Assistance - LaGuardia Community College - CUNY

Student Government Association
From the SGAPresident
Dear Fellow LaGuardians,
LaGuardia Community College first opened its
doors to the public in September of 1971. Together
with our school’s administrators, faculty, and staff,
we will proudly celebrate LaGuardia’s 40th
anniversary this fall.
Part of the College’s legacy is reflected in the
student programs and services offered to enrich
our college experience and empower us to make
good decisions about our education. Unfortunately,
some of us are saddled with the additional
responsibilities of a job or a family, and have little
time available to explore these opportunities.
Because we are so preoccupied by our weekday
obligations off campus, we can only afford to come
to the College to attend classes during the evening
or on weekends.
After last spring’s Student Government
elections, your governors and I came to realize that
we must work to improve the level of access to
these programs and try to create new ways for us
to experience our student body’s diverse social and
cultural interests. Also, we must be engaged with
one another to achieve these goals.
The Student Government Association (SGA)
will take time throughout this year to listen to
ideas from students on how to improve LaGuardia
and take all necessary steps to provide a college
experience that will last a lifetime.
The SGA also wants LaGuardia students to
register to vote, so that we can influence the
decision makers whose policies often affect the
quality of our education. If all of us are registered to
vote, we can prevent the kind of budget cuts to
CUNY that resulted in the recent increase in our
tuition and fees.
Despite the economic pain we are all enduring,
LaGuardia Community College’s excellence has
not diminished, and we must ensure that legacy
continues for the next 40 years and beyond.
Sincerely,
Donavan Borington
President, Student Government Association
SGA meets in room M160 every Wednesday
evening at 6:30 p.m. during Fall I. Meetings are
always open to the LaGuardia community, and
we encourage you to attend.
Using Your LIVE Student
Email account is a necessity!
MEET THE SGA! L TO R: VP MICHAEL BASTON, A.K.M. SHAMSUL HAQUE, DAN CAMPBELL, MOHAMMED SAMRA,
RAMANUJ DAS, MISSARY ARREDONDO, BRANDON CLARKE, PRES. GAIL O'MELLOW, ALAINA CHISHOLM, DONAVAN
BORINGTON, SAROJ ADHIKARI, MOKLASUR RAHMAN, ENDESHIA KAREEM. (NOT PICTURED: ZHANWEI "DEAN" CHEN)
Q&A from p. 1
Q: What does this mean for LaGuardia
students?
AC: It means fewer opportunities. At the rate
that tuition is increasing, community college will
eventually no longer be the accessible alternative
in higher education. Most students at LaGuardia
do not have abundant household incomes; tuition
increases will cause many to face the tough
decision of taking fewer classes and postponing
their graduation, cutting costs in other areas of
their lives that are already under strain, or it may
even mean dropping out.
Q: What can be done?
AC: Students need to look for other resources.
This means applying for LaGuardia Foundation
scholarships and outside scholarships, as well as
taking their classes seriously; there’s no time or
money to waste. We also need to write letters to
CUNY Chancellor Matthew Goldstein, urging him
to fight the increases on our behalf. Becoming
involved with the Student Government
Association is also important, so that we can be
informed and support our student body. Most
importantly, students shouldn’t be discouraged;
be persistent and do what ever is necessary to
graduate, even if it takes longer than expected.
• You won’t be caught off guard about
essential deadlines or campus events.
• Messages sent through LIVE will
inform you of the resources
available to help you along your
academic journey.
• You will be able to get up-to-date
information about things that impact
your daily college experience.
• You’ll regularly receive a summary of
all the need to know information in the
“LaGuardia News You Can You Use”
messages.
• Your emails sent through your LIVE
student email account will never be
filtered as junk mail when you contact
a LaGuardia Office.
• Sending emails through your student
email account will enable LaGuardia
Offices and Professors to verify your
identity.
LaGuardia Community College
September 22, 1971 – First day of classes; LaGuardia’s
first freshman class consists of 537 students, 312 women
and 225 men, of whom 72% are White, 19% are Black, 6%
are Puerto Rican, 0.8% are Asian, 0.2% are Native
American; 3% describe themselves as “Other” and 44%
are foreign-born. The majority of students reside in
Western Queens.
The Division of Student Affairs Newsletter for Students 3