As early as 1924, President J. Stanley Brown established a short-lived Student Council. It was not until 1938 when President Karl Adams created a Student Affairs Committee that an official student advisory body began to function.
In 1949, President Leslie Holmes created the President’s Panel, consisting of the presidents of all student organizations and clubs. Then in 1955, Holmes eliminated the President’s Panel and created the Student Senate.
In 1968, during the administration of President Rhoten Smith and inspired by a trend in student self-governance that was sweeping colleges and universities across the nation, the present-day Student Association (recently renamed Student Government Association or SGA) was born. The new system was largely the product of a new constitution that formed a three-branch government system and empowered elected student representatives to recognize and fun student organizations and activities.
The SGA Executive Branch is elected annually by the student body, including a president, vice president, and treasurer. A voting student member of the NIU Board of Trustees, as specified in the Northern Illinois University Law, is also elected annually.
The 40-member Senate acts as the Legislative Branch of the SGA. Senators review and verify all executive branch actions and confirm all new appointments. The Senate is also responsible for formally recognizing new student organizations and approving appropriations for all SGA-approved organizations.
Five justices form the SGA Supreme Court, or the Judicial Branch, interpreting the SGA constitution, ruling on appeals and deciding the wording of referenda.
The constitution of the Student Government Association is interpreted by the SGA Supreme Court and its five justices, who also rule on appeals and decide the wording of referenda.
Rhoten Smith’s faith in students and belief in their right to self-govern, combined with the developing student power movement, brought substantial change to NIU’s shared governance system. In the final year of his presidency, the University Council was enlarged to include voting student members.
