Student Elections

There are six (6) GSA Executive Council positions which will be elected from and by the senators elected from each graduate program.

Each officer shall be a matriculated graduate student enrolled in a graduate program at Hunter College.

Officers shall be elected by the Senate at its May meeting, from its own membership, for a one-year term, subject to recall by a two-thirds vote.

The Executive Council of the GSA shall comprise the following officers

President
Duties:
1. To serve as the spokesperson for graduate students at Hunter College and the GSA Executive Council, and to express their concerns and interests to Hunter College’s Administration and Staff, students-at-large and the media;
2. To preside at functions of the GSA;
3. To preside at meetings of the Senate and of the Executive Council;
4. To act as liaison on behalf of the GSA;
5. To coordinate the allocation of supplemental funding sources;
6. To create new employee positions (contingent upon approval by the GSA Executive Council);
7. To serve as a member of the Auxiliary Enterprise Board (AEB); and
8. To serve as a member of the College Association Board (CA).

Vice President for University Relations
Duties:
1. To attend University Student Senate (USS) meetings;
2. To supervise the proper functioning of the graduate lounge, including but not limited to coordinating all events clubs desire to set in the graduate lounge and assisting the Treasurer in hiring a Lounge Attendant;
3. To attend Technology Fee Committee meetings;
4. To assist the President in acting as liaison on behalf of the GSA with the Dean of Students and College President; and
5. To act as liaison on behalf of the GSA with graduate departments, including those departments not represented by graduate clubs.

Vice President for Club Relations
Duties:
1. To maintain a database of all graduate clubs at Hunter College;
2. To represent the Brookdale, Social Work, and MFA Campuses of Hunter College, including, holding office hours at and/or making regular visits to these campuses;
3. To act as liaison on behalf of the GSA with all graduate student clubs, including regular communication and reminders about important regulations and deadlines;
4. To assist clubs in using allocated monies during the fiscal year, including assistance with the four required club events;
5. To assist the Treasurer in helping graduate student clubs prepare and modify budgets and properly complete, submit and revise the required documents for reimbursements or other payments; and
6. To act as mediator to graduate student clubs, assisting in organizational or leadership matters.

Treasurer
Duties:
1. To be responsible for the receipt of all monies;
2. To disburse graduate student activity fee funds as voted by the Senate and Executive Council;
3. To keep records of all financial transactions;
4. To be responsible for club chartering and budget allocations;
5. To assist the president in the coordination and allocation of supplemental funding sources;
6. To assist the VPUR in hiring a Graduate Student Lounge attendant;
7. To serve as a member of the Auxiliary Enterprise Board (AEB); and
8. To assist the President with his/her duties as a member of the College Association Board (CA).

Communication Officer
Duties:
1. To be responsible for public relations of the GSA;
2. To be responsible for all aspects of the G-Blasts including compiling announcements of graduate club events open to the Hunter College community, promoting funding opportunities available to individuals and clubs and announcing important matters to the graduate student body. The Communication Officer shall forward finalized G-Blast text to the Dean’s Office for distribution approximately once each week;
3. To be responsible for the timely creation, update, and maintenance of the official Hunter GSA website and on-line calendar.

Sustainability Officer
Duties:
1. To conduct an annual survey of graduate student attitudes, opinions and general awareness of issues related to social, economic and environmental sustainability, preferably in the fall semester;
2. To coordinate a planning effort with faculty, staff and students to create and implement a Sustainability Action Plan for Hunter College.
3. To coordinate and support campus-wide sustainability initiatives;
4. To promote campus sustainability awareness and responsibility through presentations, demonstrations, published articles, tabling and other outreach and education events; and
5. To promote opportunities for students to conduct research and further their knowledge in the field of sustainability and coordinate independent study opportunities in collaboration with Hunter College faculty.

GSA Senate

The Senate shall be composed of one Senator from each graduate program, duly elected if necessary) by the graduate student body of said program.
Senators shall hold office for one academic year, shall be eligible for reelection, and unless otherwise unqualified, shall hold office until a duly elected replacement is elected.

The Senate shall meet regularly during the fiscal year in October, December, March and May. A special meeting of the Senate may be called by the President of GSA at his/her discretion or upon the petition of twelve senators.

Each Senator has one vote at the Senate meeting and elections.

The Senate shall elect from its membership the officers of the Executive Council. In the absence of the Senate, the incumbent officers are elected by the predecessors of the previous fiscal year.

The Senate shall require periodic reports, at least annually, from the Executive Council. In the absence of the Senate, individual officers shall report to the Executive Council at large on a monthly basis.

The Senate shall have the power to create standing and ad hoc committees.

Membership on committees is not restricted to Senators.

The Senate shall act on behalf of the GSA, subject to the purposes and limitations contained in the constitution. The Senate delegates to the Executive Council, the implementations of policy decisions, the revision of bylaws and articles when deemed necessary and the general administration of GSA.

If you are considering running for office or planning a referendum, please join us for a Candidate Workshop to learn about the rules governing the elections, how to organize a campaign, your eligibility, campaign deadlines, and more!

2025 Prospective USG Candidate Workshops

• Thursday, February 27, 3:00pm

USG Candidate credit confirmation
for senate candidates who wish to confirm their group number.

• Contact Teneia Wooten at twooten@hunter.cuny.edu for more information

All workshops will take place via Zoom. To register and access the workshops, please click the link below.

• Join a USG Candidate Workshop
• Zoom Passcode:  910053

Note: Official campaigning may begin after the candidates’ names have been posted on the website (no later than Wednesday, March 26, 2025 by 9:00pm).

If you are considering running for office please join us for a Prospective Candidate Information Session to learn about the rules governing the elections, how to organize a campaign, your eligibility, campaign deadlines, and more!

Spring 2025 Schedule:

• Thursday, February 27, 3:00pm

All workshops will take place via Zoom.  To register and access the workshops, please click the link below.

• Join a GSA Candidate Workshop on Zoom
• Zoom Passcode: 910053

Note: Official campaigning may begin after the candidates’ names have been posted on the website (no later than Wednesday, March 26, 2025 by 9:00pm).

Election Packets

Please note the declaration form, candidate statement and picture must be submitted by Monday, March 10, 2025 by 6:00 pm (Late submissions will not be accepted – no exceptions.)

• Undergraduate Student Government Student Election Packet (2025-2026)
• Graduate Student Association Election Packet (2025-2026)

Declaration Forms

• 2025-2026 Undergraduate Student Government Candidate Declaration, Petition and Statement Form
  Undergraduate candidates must use this form to declare their candidacy and submit their petition, statement and photo
• 2025-2026 GSA Senator or Executive Council Member Candidate Declaration Form
  Graduate students interested in serving as a GSA Senator or Executive Council Member must submit this form by March 10 at 6:00 pm

Student Government Election Document Submission Form
Use this form to submit your referendum proposal, referendum petition, financial statement, campaign violation complaint, appeal. You may attach supporting documentation such as receipts and photos to this form. The form must be submitted by the deadline stated in the election packet. Do not submit your candidate's statement, picture or nominating petition to this form. Please use the Declaration form, above.

Additional Forms

• USG Nominating Petition
  All candidates who wish to appear on the ballot must submit non-returnable petitions for candidacy of 150 signatures per slate or 25 signatures per independent. Signatures must be from currently enrolled undergraduate students. All signatures will be confirmed with emails to students who have signed the petition.
• Referendum Proposal
  The text of the referendum must appear on the top of the petition. All referenda material or drafts of referenda material must be submitted by Thursday, February 10, 2025.
• Financial Statement
  Projected winners must submit a financial statement, even if they did not spend any funds on campaigning.
  Submission deadline: Tuesday, May 6, 2025, 10:00 am.
• Campaign Violation Complaint
  use this document for any complaints of campaign violations prior to the conclusion of the election: Tuesday, April 29, 2025, 11:59 pm.
• Appeal
  use this document for violations of the election procedures, rules and/or the outcome of the election that occur at the conclusion of the election.
  Submission deadline – Tuesday, May 6, 2025, 10:00 am.
  

USG Elections:
Monday, April 28 
to Thursday, May 1, 2025

Note: The Residence Life Commissioner will be elected only by residents living in the three (3) Residence Halls. This voting will be included on the general electronic ballot.

GSA Elections:

• Senate Elections - Monday, April 28, 2025 - Tuesday April 29, 2025 (web-based)
• Executive Board Elections - Thursday, May 1, 2025 at 6:00 pm

*if applicable

Discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, disability, genetic predisposition or carrier status, alienage, citizenship, military or veteran status, or status as victim of domestic violence is  prohibited and we expect respectful dialogue and campaigning throughout the election period.

For more information on CUNY’s non-discrimination policies visit the Office of Diversity and Compliance website.

If you have additional questions about the Student Elections and procedures not answered above, please contact us:

• Miesha V. Smith, Student Elections Review Committee (SERC) Chair, Director of Student Life
• Teneia Wooten, Assistant Director of Student Activities

We wish all of you the very best