First-term Student Government Association senators said they plan to use their new positions to address student’s concerns about the recent federal deportation of international students, also pledging to boost communication between multicultural student organizations and the SGA by hosting more town halls and community events.

Students elected 20 new senators, including six first-year students, in last month’s SGA elections — one of the most competitive in history, with 18 newcomers running for senate seats, up from 12 last year. The new SGA senators said their priorities include promoting trust and inclusion on campus by working with multicultural student organizations to elevate student voices in drafting new policies amid President Donald Trump’s administration’s recent arrests of some pro-Palestinian student activists.

Newly elected chair of the Committee on Community, Advocacy and Inclusion and first-year SGA Sen. Aicha Sy (CCAS-U) said she joined the committee as a legislative assistant last fall to represent racial minority students. She said the biggest challenge facing the student body is the Trump administration’s targeting of international students, which has created widespread uncertainty and left many in higher education feeling “anxiety” and “fear.”

“When it comes to making sure GW is representative of all students, it’s not something we can mark off as completely done because there’s always work to do, and there’s always work to be made and improvements that we can implement,” Sy said.

Sy said the committee made strides toward increasing community inclusion by hosting the first SGA town hall for Latino students on campus and implementing cultural competency training, which included instruction on what language to use when addressing different communities for senate staff last year. But Sy said there’s still a “disconnect” between the SGA and the student’s body because the SGA sometime fails to disperse that work with the public, which she said makes the governing body “not an accessible” organization for students.

“I think exclusiveness came way before I was a student here at GW,” Sy said. “I think it’s always been a part of the climate culture of SGA because we are working directly with administrators and working on a lot of important things that aren’t always shared to the public.”

Sy said she is planning to help address the issue by inviting students and multicultural student organizations to committee meetings to increase transparency and consulting students’ advice when creating new policies.

She said the biggest challenge facing the student body is the Trump administration’s targeting of international students, which has created widespread uncertainty and left many in higher education feeling “anxiety” and “fear.”

In April, the State Department terminated visas for about 10 GW students — which Trump officials reinstated late last month — and froze billions in federal funding for Harvard University over its defiance of the administration’s demands.

“It’s very important that we as the SGA provide a foundation to which all students feel represented and comfortable here at GW,” Sy said “And also making sure that we are a space where those grievances can be aired and also provide resources that can help guide students through these times that may not always be the best.”

SGA Sen. Dhyana Holla (ESIA-U), a first-year student, said she began her career in SGA as deputy secretary of students organizations, which helped her learn how to “properly” communicate with student organizations by acknowledging their “frustrations” with the University not listening to students’ demands.

“Above all else, leadership to the student body looks like listening to, uplifting their voices and making sure that we hear every single perspective, every critique, every criticism, every compliment,” Holla said.

Holla said the Trump administration’s recent visa revocations for international students have raised “safety concerns” for the campus community. Immigration agents have arrested dozens of pro-Palestinian student activists, including Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, who was a negotiator between Columbia officials and protesters during their pro-Palestinian encampment last spring.

“I think ensuring that students feel safe and making sure that student government can play a role in that by prioritizing student safety, student well-being, I think that is definitely one of the big, big concerns,” Holla said.

Holla said she wants to make first year experience courses within the Elliott School of International Affairs “more engaging” by offering more “career-centered” resources, such as explaining qualifications and career paths to students in Elliott who are interested in a career in diplomacy.

Holla said the SGA had hosted “beautiful events” such as Day for the Nations this year, and she wants to continue to work closely with student organizations on future similar initiatives to foster community on campus because some students struggle to find a sense of belonging on an “urban” campus.

“​​We have an amazing community, even in an urban school, but I think expanding and focusing on how to make that community better because a lot of students in our student body struggle with finding their group, finding their community,” Holla said.

Co-chair of the Assembly on Mental Health, chair of the Women’s Caucus and SGA Sen. Sofio Kipiani (ESIA-U) said she ran for the senate because the position will give her “more autonomy” to spearhead her own initiatives. Prior to running for the senate, Kipiani served as deputy director of health for former SGA President Ethan Fitzgerald’s executive cabinet.

“I think as a senator, you get to follow through with the initiatives that you start all the way,” Kipiani said. “Being on the exec side, I think, a lot of the time after you hand off an initiative, you aren’t fully a part of the process of talking to the admin and having that legislature go through.”

Kipiani said she wants to increase rideshare options at night for students by expanding on University partnerships with Lyft by establishing “Lyft Women Plus,” which connects female riders with female drivers, as a free rideshare option at GW.

“I’ve heard many complaints from either graduate students or just students on campus not being able to get a safe ride late at night, or it’s taking too long to the point where they feel like it’d be easier for them to walk,” Kipiani said.

Kipiani said she also wants to mandate Title IX training for security and contracted staff at GW to avoid “inappropriate” situations between students and staff, like maintenance staff entering students’ dorms at unspecified times.

“I know so many of my friends have experienced personally where a FixIt person will just knock on your door once, and then if you don’t answer right away, they just walk in,” Kipiani said. “I think it could be a little startling and definitely not the proper way to go about getting help with whatever you need in your dorm”

The chair of Student Life Committee and SGA Sen. Cheydon Naleimaile-Evangelista (CCAS-U) said he ran for the SGA because he wanted to represent racial minorities students on campus, many of whom he said do not feel a “sense of belonging” at GW due to fear of the Trump administration’s cracking down on international students.

“I just want to be able to have the resources for those communities, to tell them that they’re not a minority on campus, but they are Revolutionaries, just the same,” Naleimaile-Evangelista said

Naleimaile-Evangelista said he wants to host more town halls where students can directly share their concern with their senators, especially in a time where international and multicultural students are looking for guidance on available resources.  He said senators also have to be more proactive in reaching out to students when drafting policy and searching for feedback since students may feel uncomfortable approaching them because it could be intimidating to approach their representative. 

“I really want to foster more communication with students,” Naleimaile-Evangelista said. “I think the SGA does a great job of having senators available. We have office hours students can schedule through us, but I think it’s time that senators go directly to students instead of having students come directly to us. ”