Villanova’s Student Government Association (SGA) planned various initiatives and projects in the fall semester, including preparations for the launch of Villanova University Cabrini campus, opening the exterior doors to Cafe Nova from both sides and repainting the mural leading to the South campus.
Student Body President, Aleko Zeppos and Vice President, Sidney Mbah, are hoping to keep going strong until the culmination of their terms. For them, the fall semester was the preview of how the next few months would unfold.
The Villanovan sat down with Zeppos this past week to discuss their further plans and also reflect on the work of this past semester.
“I’d say last semester was just to prepare for what’s ahead,” Zeppos said. “We spent a lot of time sitting down, meeting with as many administrators, as many higher-ups and [members of] leadership as possible. We have a big master plan that we’ve compiled through talking to our friends and classmates, and just things that we want to see differently on this campus. […] But my whole strategy was to first find who the players were and how to get them to the table. So now we have very good relationships with all the different offices on campus.”
Zeppos laid out objectives and initiatives that he, Mbah and the rest of the SGA aim to accomplish, including adapting from the now defunct Nova Schedule Builder to the “Plan Ahead” feature to reforming dining plans and other advancements.
“I’d say just as far as headlines of big things we’re going to accomplish is to start building out our social media presence to be more visible,” Zeppos said. “We’re really pushing those menstrual products and continuing to be effective with dining and reforming our meal plan a little bit.”
Dining has been a principal focus of this administration, and was a central theme both during their campaign and after.
“I think we’re gonna continue to make improvements to dining,” Mbah said back in April after the two won the election for Student Body President and Vice President. “I definitely have a lot of ideas, maybe extending hours in some cases on the weekends, but we understand eating is vital to the students’ lives. We wanna make sure that [Villanova dining] is at the highest prestige possible, so we can get the students living the best lives on Villanova’s campus as possible.”
Since then, SGA has supervised the introduction of Wawa to the Connelly Center, the relocation of dining options like V Sushi and the implementation of a sustainable takeout system with plastic boxes rather than the former disposable paper boxes. The current leaders’ aim this semester is not only to continue sustaining a strong relationship with dining but also enhance its promotion.
“I’d say one of our strongest partnerships, frequent partnerships, is usually with dining,” Zeppos said. “Dining has done a terrific job at publicizing what they’ve been doing and getting it out there to the student body. SGA will be doing even more of that this upcoming semester. [So] expect on a dining front to see more posts from SGA, more outreach to the student body, because that’s what we’re here to do. We’re here to meet the needs and be the voice for our classmates here on this campus.”
SGA is also aiming to tackle some facilities and maintenance issues that they believe are affecting the lives of Villanova students.
“I know there’s some folks in SGA and a lot of the student body that has voiced concerns about the walkway underneath the SEPTA tracks with the puddle that forms down there, and maybe fixing that,” Zeppos said.
Zeppos also hopes to show students exactly what changes and policies they’re aiming to implement and have more conversations directly with them.
“My one big thing is I want to be more visible to the student body,” Zeppos said. “We’ve been very visible to everyone up [on] the administrative side of things, but I do want to be more upfront and personal with the student body. So once the weather turns, we’re going to be out at the Oreo, hopefully multiple times every week, just being there for the students [asking] ‘what do you want to see different about campus?’”
Campus security has become an important issue across Villanova in the wake of a hoax threat against the school this past Thursday, marking the third of this year. Zeppos said that the SGA has been in conversations with everyone, from those in Student Life to Public Safety.
“There’s a lot to be uncovered, but I think the bottom line is there are sick people in this world that want to cause just panic among our college students here, and it’s despicable what’s going on,” Zeppos said. “We talked about the original threats to our campus at the beginning of the year, [and] I’m sure more [things] will be revealed. Nothing has been announced officially yet by the university. There’s a lot of moving parts behind the scenes right now, though.”
Zeppos has a lot of gratitude for getting a chance to lead SGA and accomplish a variety of policies and initiatives.
“It’s been truly incredible to see what we have been accomplishing and what’s on the horizon,” Zeppos said. “I’m so excited, and I know my turn’s coming to an end, but there’s still a lot more to be done, and I want to make sure I make the most of my time in this position.”
As Zeppos finishes both his term and time at Villanova, he hopes to finish strong in this semester.
