Although the race for Associated Student Government presidentoften is noticed and discussed on campus, the president actuallyserves more of a behind-the-scenes role.
A good ASG president both listens to and speaks on behalfstudents, serving as the main face of students, 1835 Hinman Sen.David Kim said.
“The president, out of all the jobs, needs to be able to relateto people,” Kim said.
On a daily basis, the ASG president acts as a liaison toadministrators, students and ASG, communicating student needsbetween the many groups. The president meets weekly with ASG’sExecutive Board, attends regular meetings with administrators –such as Vice President for Student Affairs William Banis andUniversity President Henry Bienen — and also interacts withstudents to understand their concerns.
The president also meets four times a year with Northwestern’sBoard of Trustees and explains ASG’s accomplishments and goals tothe board.
Outgoing president Mike Fong said the position requires a visionof what administrations want to achieve for the year andwillingness to work with the senators and Executive Board toaccomplish those goals. In addition to answering 10 to 12 hoursworth of e-mails a week, the president also must use his or hercommunication skills to build relationships between Senate members,he said.
“The most important quality (for a president) is being able torelate to all sorts of people to really understand where certainpeople are coming from and communicate effectively betweenparties,” Fong said.
Understanding how to lead a group and relate to other studentgroups leaders also fosters a successful president, said Medillsophomore Jonathan Love, a South Mid-Quads senator who serves onASG’s Executive Committee.
“Hopefully a president would have prior experience … in ASG asa committee leader or some outside experience as a student groupleader,” Love said.
But one of the biggest challenges a president faces includesconnecting ASG’s daily activities to larger student concerns.
“ASG is a governing body that has day-to-day functions,” Fongsaid. “The greatest challenge is to do all of that and still havetime to lead, to innovate and to help the organization evolve.”
