History of NCSU Student Government

Student Government was first organized in the early twenties, in an era when the concept of a student government group was still fairly novel. This organization evolved into the Campus Government, a group that included both students and faculty. Following the establishment of the Faculty Senate in 1954, a new Student Government Constitution was ratified in 1955, reestablishing a separate Student Government. Notables such as former Governor Jim Hunt headed this organization as Student Body President.

The modern Student Senate came into being with the 1969 ratification of the Student Body Constitution, which is still the present charter of the Student Body Government and several other campus organizations. Offices such as the Student Body President, Student Senate President, and Student Body Treasurer took on much of their present character. While occasional amendments to this constitution have been ratified, creating positions such as the Student Body Comptroller and Student Chief Justice, most of its provisions remain intact from 1969, and the evolution of Student Government continued in statute.

Shortly thereafter in 1972, Student Government moved to the new University Student Center (later renamed for Banks C. Talley, Jr.). The present room 3118 served as the Senate Hall, and the office suite was located on the 4th floor in the present day Associate Vice Chancellor suite. Student Government remained in Talley until it moved to its present, more spacious, home in the Witherspoon Student Center.

As part of the 1969 reorganization, the Student Body Statutes replaced the Student Government Bylaws. The loose framework of the Student Body Constitution has allowed these statutes to change and evolve considerably over the years. After growth and changes such as the delegation of the student organization finance process to committee, the statutes had become disorganized, leading to a comprehensive revision in 1998. In 2002, the Omnibus Executive Branch Act created the current Executive Branch, replacing a loose structure that had evolved out of the practice of the Student Body President appointing assistants.

Student Government views maintaining records of what it did in the past important for allowing younger student officials to learn about the successes and failures of the past. In the SG Office, large red yearbooks contain the records from the Student Governments of the 1980s and 1990s, and are available for review. The SG website contains archived documents from 1999 onwards.

Text adapted from the Student Senate Handbook, 85th Session, Erich Fabricius, editor.