Texas Wesleyan’s Student Government Association introduced a loose interpretation of “Robert’s Rules of Order” on Thursday at the first general business meeting of the semester.

SGA President Alyssa Hutchinson trained the SGA members on how the meetings would run.

“We are still going to follow ‘Robert’s Rules’ but it is going to be more things like, ‘I move to approve,’ raising your hand to vote if we decide to vote and decorum and making sure we are respectful and engaged,” Hutchinson said.

What SGA will be leaving behind from previous semesters is separation of debate and discussion; audience members and advisors not being a part of discussion; and meetings focused solely on bills, she said. The new meeting style is much more inclusive to students.

“The audience members can actually be a part of the conversation,” she said. “With the bills that are put up there and any money that is being passed, they can say what they want to say about it.”

SGA Chief Justice Zack Lanham said he is excited to see the audience participation in the meetings.

“With them being able to ask questions, and get answers and get their opinions and help form certain bills I think are going to get a lot more student representation truly from the students themselves,” Lanham said. “I think our bills are going to best fit, honestly what our students want and what they need.”

SGA Treasurer Anahita Keer said that the meetings will be less focused on getting money and more on governance.

SGA Secretary Alison Baron said she liked how the first meeting of the semester went. Part of the meeting was spent cleaning up the SGA constitution and bylaws, which the organization has been working on for two years.

“It felt like it flowed and we got a lot more accomplished,” Baron said.

SGA general business meetings are every Thursday at 3 p.m. in SGA Chambers located in Brown-Lupton Campus Center.