SGA executive leaders share progress on campaign promises
Newly elected student body president and vice president, Zainab Naaz and Fatima Malik, pose together outstide of Anspach Hall on Monday, April 20, 2026. (CM-Life | Cristin Coppess)
This school year, student body president and vice president Zainab Naaz and Fatima Malik are working to see changes in dining halls, financial aid resources and international student retention.
“We want to make sure that at least one of our three goals is hit, so that by the time we finish our administration, we've made a mark of students feeling content in some capacity,” Naaz said. “We are here to serve them and hear them out. That's all we care about, and we will make sure that anybody above us who can help them hears them out as well.”
Naaz said they began speaking with Central Michigan University's administration in May to see what could be done about their goals for their term. They chose to focus on these changes because of what they've personally observed and experienced as international students, she said.
On Oct. 5, CMU Dining officials will be at the general board meeting to hear direct student feedback about its services. Students do not have to be a part of the Student Government Association to attend.
After that meeting, Naaz said she and Malik will communicate with dining officials to learn what can realistically be done about dining hall hours and providing more options to accommodate students' dietary needs.
SGA passed legislation last semester voicing how students want to have Merrill Virtual Dining Hall open on Fridays.
Naaz said they are also working with the President’s Office and the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships to understand what programs they currently have in place to support students financially.
“There are resources that no students are aware of, so we are really working hard [regarding] marketing things that are already here on campus,” Naaz said. “So we just want to make them aware through our platform and by speaking at different RSO’s (Registered Student Organizations) and stuff like that.”
Naaz and Malik said they hope that seeing improvements in these two areas will improve the university’s international student enrollment and retention rate, which is decreasing.
Central Michigan Life previously reported that because international students pay higher tuition, losing one impacts the university's budget more than losing one domestic student.
As for the internal organization and function of SGA, Naaz and Malik said they want to create a positive environment.
“Our goal is to have a cabinet that's happy because if they're happy, they're gonna do their job well, and they're gonna look forward to coming to those Monday meetings and make sure the 100 students that attend, attend a good space,” Naaz said.
