Student Government Association officers and senators will earn pay this fall for the first time.

The SGA president and the president of the Campus Activities Board—a student club that coordinates many on-campus activities for the SGA—already receive pay. But this is the first time other student officials will.

Officers in the SGA will receive $250 per semester, while senators will earn $150. The money will come from the student activity fee that AACC students already pay when registering for classes.

The SGA has six officers, all of whom are confirmed by the Student Advisory Council, which includes representatives from every student club on campus.

Four officers will receive the new $250 stipend: the executive vice president, the vice president of finance, the vice president of public relations and the vice president of non-traditional student affairs.

The other two already earn pay: the SGA president earns $9.25 an hour for up to 20 hours per week, and the CAB president earns $10 an hour for up to 15 hours per week. The president also receives full tuition reimbursement for all classes he or she completes and passes.

The SGA executive board, which includes all SGA senators and officers, voted for pay in March and announced it to AACC’s Board of Trustees at its April 10 meeting.

“All members of SGA, they do a lot of work,” said CAB President Cynthia Murphy. “The stipends are a way to … show them that we really appreciate them and all the work that they’re putting in.”

Murphy also said many students serve for only one semester, so she hopes the stipends will encourage students to stay in the positions longer.

SGA President Johnathan O’Dea said he hopes the stipends will make more students want to serve as senators.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen us fill all 15 senator positions since I’ve been here,” O’Dea said. “It would be nice to have more people get involved, because they’re an important position.”

SGA senators represent student clubs in groups called districts, which the president creates each year. O’Dea said he groups the clubs into districts roughly by theme, although nothing in the SGA rules regulates the makeup of the districts.

Representatives of student organizations nominate and vote for senators at monthly Student Advisory Council meetings, but the SGA president chooses which senators represent which districts.

Senators must attend all SGA meetings and at least one club meeting in their districts each month, “with the goal” of attending a meeting for each organization they represent by the end of their term, according to the SGA bylaws. A term lasts from a student’s election until the end of the academic year, O’Dea said.

Officers’ duties vary by position but may include managing public relations for the SGA, acting as committee chairs, keeping minutes of SGA meetings and overseeing yearly club budget reviews.

“Especially this year, the officers have been doing so much,” O’Dea said. “So if that kind of work is going to continue, we want them to be compensated.”

The SGA, CAB and Campus Current are the only student organizations with paid student staff members, according to Chris Storck, the director of student engagement. In addition, the student member of the college’s Board of Trustees receives half tuition reimbursement.