The Office of Student Activities and Leadership Development (SALD) changed its name to the Office of Student Involvement (OSI) on July 1. This move follows the 2019 merger of SALD with the Wesleyan Student Assembly (WSA) Finance Office. 

The rebranding signifies how OSI bridges the gap between SALD’s event-focused approach and the WSA Finance Office’s responsibility in financial management. Alongside the WSA, OSI oversees student organizations, events and logistics, New Student Orientation (NSO), student resources, and WesNest.

Prior to the 2019 merger of SALD and the WSA Finance Office, each office had separate responsibilities, but the distinction between them was unclear to many students.  The goal of the merger is for the OSI to serve as a more efficient team with clarified functions.

“We functioned separately with SALD mostly handling student events and the WSA office focusing on funding,” OSI Director Joanne Rafferty wrote in an email to The Argus. “It was pretty confusing for students not knowing which office to go to and the merge helped to alleviate that. As a staff we wanted to solidify ourselves as a team and felt that Student Involvement encompassed what it is we do.”

WSA President Anna Nguyen ’22 said the name change was discussed and finalized last semester. Nguyen is currently working with OSI to ensure that the transition goes smoothly.

“[I]t would make it easier for the two offices to be in the same physical space and work as one office to get things done,” Nguyen wrote in an email to The Argus. “In deciding the name ‘Student Involvement,’ the group was trying to come up with something that can represent both what SALD and the WSA Office do individually, hence ‘Student Involvement.’” 

Rafferty emphasized that the OSI is the best place for student events to plan logistics and an important resource for new students and longstanding organizations alike.

“Student Involvement is the main resource for student clubs and organizations,” Rafferty wrote. “We work collaboratively with the WSA to recognize and register student organizations, help with funding, advise student leaders, and register/handle logistics/reserve spaces for student events.”

Nguyen added that OSI continues to ensure representation and a healthy environment for student groups.

“I hope more people are aware of how much of a resource OSI is and reach out to them whenever needed,” Nguyen wrote. “They will also connect those groups with the appropriate people and committees on the WSA when needed, too. We work with OSI very closely on making sure student groups are represented and building a sustainable culture of leadership and leadership transition for student organisations throughout the year.”

Jasper Chattra can be reached at jchattra@wesleyan.edu. 

Rachel Wachman can be reached at rwachman@wesleyan.edu.