Student Association President Andrew Thomson knows what it feels like to be Chancellor Kenneth A. Shaw.

Both are lame-duck administrators in the twilight of their term of office. Both have a short list of things they want to get done before their time at Syracuse University expires. Both are laying out a road map they hope will guide their respective organizations after their departure.

SA has its schedule laid out for the rest of the semester. Along with its fight against the scheduling proposal and attempt to get the Armory Square shuttle up and running again, the group is planning for elections and an ongoing structural reorganization.

First on the agenda is the election of Thomson’s successor, as well as those who will fill other SA positions. The deadline to submit petitions to run for the positions of assembly member, comptroller and president is this Friday, and Thomson said the SA will announce its slate of candidates after that date passes. Currently, the only person with a petition on file is Assistant Comptroller Magdalene Misztal, a sophomore marketing and public relations major who is running for comptroller. Parliamentarian Andrew Lederman is also circulating a petition for the presidency. Before the polls open Nov. 3, students will have an opportunity to meet the candidates in an Oct. 28 debate.

As the polls close and a new generation of SA officers prepares to take the reins, the incumbents will be grappling with a different challenge: doling out funds to student organizations. Comptroller Erin Maghran, a senior public relations, policy studies and political science major, said despite the decrease in available funds for this budget cycle, she does not anticipate a significant struggle in the budget process. Thomson said the budget is tight despite last semester’s student activity fee increase.

Thomson also hopes that this semester will see the return of SA’s Armory Square shuttle, which fell victim to low participation and scheduling mistakes last spring. Vice President Rigaud Noel, a senior political science major, said he is working with the Division of Student Affairs to iron out the details, but he anticipates that the shuttle will be up and running by the weekend of Nov. 14 and 15. SA is planning a kick-off celebration for the shuttle and is partnering up with businesses in Armory Square to provide incentives for students who ride the shuttle, Noel said. SA has already reserved the Museum of Science and Technology for that weekend, Noel said.

Another program left over from the spring that Thomson hopes to bring to fruition this semester is SA’s attempt to restructure student government at Syracuse University. Last semester, SA created a committee to study the way student government is handled at other schools and make recommendations to reshape SA. Thomson said the committee has identified several goals to improve SA, including increasing its involvement in large-scale events and giving it control over the recognition of student organizations. The committee would also like SA to develop a judicial wing that would handle student discipline issues currently under Judicial Affairs.

‘It’s not a short-term goal, and it’s not anything that I ever see SA taking over fully,’ Thomson said.

Even though his term is ending, Thomson may still be around to see his long-range plans take effect. Thomson plans to remain involved in SA, focusing on the newly created Traditions Committee.

‘I really want to be very heavily involved in that,’ Thomson said. ‘It’s very good that I’ll still be on campus.’

Even after he leaves campus and SA, he is optimistic about the organization’s future.

‘We’re in a position now where we have a lot of young members and a lot of desire to move things forward,’ he said.

Published on October 21, 2003 at 12:00 pm