By Mike Naughton
With the nominations set to take place on March 24 and elections on April 8, the Student Government Association (SGA) is preparing for a new executive board to take over.
President Michael Romano and Vice President for Financial Affairs Michael Benson will leave their positions, along with the Vice President for Admin-istration Stephanie Raveling and Vice President for Academic Affairs Peter Antonellis. Vice President for Student Services Nicole Martino will seek re-election, but Vice President for Student Affairs Allyson Savin would not affirm whether or not she will seek re-election in her position or election in another position.
“It’s not a decision I can make overnight,” said Savin, a sophomore international business major. “I’m not sure if I am going to [run for president] yet.”
Savin served as assistant vice president for student affairs during her freshman year, serving under current President Romano who, at the time, was vice president for student affairs.
The SGA parliamentarian Daniel Quintal said he is looking to move forward within the organization and believes he is the best member for the presidency.
“I do feel I am the best fit for the role of president. It is important to have someone [as president] who has experience,” Quintal, a junior political science and international affairs major, said. “Another strong passion I have is for student affairs. I am still weighing all my options.”
The nomination process is held during a joint senate session so all of the SGA members, including the ones who are on co-op during the day, can attend the special meeting at night. After the nominations are revealed, the senators will vote, in place of the students they represent, for the person they feel can best fill the executive board positions.
Romano said he would like to see direct elections — elections where the entire student body would be able to vote for whom they feel can best represent them in SGA — in place for the upcoming year.
“The great thing about the senate structure now is that anyone on campus, if capable and committed, can become a student senator and be involved,” Romano said. “The danger of direct elections, or of any democracy, is that certain blocks will not be represented because of popularity contests, but not, under any circumstances, is that reason enough for us not to more actively engage the student body in the election process.”
Throughout the year, SGA has passed legislation such as the on-line syllabi act and has been involved in outreach programs such as the Wild Wild West night in the student center and the SGA Campus Invasion Day. Members of the executive board said the organization has progressed dramatically over the past few years.
“What President Romano and former President Schwabacher have done is turn this organization around significantly,” Benson said. “Someone used an analogy before that said, ‘Former President [Erin] Dayharsh had pushed [SGA] up from a low point, Schwabacher put it on his back and climbed up a mountain and Romano threw it to the stars.'”
While SGA is primarily set up to answer to students, they also deal with members of the faculty and the administration on a daily basis.
“The executive board has been doing very well and I am pleased with them. They are very mature, insightful and dealt with a lot of important issues this year,” said Gerald Herman, SGA’s faculty advisor.
Despite all SGA has accomplished and attempted to accomplish within the past year, students are not exactly sure what SGA attempts to do for Northeastern.
“I haven’t really heard about [SGA],” said Josh Heller, a freshman undecided major. “If I don’t know a lot about them then other people might not either.”
Other students have only vaguely heard of SGA and said they feel more could be accomplished.
“I don’t really know about [SGA],” said Andrea Tepolt, a junior marketing major. “I do think there is more they could do.”
