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‘Fresh perspective’ State Sen. Rachel May brings central New York outlook to Albany By Natalie Rubio-Licht asst. digital editor
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STATE SEN. RACHEL MAY first entered political office last year when she defeated incumbent Sen. David Valesky in an unexpected primary challenge. corey henry photo editor
achel May didn’t think her previous career as a Russian language professor would intersect much with her role as a New York state senator. But when she had to address Russian guests at the State Senate in honor of Russian American History Month, she was fully prepared. She gave the first part of her speech in fluent Russian. “I saw my colleagues whipping around and going ‘What on earth is she saying?’” May said. “Then they realized, ‘Oh, she actually speaks their language.’” Last November, May was elected to represent the 53rd district in the New York State Senate. May beat Democratic incumbent David Valesky, who held the seat for 14 years, and defeated Republican Janet Burman by more than 20 percent of the vote. Though her background is in higher education, May came into the position with many ideas for voter reform and climate change advocacy. The most notable accomplishment of the previous legislative session was the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, May said. The bill set a goal for the state to fully transition to carbon-free electricity sources by 2040 and reduce its carbon emissions by 2050. The bill addresses environmental and economic justice issues and makes New York a “real leader” of climate legislation, May said. “I was at the table with other key senators who were hammering out the details of that legislation, and I’m really proud of how that came out,” she said. Emberlin Leja, a senior sociology and civic engagement major at Syracuse University and a coordinator with Sunrise CNY, said she admires May’s see may page 4
student association
SA members propose bill addressing public transparency By Maggie Hicks staff writer
Student Association members Skylar Swart and David Bruen proposed a bill last Monday addressing SA’s transparency with the public. The bill, which is set to be voted on during Monday’s Assembly meeting, would make any legislation and SA’s voting process publicly through the organization’s website. While SA already releases meeting
minutes, this bill would specifically address distribution of votes and the full text of any past or present SA legislation — a standard practice for many university student associations. Swart and Bruen said they proposed the bill to build SA’s transparency with the student body and to hold SA members accountable. “We heard about some issues with SA transparency in the past with what bills were out there and who was voting on what,” Bruen
said. “Our biggest goal is to encourage members to think about what they are voting on and why, especially now that anyone can access it.” By giving students access to how legislation and vote tallies, SA is working to get more students involved in the organization by bringing attention to the problems they see, Bruen said. “We hope that students will look at the issues more and see who disagrees, who agrees and bring any
concerns or questions to our attention,” Swart said. One of SA’s overall goals this year is to ensure the average student has an understanding of the basic principles of how the organization operates. This would also allow SA to hear and address issues members might not be aware of, SA Parliamentarian Josh Shub-Seltzer said. Changing the bylaws will ensure that the bill’s goals last after the current SA administration, Shub-
Seltzer said. “A lot of students don’t know the potential this organization has to affect change on campus, and we want to do everything we can to make sure they are involved in that change,” he said. DISCLAIMER: Skylar Swart is a columnist for The Daily Orange. She does not work for or interact with the News section, nor does she influence its editorial content as a columnist. mehicks@syr.edu