Elections for the next academic year are now open for the Student Government Association, SGA, as announced at its latest meeting on Feb. 14. Those interested in running for an elective position can find the intent to run form on EmConnect.
“I’m excited for the new people,” Executive Vice President Kayla Armbruster told The Beacon after the general assembly meeting. “It’s a lot of work but it’s also a lot of fun.”
Elective positions include academic senate, class council, and internal affairs. There are also seats open in the student experience senate, though those positions are appointed, and students do not have to run. Campaigning begins in March and voting opens the first week of April.
Executive President Nandan Nair told The Beacon that it is bittersweet for himself and Armbruster; Nair is in Emerson’s Los Angeles program for the Fall 2025 semester and will be graduating after that, and Armbruster is graduating at the end of this semester. They said that they have faith and hope for the next generation of SGA.
“We’ve done a lot of work to really rebuild SGA, and build back engagement and build that trust with students,” Nair said. “The work we’ve done this year is a really good solution, and I’m really excited to see who brings it forward.”
Currently, SGA is gauging input from the Emerson community on whether or not to invest in the college’s endowment.
“It’s actually really great timing that this is happening around the time that elections are about to come up too,” said Nair. “It’s also a really great example of the kind of work SGA does.”
In one week, SGA received 194 responses from the survey on the endowment, according to Armbruster. The survey has already shown that financial aid is high on the list of funding priorities.
“This is a place that not only you can just make your ideas heard, but you can actually have substantial change,” Armbruster said.
Another matter SGA is working on is an “Emerson Perks” list, an idea created by Nair and Armbruster. The list includes the perks of being both an Emerson student and a college student in Boston. They said some of these “perks” include student discounts around Boston or discounts specifically on Emerson’s campus—for example, free subscriptions to the New York Times and other media outlets, discounts to different theaters, sports events, and many other “perks” that might not be as well known. The goal is to have the list distributed during freshmen orientation. Nair also thinks the list could be given out at admitted students day or the Picture Yourself at Emerson event.
Nair and Armbruster both believe SGA will be in good hands after the upcoming elections. “[To] whoever is in this role [next],” Armbruster said, “the student body chose you for a reason.”
