When sophomore Mike Cacciatore wrote his campus initiative, it was four pages long. It needed more detail, so he expanded it to five. Parts needed to be changed. He rewrote it. It needed more detail. He expanded it to seven.

Cacciatore spent all his free time this semester reworking his plan in the computer lab of the Schine Student Center. Now, his proposal has been finalized within the Student Association, in which Cacciatore is a general assemblymember representing the College of Arts and Sciences.

Project Impact is program that gives a group of three to 10 students an opportunity to create its own plans for a visible effect on campus. SA’s Student Engagement Committee will aid the group in executing its idea, Cacciatore said.

Student Engagement Committee Chair Sean Dinan said he knows many people who have ideas and want to make a difference on campus, but they do not have the means or connections to do so.

‘Through this program, we’re giving them that,’ Dinan said. ‘They have support and can get something changed on campus, and they don’t necessarily have to be a part of the association to do that.’

To apply for the program, groups can pick up applications in the SA office, Dinan said.

Students can fill out their basic information and answer four questions about their initiative on the application. It is due by 5 p.m. March 9. Only one form is needed per group, according to the application instructions.

After receiving completed applications, the Student Engagement Committee will review and interview the applicants, Dinan said. The three most feasible initiatives will be chosen by the committee.

‘The committee will decide if they think these people are really up for the task and see if the initiative is possible based on their proposal,’ Cacciatore said. ‘If it’s not realistic, then we can help them out and point them in the right direction to make it realistic.’

The cabinet will elect only one group out of the chosen final three to carry out its plan, Dinan said.

SA provides the group with a $250 budget for its project. The money will come from SA’s fundraising account, not student activity fees, said SA President Dylan Lustig.

‘You don’t typically need a lot of money to do an initiative,’ Dinan said. ‘I can’t see anybody needing more than $250 for anything, ever.’

The money may only go toward achieving the initiative, Cacciatore said. A student liaison, or mentor, within the Student Engagement Committee will handle the money and assist the elected group in completing its initiative. The mentor will serve as a contact students can consult within SA, Cacciatore said.

The project within the initiative will be of similar scale to SA’s Ernie Davis Dining Center initiative, which changed the hall’s operations to shut off unnecessary lights to after a certain hour, Dinan said.

Dinan wants students to use this opportunity to get involved with the community, he said.

‘I’m encouraging students because we’re spending four years here on campus and you can go to classes, but it’s more important to go beyond that,’ Dinan said. ‘I think that doing something like this, that’s getting involved. It gives you the college experience and leadership experience for the future, and I just think it’s important to be involved in your community.’

Lustig said that with strong promotion from the Public Relations Committee, he expects many students to learn about the project and participate.

‘Student organizations here and people here are pretty engaged, and they have some good ideas,’ Lustig said. ‘So I think all we need to do is reach out and let them know that this is something they can do — and for free.’

bspotts@syr.edu

 

Published on February 26, 2012 at 12:00 pm