He enters Maxwell Hall without a sound.

Sitting on a bench across from the sets of double doors, I feel a biting Syracuse draft slice through the hall’s warm entryway. I look up to find I am no longer solely in the company of the statue to my left.

Stephen DeSalvo paces toward me. In a Syracuse University sweatshirt and sneakers, I almost forget I am in the presence of no ordinary senior engineering major.

I’m looking at a modern day Renaissance man.

DeSalvo is on the verge of his final days as the Student Association’s comptroller, a position he has served for two terms.

But mastering the student activity fee does not alone define DeSalvo. In his spare time, the Central New York native is also the lead author of an engineering research study on the verge of publication and is applying to the nation’s top law schools.

Yet DeSalvo only considers his last two years “satisfactory.” I beg to differ.

During his comptroller tenure, DeSalvo has demonstrated what it means to be a student-minded leader in both a fiscal and representative sense — penning and presenting bill after bill to further solidify the financial operation’s reign as the most successful aspect of SA.

He has looked to the needs of constituents first — trying to avoid the inter-organization political leech, which has sucked the student body government dry of many achievements.

The drop from three hour to 17 minute-long budget meetings attests to SA’s student-centered financial feats. By improving fiscal training for registered student organizations and employing a task force to revamp the process, students now better understand the budgetary processes than in past years. DeSalvo said this has been rewarding to witness.

Though his interests range from mathematics to politics, DeSalvo’s focus has remained on being an effective leader. DeSalvo has stuck fast to a philosophy of communication in, personal interests out and constant transparency.

This formula is seemingly a method for progressive leadership, but the lack of organization-wide adherence has led to major setbacks. The result? A loss of constituent respect and the prompting of capable leaders to exercise their skills elsewhere.
“There is a lot of ability to do great things in SA, but I think sometimes it’s clouded,” DeSalvo said. He cited the lack of openness on campaign promise statuses and failing to utilize the potentially “powerhouse” skills of the assembly as examples of main organizational issues.

DeSalvo considered resigning like several members during the tumultuous potential presidential impeachment period last spring, but came to the rightful realization that colleague-driven frustrations should have no bearing on the job he was elected to do.

Leadership, commitment and constituent respect are factors that the next SA administration must work to restore, an element both the incoming president and comptroller would be wise to recognize.

Though which candidates will fill these roles will not be officially decided until polls close at 11:59 p.m. tonight, Patrick Douglas, the current assistant comptroller, is running unopposed for SA’s top financial position.

DeSalvo said he feels Douglas is well prepared and he finds solace in having a trustworthy successor. Douglas plans to continue the financial path set in place by DeSalvo and his predecessor Jeff Rickert, DeSalvo said. Nonetheless, Douglas should strive to continue SA’s fiscal innovations and to not fall complacent.

He is no Michelangelo. His accomplishments do not compare to the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. But, a modern-day Renaissance man — one with innovations that straddle fields from engineering to student government — is hard to find. DeSalvo comes pretty close.

Rachael Barillari is a senior political science and Middle Eastern studies major. Her column appears weekly. She can be reached at rebarill@syr.edu and followed on Twitter at @R_Barillari.

Published on November 14, 2013 at 1:47 am