Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner will serve as the keynote speaker for the Elect Her initiative, which will take place on the Syracuse University campus on April 5.

Elect Her is a program that encourages and trains college women for student government and future political office. It aims to reduce the gender gap in political leadership, according to the organization’s website.

The group will hold a training seminar at SU in Hall of Languages room 500, said Allie Curtis, a Student Association representative who helped organize the event.

Curtis said she got in contact with the mayor’s office, putting in a request to see if Miner would be interested in speaking at Elect Her. She heard back a couple days later that the mayor would be willing to speak.

“To have somebody who’s a trailblazer in her own right, she’s done really good work for women in politics,” Curtis said. “She’s the ideal person to speak at our event here.”

Curtis said a few different types of speakers will be involved in the event. An Elect Her facilitator will lead training. A student panel of women, a female who is a communications expert and a dynamic woman in politics make up the speakers.

Miner will serve as the dynamic female speaker, while Syracuse Common Councilor Jean Kessner will speak as the communications expert, Curtis said.

“She has so much to offer us, sharing her own personal stories about being elected to office,” Curtis said.

Miner was elected mayor of Syracuse in 2009 and previously served as a Syracuse Common Councilor and a regional representative for former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, according to an SA press release. She is the first female mayor of Syracuse.

Published on March 18, 2014 at 1:37 am

Contact Brett: blsamuel@syr.edu | @Brett_Samuels27