For Ghufran Salih, being elected to Student Association is a way to give back to Syracuse University for all it has done to influence her life. That’s one of the reasons why Salih, a sophomore information and technology major, is running for president.

Salih said she and her running mate, vice presidential candidate Kyle Rosenblum, saw SA as a way to help the campus grow by supporting the “thriving” parts of SU while working on the areas that need improvement.

“We want to make sure that we’re doing the best that we can so the next generation of students that come here can also have the amazing experience we did,” she added.

The decision to run wasn’t made lightly, she said. Salih and Rosenblum, who are close friends, locked themselves in a study room for nine hours the day SU canceled classes for a March snow storm. They spent time charting out the pros and cons of a potential campaign, she said.

Both Salih and Rosenblum are sophomores, which was part of that conversation, Salih said. SA presidents in recent years have been seniors. But once the pair established that they had the passion and ability to run, she said the question shifted from, “can we run,” to, “why shouldn’t we run?”

The campaign slogan “why not now?” was born, and the campaign kicked off.

Salih is involved in on-campus organizations, including First Year Players and the Muslim Student Association. And she pays her way through college by working for Student Centers and Programming Services in Schine Student Center. Salih said she loves her job because it allows her to meet and work with various student groups.

Mentoring two teenage students at Syracuse’s Nottingham High School is one of the most impactful roles Salih said she has played in the local area. She said the two boys have taught her how to connect to people on a personal level.

Salih’s interactions with her mentees helped inspire one of the campaign’s five themes: diversity and inclusion. The campaign’s four other themes include health and wellness, community engagement, transparency and the “unwritten theme.”

The unwritten theme is completely for SU students to express their ideas and initiatives, Salih said.

Salih is only the second person from her family to go to college in the United States. She grew up as a first-generation American. Her parents are from Sudan.

“There’s always that blurred line of ‘Am I American enough or am I Sudanese enough?’” she said. “There’s definitely sometimes an identity crisis.”

From the time she was a child, her parents made sure she knew that she was going to be seen as someone different, she said, whether it be because of the headscarf she wears, the color of her skin or the religion she practices.

Salih said she tries to be a role model for her two little brothers, and tries to teach them how to deal with messages portrayed in the media and how she’s seen as a black Muslim woman.

“It’s difficult sometimes and it takes a toll on you,” she added. Salih said her parents instilled the power and greatness of differences.

She also said her campaign is all about showing the SU community that she’s a student, too. One who falls down a lot, makes mistakes and sometimes needs to just take a few minutes for herself. And she wants to let SU students know they shouldn’t underestimate their own strengths.

“If you would have told my younger self in high school that I was going to be running as Student Association president, I would have laughed,” she said. “We grow as people. Syracuse has helped me grow as a person.”

Erin Gavle, a sophomore newspaper and online journalism major who helps manage the campaign’s public relations, said Salih has a charisma that allows her to connect with people and understand what others are feeling.

Salih said her experiences have shown her how to express empathy and have patience for others who are expressing ideas she can’t grasp.

“My whole life has been one big, ‘I want people to understand me,’” Salih said. “Now with this campaign, it’s not about me anymore.”

She asks herself questions such as, ‘how do I understand the students?’ and ‘how do I give them the same courtesy that’s been given to me in the past?’

Cole Massie, the campaign’s manager, said Salih received a phone call from a friend while preparing for a debate recently and immediately dropped what she was doing to make sure the friend was OK, Massie said.

“I think that just really illustrates the kind of person she is,” he said. “She’ll stop what she’s doing to make sure other people are doing well.”

Published on April 4, 2018 at 10:09 pm

Contact India: irmiragl@syr.edu