Syrota-Fox Administration Promises Communication, Growth in 2025-26

Karina Syrota and Matt Fox in the SGA office. Photo by Lilian DeFilippis '26

In an election that took Marist University by storm due to its popularity and controversy, Karina Syrota ‘26 and Matthew Fox ‘26 were elected student body president and executive vice president, respectively. Though their term does not begin until the Fall 2025 semester, Syrota and Fox are already very active in Student Government Association (SGA). 

“I’ve been involved in SGA since my freshman year,” said Syrota. “I feel as if we have a lot of ideas and a lot of new approaches that we want to implement at Marist.”

Syrota also spoke of her desire to bring Marist’s student body closer together.

“There’s a lot of groups on campus that are kind of isolated from one another, and we really want to bring back the Marist spirit,” said Syrota.

Syrota has been in SGA for the entirety of her time at Marist, but this is Fox’s first experience with the group.

“So many people don’t know about SGA, and we wanted to have an inside perspective along with an outside perspective to make SGA more open to Marist,” said Syrota. 

Referencing the campaign period, Fox commented on challenges that ultimately paid off.

“It was very time-consuming and stressful, but it was also very rewarding because during the campaign we got to talk to so many people,” said Fox. “We felt as if campaigning was where we could show people that we weren’t just some random students running.”

The largest roadblock in the campaign process was the re-voting period, where SGA announced that, due to their desire to run “a fair election where students’ voices are heard,” a re-vote would occur.

“Was it something we expected to happen? Not at all. But I feel that the way that we handled it showed that Karina and I could work well as a team,” said Fox. “It shows that we will always be determined, no matter what.”

“Positive thinking helped us,” said Syrota, who was surprised at the level of support the campaign received even during the re-vote period. 

The joy of being elected is still very fresh to Syrota and Fox. 

“It felt kinda cathartic,” said Fox. “Karina and I put two months of effort on top of this campaign. We put our blood, sweat and tears into it. All three of which are literal.” 

When asked about what students should expect, Syrota and Fox pushed expansion and creativity.

“Both Matt and I are creative bursts of energy, and we like to think outside of the box,” said Syrota. She also promoted the idea of creating “a strong SGA team” that is approachable. 

“We want to expand past Marist. One of my personal goals is to have more conferences on campus,” said Fox, particularly in the Dyson Center.

“For Matt and I, there’s no little concern or big concern – everything is important to us,” said Syrota, emphasizing her administration's focus on communication.

Parking is arguably the biggest issue in day-to-day life for Red Foxes. Syrota and Fox have a plan for that, too.

“There needs to be a lot of communication and outreach to students so that they’re aware that they have a voice,” said Fox, who floated the idea of a “parking newsletter” that would keep students posted on updates on the situation.

“We will continue what the current administration is doing about parking,” said Syrota, who prioritized combining concerns from both students and faculty on parking to find a solution that will accommodate. 

Similarly, Fox takes issue with the lack of handicapped and accessible parking on campus. He claimed the issue “needs to be addressed much more than it has been.” 

Syrota and Fox, both rising into their final years at Marist, are looking ahead with their work, too.

Syrota wants to make changes to help future generations of Marist, and hopefully, permanently define the legacy of her administration.