2008 Woodie Awards
Friedson: No socks, no sleep, no problem
Marissa Lang
Issue date: 5/15/08 Section: News
Andrew Friedson hates socks.
After spending many a night hunched over his keyboard attending to business, former Student Government Association President Friedson would relax by taking off his socks and shoes to better enjoy the simple pleasure of bare feet on carpet, he said.
"Hey, to serve the student body, you have to be comfortable," he said.
But in his tenure as SGA president, Friedson, a senior government and politics major, said he endured many days and weeks that were anything but comfortable.
"I've had weeks where I slept four or five hours collectively from Sunday to Friday... It would have been difficult to do more," Friedson said.
He soon found sleep was not the only thing he had to sacrifice to "effectively" do his job - time with his friends and family had to go as well, he said.
"People ask me, 'Why you do this?'" he said. "But if I could physically handle doing it all over again, I would."
Throughout his tenure, Friedson successfully lobbied on the city, state and national level for student-friendly legislation, working closely with state lobbyists as well as university administrators. In the SGA itself, Friedson attempted to step up the organization's accountability and outreach, and while critics acknowledge improvement, they say the student government has a long way to go in terms of improving student relations.
During his term, Friedson fought hard to uphold the promises he made in his campaign while tackling new issues as they arose.
"I was very impressed with how personally he took some of the issues he faced," said Daozhong Jin, former SGA Chief of Staff. "He would get genuinely upset. He was really able to empathize with students and with events like the noose and sexual harassment issues. He wanted to do everything he could to help."
But other SGA officials have recognized this level of dedication and perfectionism often led Friedson to have trouble delegating tasks to other members of the organizations.
After spending many a night hunched over his keyboard attending to business, former Student Government Association President Friedson would relax by taking off his socks and shoes to better enjoy the simple pleasure of bare feet on carpet, he said.
"Hey, to serve the student body, you have to be comfortable," he said.
But in his tenure as SGA president, Friedson, a senior government and politics major, said he endured many days and weeks that were anything but comfortable.
"I've had weeks where I slept four or five hours collectively from Sunday to Friday... It would have been difficult to do more," Friedson said.
He soon found sleep was not the only thing he had to sacrifice to "effectively" do his job - time with his friends and family had to go as well, he said.
"People ask me, 'Why you do this?'" he said. "But if I could physically handle doing it all over again, I would."
Throughout his tenure, Friedson successfully lobbied on the city, state and national level for student-friendly legislation, working closely with state lobbyists as well as university administrators. In the SGA itself, Friedson attempted to step up the organization's accountability and outreach, and while critics acknowledge improvement, they say the student government has a long way to go in terms of improving student relations.
During his term, Friedson fought hard to uphold the promises he made in his campaign while tackling new issues as they arose.
"I was very impressed with how personally he took some of the issues he faced," said Daozhong Jin, former SGA Chief of Staff. "He would get genuinely upset. He was really able to empathize with students and with events like the noose and sexual harassment issues. He wanted to do everything he could to help."
But other SGA officials have recognized this level of dedication and perfectionism often led Friedson to have trouble delegating tasks to other members of the organizations.
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beta4life
posted 5/15/08 @ 10:17 AM EST
Friedson=Former ZBT President=Toolbag=Long Island Trash=ZBT=Roofies Chicks
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