Bailee Brown
Bailee Brown
Still Choosing to Change the World
Still Choosing to Change the World
Eden Williams, a first-year honors student majoring in health science with a Spanish minor on the pre-med track, serves as the President of the Sophomore Class Council. The Houston native did not run in many clubs or SGA races last year, but she campaigned for the presidency and won.
“I was very inspired by my dad. He was very committed to leadership to make change happen and I want to start following in his footsteps and get myself out there,” Williams said.
As class president, Williams will be responsible for listening and connecting to students, leading the class council meetings and ensuring the class is represented in the best way possible to administration.
“I would say to be honest the most challenging part of the campaign was my speech because it was my first time speaking in front of everybody in Sisters Chapel. I really enjoyed it in the end,” Williams said.
While there were many candidates like Williams who did not have experience campaigning, SGA and the Spelman Speech and Debate team also helped students practice and write their speeches.
To prepare for her debate and tabling, Williams said that she spent a lot of time alone reflecting on why she was running and how that intersected with the student concerns she heard while tabling.
“I was very inspired by Cambel Cadien, who I was friends with before Spelman. I learned from her how to put personality in my campaign and she was very encouraging,” Williams said.
Although there can only be one President for each class council, the campaign process is a group effort. Between managing tabling, preparing speeches, organizing social media and creating posters, candidates usually have a large team behind them to put their best foot forward.
“My team had approximately 20 people and was very supportive and committed and helped make it happen. They really helped with tabling and social media outreach and gave me the time and space to work on public speaking and connecting with voters,” Williams said.
Now that the election season is over, Williams is still working to hear student concerns and establish a system for sophomores to voice concerns to her directly on a regular basis.
“My main goal as President is to promote class unity. I’m committed to having a student inbox for students to share ideas and reach out directly to me and doing polls for events and getting feedback on everything we plan on doing,” Williams said.
For many elected SGA members, winning a campaign is not only the culmination of a successful campaign but also of all of the clubs and advocacy they were involved in leading up to victory.
“The rewarding part of the campaign was the awareness that I got from learning how to be strategic about my campaign and how I regularly conduct myself in day to day life. I was inspired by the speeches and campaign strategies of the First Year Class Council and enjoyed hearing new ideas from opponents that I want to implement as President,” Williams said.
Some of the most pressing issues that came up during the campaign process from students and RSOs were concerns about housing, a lack of administrative support for Muslim students and streamlining the process for students to create RSOs and receive institutional support.
As President, Williams is not only responsible for hearing the voice and concerns of the sophomore class but also responsible for having difficult conversations with the administration to resolve student issues.
“As President, I am ready to remind the administration of what Spelman stands for, the choice to change the world, and that sometimes we have to push for things that may not be liked but that push back is what creates positive change and empowers students.”
Eden Williams, a first-year honors student majoring in health science with a Spanish minor on the pre-med track, serves as the President of the Sophomore Class Council. The Houston native did not run in many clubs or SGA races last year, but she campaigned for the presidency and won.
“I was very inspired by my dad. He was very committed to leadership to make change happen and I want to start following in his footsteps and get myself out there,” Williams said.
As class president, Williams will be responsible for listening and connecting to students, leading the class council meetings and ensuring the class is represented in the best way possible to administration.
“I would say to be honest the most challenging part of the campaign was my speech because it was my first time speaking in front of everybody in Sisters Chapel. I really enjoyed it in the end,” Williams said.
While there were many candidates like Williams who did not have experience campaigning, SGA and the Spelman Speech and Debate team also helped students practice and write their speeches.
To prepare for her debate and tabling, Williams said that she spent a lot of time alone reflecting on why she was running and how that intersected with the student concerns she heard while tabling.
“I was very inspired by Cambel Cadien, who I was friends with before Spelman. I learned from her how to put personality in my campaign and she was very encouraging,” Williams said.
Although there can only be one President for each class council, the campaign process is a group effort. Between managing tabling, preparing speeches, organizing social media and creating posters, candidates usually have a large team behind them to put their best foot forward.
“My team had approximately 20 people and was very supportive and committed and helped make it happen. They really helped with tabling and social media outreach and gave me the time and space to work on public speaking and connecting with voters,” Williams said.
Now that the election season is over, Williams is still working to hear student concerns and establish a system for sophomores to voice concerns to her directly on a regular basis.
“My main goal as President is to promote class unity. I’m committed to having a student inbox for students to share ideas and reach out directly to me and doing polls for events and getting feedback on everything we plan on doing,” Williams said.
For many elected SGA members, winning a campaign is not only the culmination of a successful campaign but also of all of the clubs and advocacy they were involved in leading up to victory.
“The rewarding part of the campaign was the awareness that I got from learning how to be strategic about my campaign and how I regularly conduct myself in day to day life. I was inspired by the speeches and campaign strategies of the First Year Class Council and enjoyed hearing new ideas from opponents that I want to implement as President,” Williams said.
Some of the most pressing issues that came up during the campaign process from students and RSOs were concerns about housing, a lack of administrative support for Muslim students and streamlining the process for students to create RSOs and receive institutional support.
As President, Williams is not only responsible for hearing the voice and concerns of the sophomore class but also responsible for having difficult conversations with the administration to resolve student issues.
“As President, I am ready to remind the administration of what Spelman stands for, the choice to change the world, and that sometimes we have to push for things that may not be liked but that push back is what creates positive change and empowers students.”