Voting opened for the Fall 2023 Student Body Presidential race at 12:01 a.m. on Monday. On this year’s ballot, Council of Student Leaders (CSL) candidates are students from a diverse range of backgrounds.
#LOVEWU: Leading Others with the Vision of Excellence – Jah-nai Smith and Jermarius Evans
“I process criticism in a four-step procedure which is listening, reflection, ownership, and action. When it pertains to criticism it is important to first actively listen to understand the person’s perspective,” Chair candidate, Jah-nai Smith wrote in his leadership portfolio.
Smith, an international student representative and Jermarius Evans, an education major and teaching fellow, have made their bid for election with the campaign slogan, “LOVE WU.”
Through the campaign message that stands for “Leading Others with the Vision of Excellence.” Smith said in his Ticket Platform Statement, “(LOVE WU) embodies the heart and the drive we have in cultivating the Winthrop community. As student body president and vice president, we have acknowledged the growth in student engagement on campus and our vision in continuing that must come with a plan.”
In terms of goals for the Council of Student Leaders, Evans said he would like to be “a transformational leader that values student engagement, setting an example for the council by leading with attributes set out in the Dedication for Excellence, and to further connect with the student body on things regarding the Winthrop community. As a person who loves taking the positive out of any given situation, I would love to highlight more of the wins and amazing things Winthrop has to offer.”
#ShakeTheTable: Unity, transparency & Visibility – Shivani Dahya and Jordyn Abtahi
“For me, as student body president, I would stand as the first South Asian Indian woman as president that Winthrop has ever seen. So I think that in itself brings a more inclusive, diverse perspective to the student body,” Shivani Dahya said.
Dahya, a former City of Rock Hill community relations council member and Culture Club Vice President, Jordyn Abtahi have launched a campaign where their goal is to increase transparency of “what CSL does as a whole to our Winthrop community,” as stated in their Leadership Portfolios.
Dahya described her experience of starting college during the pandemic, “I know a lot of students now who feel like they’re unheard. And I feel like they’re unseen. And it’s like the Winthrop community isn’t what it used to be, and isn’t connected how it used to be. And I want to bring that connection back.”
During her time as a former City of Rock Hill community relations council member, Dahya “was able to use the voices of the community, and be able to write up a report that we then sent to the mayor and the higher ups of the city council for them to look at and then implement some of the ideas that the community had into the city through policy,” she said. I’ll
LeadHERship: Be The Change You Want To See – Esther Ekundayo and Rachel Griffith
“If elected, I am to further improve these efforts to enforce diversity, equity and inclusion by doing more to raise awareness on the programs hosted by Winthrop’s organizations,” Esther Ekundayo said.
Ekundayo, an MBA student in human resources and Resident Assistant, Rachel Griffith make their bid for the president and vice president’s seat with the message of ensuring “that every single student voice is heard and letting them know there is always a place for them on campus to freely and appropriately express themselves.”
If elected, Ekundayo hopes to further improve efforts to enforce diversity, equity and inclusion by doing more to raise awareness of the programs hosted by Winthrop’s organizations.
“Currently, students feel that participation rates are quite low and that those who do attend are typically the same crowd. So, I have devised the idea of a digital newsletter, which would be called the “Eagle Weekly.” It is here that students would be able to see the flyers posted for all the events held by different organizations, on one universal platform, for the upcoming week. This will prevent an influx of several different emails being received that can easily be overlooked,” Ekundayo said.
Griffith hopes to work with Ekundayo to ensure that all students’ voices are heard including those who are considered non-traditional. Griffith said, “From freshmen and sophomores to juniors and seniors, but not just those students but including all of our students. From graduate students (Esther herself is a graduate student), to military/VA students, because if it wasn’t for that type of program, I wouldn’t have been here, to transfer students and online students–all students that have @winthrop.edu.”
VOTE!
View all Fall 2023 CSL Candidates’ Resumes, Leadership Portfolios and Ticket Platform Statements for yourself on Winthrop’s CSL website.
Voting closes at 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5.
