Election season at Spelman College is impossible to miss. Anyone traveling through Upper Manley Concourse is bound to notice the endless wall of posters and campaign tables stocked with pamphlets, flyers, and goody bags. From February 9th to 21st, Spelmanites attended tabling events, chatted at meet and greets, and gathered for speeches and debates to support familiar faces and learn about new ones. At the end of the two weeks, students cast their ballots for whom they wished to lead them into the next school year.
With election season finally at a close, the 83rd Spelman Student Government Association is ready to step into the future. While discussing elections with these newly-elected SGA Officers and Class Council Presidents, they described their campaigns, lessons learned, and visions for the future.
“I wanted to run for SGA President because I knew the amount of access that I would have to the student body, to empower them and build them up,” said Simone Moales. An SGA veteran, Moales was elected the 83rd Student Body President on her platform M.O.V.E. with Moales, a campaign focused on student retention and dialogue between Spelmanites and administration. The acronym M.O.V.E. highlights the campaign’s goals: motivating our sisters, orienting our minds, voicing our opinions, and enriching our experience. Moales’s primary goal? Advocacy. “Students need to learn the best forms of advocacy. All the way down from learning how to send an email to professors to higher risk situations of not being able to return to campus, whatever advocating for yourself looks like to you,” she states.
Another highlight of the campaign for Moales was the Election Speeches and Debates held on February 20th. A member of Spelman’s Speech and Debate team, she expressed that “it’s always an honor to do what I love, which is public speaking and, of course, the art of debating.” The key initiative of Moales’s campaign and presidency is the Saving Grace Fund. A $100,000 scholarship proposal, the Saving Grace Fund would fundraise to aid students experiencing academic holds due to finances, a situation Moales found herself in during the campaign period. “Being vulnerable and open about your finances is a very brave and bold move that challenged me every day because I had to battle with some pride,” Moales stated. However, she was steadfast in knowing the Saving Grace Fund’s impact on students and their academic retention. “When you’re able to see how your advocacy has successfully impacted a student, that’s my favorite part.”
Student advocacy is also a matter that Kyla Emory holds dear.“I was looking for a position where I could advocate the most, where students’ direct concerns could come to me and I could make a direct impact,” said Emory, who had previously served as president of First-Year and Sophomore Class Councils for the Class of 2026. “I felt like Secretary of Student Affairs was the best choice for me because advocacy is at the heart of the role.” Emory was elected on her platform “Renaissance,” which aimed for a “rebirth” in student empowerment through events and initiatives highlighting Spelmanites’ successes, student advocacy, especially for underrepresented groups such as neurodivergent students or transfer students, and student inclusivity, through elevated camaraderie and community-building.
“This is my third campaign at Spelman. It usually brings that highly intense, anxiety-driven environment,” she reflected but cited the opportunity to connect with so many Spelman sisters as a highlight of campaigning for her. “Just being able to see people for who they are and learn about them as they learned about me was especially important,” she said. “It was really exciting to be able to meet everyone and engage in the good conversations that make Spelman a better place.”
Assuming Emory’s current position is Madison Allen. Allen, the Sophomore Class Council President-elect, built a campaign rooted in sisterhood after observing these connections’ role in her Spelman journey. “My inspiration to run stemmed from a deep-seated desire to pave forward the invaluable sisterhood that I’ve been blessed enough to experience here at Spelman College,” Allen stated. “As I reflect on what’s most important to my class, it becomes evidently clear that fostering a sense of community and belonging ranks among the top priorities.” These values were ever-present throughout her campaign, where she cites her team of over 100 sisters as a “beacon of strength” for her. “This campaign journey has truly illuminated the sacredness of the Spelman sisterhood,” Allen said. “Where intentional love and support are not just offered, but woven into every interaction throughout my campaigning.” Allen’s platform revolved around three objectives: Ascend and Soar – Sisterhood’s Core, Extend and Embrace, and Lift Every Voice. With these objectives, she seeks to deliberately uplift fellow Spelmanites, build efforts towards mentorship and fellowship, and make sure those in her class feel seen, heard, and valued. As Sophomore Class President, she plans to ensure that “our journeys at Spelman College are not individual ascensions, rather shared flights.”
Jordan Brown, an Economics major and current Junior Class President, was re-elected to Senior Class Council President, a role with unique needs and priorities.“The thing that I feel is the most important in our class is unity. I feel like the president’s role holds such a big responsibility of making people feel that they belong, that they are heard, and that they have made the correct decision to be at Spelman College,” she stated. As the Class of 2025 prepares for their final year as Spelman students, Brown plans to lead them toward graduation by fostering the unity and sisterhood that, to her, have been eminent since day one.
“You go throughout college meeting certain people based on your major or mutual friends, but there are so many brilliant women attending Spelman College, especially in the Class of 2025,” said Brown. “If I am able to continue to open spaces for them to meet one another and to network, I feel like those bonds are indescribable, and graduating Spelman College with those bonds would be an amazing achievement to have.”
Another focus of Brown’s campaign and presidency is professional development. As the Senior Class prepares for post-graduation life, Brown wants to plan several initiatives to help students begin their professional journeys. These include joint initiatives with the Career Services Office for workshops and seminars, hosting networking events, and providing resources for job searching, resume building, and interview skills. Lastly, Brown plans for the presence of her class to be still felt even as they move beyond the gates with the Senior Legacy Project. “I want to propose and work on a meaningful senior legacy project that will leave a lasting impact on our Spelman College community,” she expressed. “It would show that we are trying to continue to make a difference even though we are about to graduate.”
The impact of prior administrations was evident when discussing what inspires the elected candidates. Moales names former President Chandler Nutall and current President Breah Banks as major influences for her. “I have learned from them the need to be resilient, the need to be hardworking, and the need to lead with truth and transparency,” she stated. “One thing about Chandler and Breah is that they were going to get the facts, share them with the students, and tell the students how we are going to shape the facts into a brighter future.” She also notes Banks’ collaborative spirit and creative problem-solving as traits she hopes to carry with her into her term as president.
Emory also cites President Banks as an example of the necessity of SGA. During her time as the Secretary of Student Affairs, Banks was a prominent voice calling for a new student dining plan. “She was the only student in that room advocating for our voices and making sure that the dining we were partaking in was something that we enjoyed,” she said. Her actions, to Emory, were an example of SGAs “opportunity to truly change this campus.”
With commencement now on the horizon, Brown’s final presidency celebrates unity. “The bonds that we’ve created over the four years of college will really show during our senior year, and with this Senior Class Council President role I want to further enhance that,” she shares. “I am so excited to graduate, but to also spend those last few moments with the girls I came into Spelman with.”
If you ask Moales, Emory, Allen, or Brown, the future of Spelman Student Government is extraordinary. This sentiment rang true as they shared their visions for the upcoming year. “My vision is to be a light,” Emory stated. “To be someone that our sisters can always count on. I want to make sure that I carry on that same expression of love that I carried with the Class of 2026. I want to make sure that students feel the love and the work and effort that we put into what we do each day.”
Allen echoes the hopes that the student body will feel her devotion to connectedness. “My vision is centered around breathing new life into our Spelman sisterhood,” said Allen. “By uplifting others we can collectively cultivate a stronger, more united community and sisterhood here at Spelman College and beyond. “ With her “final M.O.V.E.” also complete, Moales is clear: “This is going to be an administration to remember.” With the Saving Grace Fund initiative, the rising concerns on housing conditions and availability, and getting students involved in the upcoming 2024 Presidential election, there is bound to be a lot on SGA’s plate. However, Moales is nothing but optimistic about the work to come. “I’m excited. I can’t wait,” she expressed. “The work will not stop. Let’s move.”
