After formalizing as a group in May 2023, Kirkwood Community College’s Black Student Union started in the fall semester with a mission.
As a new group of leaders have taken center stage. According to the leaders, they have built a union within their school to foster a connection and establish themselves within the community and Kirkwood.
Leadership positions were available to all students, and everyone was encouraged to present their candidacy to the club.
The selection process involved a democratic format, wherein each member could express their preference by writing down their vote, and the ballots were subsequently counted.
Whoever had the most votes took the positions of vice president, Co-president, Secretary, Service Committee Leader, Communication Chair, Social Media Committee, and Treasurer. According to members, they wanted to make it a fair and equal process.
When talking with Black Student Union Leader Ellen Waynawhere, a sophomore majoring in criminal justice, she described this year’s group of leaders as “Passionate and understanding.”
She said, “I do a lot of stuff with passion. That was how I was raised; you put your heart and soul into something.”
She added, “Anybody can be a leader; leaders are not born but made. I just want people within the club to feel like a leader. One of the club’s goals is to have a community and ensure everyone feels like their voices are heard.”
Black Student Union Advisor Mialisa Wright, director of Student Equity, Inclusion, and Support, described the group as visionaries. “They have excellent thoughts about what they want to do in the future.”
Wright highlighted her role as an advisor supporting students enough to be independent and prosper within the community.
“They don’t need us to tell them what they want; it’s their group, their club, and that’s what we want them to have. Our job is to be like you want it; how do we get it,” said Wright.
She added, “I hope students know this is an organization for black students, and that’s what it was created for, so they could have a voice on campus in a capacity that we have not had here at Kirkwood; all students are welcomed to attend any type of campus engagement here on our campus, and we hope all students participate in anything we have here.”
Categories: Campus News, News
