On Jan. 26, the Baldwin Wallace Supreme Court hosted a town hall meeting which allowed candidates for student body president and vice president to share their platforms. BW students were invited to participate in a question-and-answer session asking about the candidates’ plans for BW’s future.  

Despite running unopposed, Matthew Perry, junior student body presidential candidate, and Maree Horne, sophomore student body vice presidential candidate, are running on a platform of bringing fun to social events increasing involvement across campus.   

Both candidates depicted their time in office as an opportunity for growth in student engagement. Further, Perry emphasized that the negative effects of the Covid-19 pandemic are still ingrained in many students’ socialization habits.   

“We want students to be excited about something again,” Perry said.   

Answering questions prepared by the Supreme Court and audience members, the running mates emphasized their efforts to hear the opinions of the student body. Horne and Perry said they find it crucial to go to events and talk to students about what fun events they would like to see on campus.   

“If one thing is evident, in order to change the current student engagement here on campus there needs to be some kind of big splash in the water,” Perry said.   

As of now, the pair is unsure what this “big splash” will be; however, Horne mentioned her desire for a concert on campus. Other larger universities have had artists come to their campuses, and Horne believes this could be an event that increases social engagement at BW.   

Horne is a transfer student and said that she has felt very welcome at BW. Although her time at BW has not been long, she wishes to increase student engagement, especially with minority groups, during her candidacy.   

“I feel like my past experience in leadership positions will help me,” Horne said. “In high school I was president for three years.”   

Horne’s involvement in the Black Student Alliance advanced her urge for student involvement across campus. When it comes to the social gatherings in the future of BW, Horne hopes to see increased diversity across all clubs, organizations and events.  

Perry’s ideas for activities on campus much reflect his actions in his current position as student body vice president. In Perry’s candidacy as vice president, he participated in the organization of the Holiday Gala alongside senior student body president Lizzy Cole. Perry emphasized that this was the largest indoor event since before Covid-19, excluding commencement.   

“The gala [was a] huge success, but it doesn’t just stop there. We’ve got to keep the ball rolling,” Perry said.   

The success of the Holiday Gala inspired Perry to promote more events like this on campus. However, large projects like the Holiday Gala take long planning periods.  

Luckily for Perry and Horne, running unopposed allows them to get a jumpstart on their plans for the upcoming year. The candidates can begin planning events before their inauguration date.