The Parthenon asked each presidential and vice-presidential candidate the same series of questions. Below are responses from Anna Williams who is running for student body vice president. 

Q: What do you want the student body to know about you personally?

A: I think a lot of times the elections make candidates into special characters, so it feels awkward telling people what they should think of me.  Nonetheless, I think I would personally want the student body to know that I understand what a lot of us go through. I take a full load of courses, finish work just to turn around and do more homework and put myself through school. I get how stressful the mundane aspects of college can be, which is why we have really focused our campaign on easing burdens on students. Personally, I have always tried to go about my life by making at least one person’s day better every day. I think that is why a lot of my work to date focuses on developing real solutions. I would be no different in this position. 

Q: Was there something specific that inspired you to run? 

A: The one-on-one relationships I have formed with students on this campus was my main reason for running. I think that hearing their stories, worries, and what excites them every day drove me to want to make Marshall an even better experience for them. Also, Stephanie’s genuine care for Marshall and passion behind making a difference had a great impact on me. Ultimately, both factors made me realize that now would be the best time to try to make substantial change with someone I knew I could trust and someone that I knew students could trust. 

Q: What plans do you have if you are elected? 

A: We have big goals for when we get elected, but we have extensively researched each of them and already have written proposals to move each forward. Primarily, our goal is to continue listening and learning from students. We will certainly be working on easing the burden of tuition on families, bringing in more major events, and mental health; however, we don’t plan on losing sight of the people that these objectives impact most. We plan to serve each student to the best of our ability and fulfill the promises that we have made. Every action we take will be geared toward putting students first. 

Q: What do you believe is the biggest issue that Marshall is facing and how do you plan to combat it? 

A: There are a few issues that really stick out to me at Marshall. I don’t think that you can necessarily pinpoint it to one because different things matter to different people. Mainly, I think that the rising costs of college greatly impact everyone on this campus. We are planning to combat that by proposing alternative plans, like tuition caps or fixed-rate tuition, that will lower and specify the costs of college. There is a great concern for mental health here also, which we plan to combat by making services more accessible to the lifestyles of all students. In terms of programming and events, we are looking at bringing in a larger concert on homecoming to create more on-campus excitement while also better engaging businesses in the community. For other major issues like campus safety, we have spoken with MUPD and are considering creating a safety app for two-way communication that better disseminates information. We have also looked at the parking problem here and are working on proposing the inclusion of a parking garage in new university projects. 

Q: Is there anything I haven’t asked that you believe the student body should know?

A: Above all the noise, I think that the student body should know that Stephanie, our cabinet, and me have dedicated ourselves to students. This election is an opportunity to put you at the forefront of what goes on around this university. The people we have met throughout this process really demonstrate the character and care our students share for each other. Our family of students deserves to be put first.