Inter-Residence Council VP of National Communication Coordination Melanie Flowers, a third-year studying communications, is running for student body president this year. Her running mate is IRC VP of Media and Marketing McKenzy Heavlin, a second-year studying electrical engineering. The ticket is running on a platform focusing on food and housing security, wellness and student government reform.
With the major pillars of their platform — food and housing security, well-being, sustainability, academics and Student Government affairs — Flowers hopes to both finish existing Student Government projects and create programs that will stay in place after her term would end.
“All of our platform is [about] what we can do and what we can set in place for the next session of Student Government,” Flowers said. “We’re trying to finish projects, tie some bows and start some new ones.”
Flowers and Heavlin hope to include a mental health clause in syllabi and inclusion of questions about the LGBTQ+ community on housing applications, as well as open syllabi for course registration.
A mental health clause in syllabi would indicate a professor being willing to excuse an absence on the basis of mental well-being. The two are also advocating for past syllabi to be available for students to view prior to registering for classes, in order to allow for approximation of workload.
“I really think it will help with checking the work balance throughout all your courses,” Heavlin said.
Flowers and Heavlin hope to achieve, with the help of University Housing and the GLBT Center, the inclusion of a question on housing applications regarding whether an applicant would be comfortable living with a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
“With the first-year live-on requirement, if you’re part of that community and you get housed with someone who isn’t supportive of that community, it can be really awkward and cause a lot of problems,” Heavlin said.
As a transfer student, Flowers was active in Student Government during her time at Western Carolina University and has also been a senator in past sessions. She has worked in the diversity ethics department, been a chair on the committee of apportionment, and written legislation with the goal of creating a smoke-free campus.
Currently, neither Flowers nor Heavlin hold a position in Student Government.
“I have seen really successful initiatives through Student Government,” Flowers said. “I’ve also seen really amazing ideas just not being able to push all the way through. I’m excited to see for myself what stops those ideas from becoming a reality for students.”
Heavlin has never been a member of Student Government, but has been in leadership positions. He served on both the Metcalf Hall Council Executive Board and the Inter-Residence Council Executive Board, both of which Flowers also serves on. Additionally, Heavlin was an orientation leader for the class of 2023 last summer.
“The training for [being an orientation leader] is a lot about the university … so it gave me a really holistic look at the university and everything that we have going on,” Heavlin said. “It really helped me understand how I fit in with the university, in terms of my identity. As a white male, it’s very interesting. You see how disproportionate we are and how predominantly white we are. It really taught me how to be an advocate for those underrepresented groups.”
Students will be able to vote all day Monday and Tuesday, March 2-3 through the GetInvolved website.
