2027- Hayden Cohen

Hayden Cohen ’29 (she/her)

Major: 

Describe your vision for the position you intend to run for.

The people serving on Student Government matter; they’re the drivers of change, the ones whose ideas are brought to life, and they themselves need structure to thrive. This structure stems from the Vice President–the person who sets the tone and expectations for Student Government internally. Within this role, I plan on connecting Student Government officers with StuGov alumni to provide mentorship, resources, and ideas to Student Government members, to fuel their work in, and beyond, Student Government. As the first year with elected Senators, I also will closely advise each Senatorial class, ensuring that they are working productively, representing their class years, and constantly brainstorming ways that they can better Lafayette. Additionally, I also want to look at how Student Government communicates with the student body and develop a more effective way to hear students’ voices and identify which issues should be prioritized on our agenda. By setting aside time each week to meet with students face-to-face, Student Government could create more opportunities for students to voice their concerns and feel genuinely heard. This way, Student Government can internally recognize the boundary that exists in hearing the student body, and work to be a stronger democracy, elevating student voices.

Describe why you are the right person for this role.

Beyond simply caring, I put my heart into Student Government. The VP is a “people-first” role, as I would work to make Student Government a cohesive space, and build community internally to make us a more effective unit. We have such a strong community on campus–it almost feels like everyday you’re bound to run into someone you know or have someone smile at you as you walk across campus. That same energy should be reflected in Student Government, and needs the VP to foster that. As VP, I would deeply care about the work we do, the projects we spearhead, our Committees’ productivity, etc. But, I would also care about the people serving; they’re students, with classes, labs, teams, friends, and other commitments. I am going to be the person who cares and looks out for our members, builds their confidence, and puts their wellness first, so they can live and serve as their best selves. I’m also dedicated and have an eye for the small things on campus that, with changes, can drastically improve life at Lafayette. The random rooming questionnaire, for one, isn’t spoken about enough since it occurs before first-years actually step foot onto campus. It should be reassessed–is ResLife asking the right questions and making successful roommate pairings? This is something that as Student Government we can work towards reforming and working in tandem with Reslife to improve.