Weldon ’16 named Class of 2016 Social Chair

James Weldon ’16 will serve as the new Class of 2016 social chair, the 2016 class council announced in an email to the sophomore class on Tuesday.

Molly Stoneman ’16 vacated the position after she won her bid for USG vice president in the November elections.

Weldon was chosen out of approximately 20 applicants, Class of 2016 president Justin Ziegler ’16 said. Ziegler noted that, of the large number of students who submitted an application, six were asked to interview for the position, and Weldon was chosen after the second round of interviews.

“He really stood out both in terms of his commitment and dedication, prior experience and the ideas that he had for the class,” Ziegler said. “He had some really great ideas, and it was shown that he really thought a lot about the position and what he wanted to do as social chair.”

Weldon noted that, although he had not run for an elected position in the past, he applied for this position because he thought it “was a unique opportunity ... to serve.”

Prior to applying to be social chair, Weldon worked with Business Today on campus planning its international conference. Ziegler said that Weldon’s experience planning the conference set him apart from the other candidates because it showed that he could handle the logistics of a large-scale event.

Looking toward future events, Weldon said he thought the cruise and winter formal that the class council planned last year had been pretty successful, so he is considering other events like those in the future.

“One of the things that the class government stresses is to be representative of the class,” Weldon said. “So I’m always looking to hear from other students, hear from my peers what they think that I can do, and really shape it off of how I can best serve my classmates and how I can make events and various class activities as fun and as interesting for my peers as possible.”

Though Weldon noted he wants to keep his finger on the pulse with regard to hearing what kinds of events students want, he said he is thinking about planning a carnival for the class.

Weldon also said he is interested in organizing more events between alumni and the students of the sophomore class. The 2016 class council has already offered a series of “Dinners with Ten T16ers,” and Weldon said he would like to continue events of that sort while also offering more events that put students in direct contact with alumni.

“I am viewing this opportunity as kind of a class government experiment,” Weldon said. “I am always looking to meet new people, make new relationships, so anytime anyone wants to talk to me, I am of course available. Talk to me, say hi. I want to get to know as much of our class as possible and get as many ideas as possible from them.”

Though Stoneman was not involved in the decision to appoint Weldon, she said she is very excited that he will be serving as the new social chair. She noted that he has been involved in class council events in the past and added that she thinks he has the experience and commitment to do well.