In just one year at Yale, Chloe Adda ’22 has organized various study breaks, played an “instrumental” role in planning the Fall Comedy show, coordinated a spin class at Payne Whitney Gym and served as one of the current Deputy Events Directors for the Yale College Council Events Committee. As a first-generation student, fiction writer, activist and the oldest child of six, Adda says she is ready to take on a new challenge — becoming the Yale College Council’s Events Director.

Adda’s campaign originally started as a co-campaign with fellow deputy director, Nicole Zhen ’22. Adda said that she and Zhen have discussed policies that they would like to implement for a while, but the two were not allowed to run on a joint ticket. If elected, Adda said that she will appoint Zhen as her co-director. She explained that with the amount of responsibility the Events Director carries, having a co-chair will help ensure that she can do the job to the best of her ability.

“If I were to be elected and I were to appoint Nicole, that is me advocating for her,” said Adda. “I would never put someone in that position if I didn’t think they were qualified and I didn’t think they were the best person to do this alongside with me.”

If elected, Adda and Zhen’s jobs will include overseeing both the Events Committee and the Spring Fling Committee within the YCC.

Adda’s event-planning passion stems from her experiences prior to coming to  Yale. In high school, Adda focused on easing  tensions between the police and residents of Westport, Connecticut by coordinating a community meeting on police brutality as well as a “police dodgeball game.”

She emphasized that working on YCC Events this past year has also helped her accumulate firsthand experience that will be vital if she is elected.

Adda’s platform includes proposals for improving relations between the Events Committee and the student body as well as better utilizing student voices to gauge their interests for Spring Fling and other YCC events.

According to current Events Director Caleigh Propes ’20, the Committee does not usually send out surveys asking students what events they would like to see happen, but this year, they have sent out two. Adda was “instrumental” in making that happen, she said.

“The student body should know I’m someone who is actually advocating for their voices,” Adda said. “For me, student voices are so important especially as a minority student on Yale campus. The idea of having my voice heard is so important, and I want everyone to feel like they have that, and I want to be that person who’s delegating voices to the committees.”

Hosting events that promote student wellness is also a central component of Adda’s campaign. She said that she plans to send out more surveys to the student body to better understand what activities they would like to see implemented.

Adda would also like to create an ongoing speaker series to help facilitate student discussion around campus.

“I want to get professors and students to have conversations about topics such as imposter syndrome and the feeling of a lack of diversity in classrooms, things that really allow students to know that there are people who are listening,” said Adda.

She added that she would also like to raise awareness about how to bring up suggestions to the Events Committee, and she hopes that more students will feel comfortable getting involved. Additionally, Adda wants to create a fund for students who cannot participate in certain activities due to financial reasons.

Propes complimented Adda on her collaborative talent. According to Propes, Adda had a vital role in tying together the separate Events and Spring Fling committees — for the first time in history, the two groups will host a joint Spring Fling kickoff event at Mory’s.

“Chloe’s been really good about thinking about audiences that we haven’t been targeting, seeking out those groups and trying to create a programming that would cater to them a little bit more,” Propes said. “That’s why this year we’ve had a few more events, like foodie events, that we haven’t had in the past.”

Kelly Wei | kelly.wei@yale.edu