Class Marshal Victors Named

After two competitive rounds of voting—and a technological blip during the first round—the results of the senior Class Marshal elections were announced yesterday afternoon. Among the eight elected marshals were First Marshal Lumumba B. Seegars ’09 and Second Marshal Philip L. Perez ’09.

As Marshals for the Class of 2009, Seegars, Perez, and six of their peers will be responsible for planning Class Day and Senior Week, as well as future alumni activities such as reunions.

“I am so excited and happy,” said Seegars, adding that being First Marshal would allow him to be involved in the class, “reaching out, hearing what other people have to say, and seeing what the class wants.”

Perez cited the opportunity to stay in touch with his class as his primary reason for running.

The other six Class Marshals include Kameron A. Collins ’09, Amanda K. Fields ’09, Heidi E. Kim ’09, Christopher C. Lo ’09, Margaret M. Wang ’09, and Joyce Y. Zhang ’09. The eight senior Marshals were chosen from an original pool of 61 candidates in an election organized by the Harvard Alumni Association. For the first time in history, all eight of the Marshals are racial minorities, as the winners include four Asian-Americans, three black students, and one Latino student, according to an HAA official.

Marshals responded to the news of the results with a mixture of shock, excitement, and gratitude.

“There was no way to gauge the support I would get from my classmates, so to get this positive reaction was a huge honor,” Kim said. “I could not have had such a great time at Harvard without the people in my class, so I’m excited to give back to the people who’ve made my experience possible.”

Collins said that the results came as a surprise.

“When I filled out the nomination form a few weeks ago, I did not expect to be one of the elected Marshals, so I am very honored.”

The Marshals all expressed their eagerness to fulfill their roles and duties.

“I am looking forward to making this a memorable year for the senior class and also hope to connect the class in upcoming years,” Seegars said.

Zhang said she was looking forward to working with the other seven Marshals.

“I think all the Marshals are going to work really well together,” Zhang said. “Everyone who is involved will make it their priority to make this year the best for everyone.”

Despite the positive feelings, at least one Marshal said that the actual responsibilities of the job remain a bit of a mystery.

“We all have a little idea of what being a Marshal entails, but don’t know the extent of it all,” Collins said.

“We learn as we go along.”

The first meeting of the Class Marshals will take place on Oct. 14.