Naesoj Ware, a graduating senior double-majoring in political science and philosophy from Boston, wrote in her personal statement for Howard University that her first protest was at 12. This ardent spirit has followed Ware, the 65th president of the Executive Howard University Student Association (HUSA) Administration, whose legacy will be molded by her unapologetic public stances on student leadership at Howard and her insistence on a truly accessible institution.
However, becoming one of the most visible student leaders on campus wasn’t always Ware’s dream.
“My dream was to find sisterhood, but it felt like you could only find that by being with the cool kids and cliques,” Ware explained, who originally hoped to be part of a selective organization on campus.
For Ware, this change in destiny did not come easy.
“People try to make it seem like it’s easier than what it is, like, It’s very emotionally treacherous — having to realize that the life you envisioned is not what you are going to get,” Ware said, who didn’t think she would get the lifelong bonds that selective organizations promise out of student government. This transition in goals came with an overhaul to her personal value system.
“My experience was that student government didn’t provide a community that other people valued. It wasn’t like it was a family; they weren’t your brothers or sisters,” Ware explained. “That wasn’t my perception, so I didn’t place any value in it because what I was looking for was community,” she added.
However, Ware ended up finding a family in HUSA, most notably her “big sister” Jay Jones, the 64th HUSA president. Ware first met Jones while running for Miss Freshman.
“At the end of that year, I was getting myself into drama. Just doing too much and confiding in folks who I just shouldn’t have been talking to,” lamented Ware. “She really helped me to navigate every situation that I’ve been through at Howard,” she added.
Jones asked Ware to be on her vice presidential campaign team, and she served as deputy chief of staff during the 63rd administration and ultimately chief of staff under Jones’ 64th administration.
Jones shaped Ware’s understanding of leadership efficacy, something Ware is vocal about on her social media.
“Something that Jay revealed was that you won’t always see the fruits of your labor immediately, but they’re still necessary,” Ware said.
Ware admired Jones’ hand-off approach to leadership, which she tried to implement in her administration, giving HUSA departmental leads as much autonomy as possible.
Ware’s administration came on the coattails of electoral controversy, where her campaign struck out on violations, which were overturned by the judiciary in Ware v. HU Elections Commission and the dismissal of the elections commission, which many thought then-president Jones acted upon because of her proximity to Ware.
“It was going to happen regardless. And if Jay didn’t relieve them of their duties, the judiciary was already filing an injunction against them,” Ware explained, who maintains that several judicial cases were filed prior to their own.
Controversy deepened with public statements from various school councils, but Ware believes the electoral drama built up a powerful start to her administration.
“We had a lot of momentum to build off of, like ‘ok we got you, you’re engaged, you’re looking out, how do we make you stay?’” Ware said on the public eye.
Ware’s administration was not without other moments of public spectacle. In November, Ware announced her resignation, before revealing it was a stunt to show that the negative news surrounding student leadership spreads farther than the positive news.
Joshua Green, a sophomore honors biology major from Mobile, Alabama, currently serves as chief strategist officer and was present during Ware’s announcement.
“One thing you can’t take away from Naesoj is that she knows how to make people really devoted to her,” Green said, who met Ware as she was campaigning and became a part of her campaign team on the same day. “The emotional impact of the mere suggestion of her no longer being in that position affected so many in the room,” Green recounted.
He was not surprised at the announcement, nor her revealing that it was staged.
“Naesoj has the kind of back-and-forth type personality where she has an idea, and she’ll stick with it and go gung-ho,” Green explained.
To Ware, the largest problem she faced during her tenure was food insecurity, exacerbated by the loss of food options on Georgia Avenue at the start of the school year.
“Most of our dining options being taken off campus was insane, but students shouldn’t have to pay for those alternatives because they pay for a meal plan,” Ware said. “So also, how do we make the meal plan worth it?” she asked.
Throughout her tenure, Ware stood firm in her belief that true change must come through mobilizing the entire student body, not just elected HUSA leaders.
“HUSA has been fighting for the same thing it’s been fighting for since its inception in 1961, and I think that we will continue such if something radical doesn’t happen,” Ware said.
In the meantime, Ware’s legacy will be in her attempt to change the attitude of HUSA.
“My number one goal as HUSA president was to open the doors of HUSA up so wide that they could never be closed again,” Ware said.
She said she hopes that her approach made HUSA a student government that each student sees themselves as a part of. This included the HUSA Hotline, which established a direct line of communication between students and the 65th administration.
“We can challenge, we can question, we can get on our Instagrams and be angry, and we don’t have to continue letting students in the university gaslight us into thinking there’s no solution,” Ware said. “That’s just not true.”
Upon graduating, Ware said she will either pursue a masters of arts in philosophy and education or backpack around the world. Ultimately, Ware hopes to develop her own civic character education model to pilot in middle and high schools across the country.
Wherever Ware ends up, her impact will stay present in HUSA staffers like Jaylen Lincoln, the first-year associate president. Lincoln’s favorite memory of Ware was her roller skating down the student leadership hall whilst blasting Stevie Wonder.
“She was able to brighten up my day by just being herself,” Lincoln recounted, whose idea of leadership was informed by Ware.
“Even though I’m a leader, I’m human and will make mistakes,” Lincoln said. “It’s important to step back, breathe, then lead.”
Copy edited by Daryl R. Thomas Jr.