Year: Sophomore
Majors: Creative writing and marketing
Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Student organizations/campus activities: Vice president of marketing for the Black Student Union, member of Capital Advertising, assistant manager for the Lerner Health and Wellness Center, University Honors Program
Previous SGA/student government experience: None
Which actor plays you in the movie about your life: Michael B. Jordan
Favorite campus view: USC third-floor terrace
Favorite meal deal or meal swipe: Panda Express
Favorite sports team: Philadelphia Eagles
Favorite musical artist: Right now, Pierce the Veil. Of all time, SZA
MJ Childs wants to give back to GW.
Childs said GW’s professors, students and staff have shown him a level of love and acceptance he had never experienced before, fueling his decision to run for president and give back to the community that embraced him. He said this year’s budget cuts and rollback of student services sharpened that mission, driving him to fight for restoring those resources so students get the full value of their tuition.
“It’d be a presidency for all of us,” Childs said. “It’s MJ Childs, but it’s MJ Childs for GW, MJ Childs for the SGA and for the community as a whole.”
Childs described himself as a lifelong advocate, with work that began in middle school when he urged school officials to keep a program allowing students to work with neurodivergent or physically disabled students at another school. He said the advocacy work he’s engaged in since then — whether that be mental health awareness at his high school or challenging President Donald Trump’s attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion on social media and through the Black Student Union — sets him up as the right candidate to represent and champion GW’s student body.
“My involvement on campus and my understanding as a student and my experience in leadership but also just my will to be an advocate and a leader, I think is more than enough,” Childs said.
Childs said his status as an SGA outsider does not meaningfully distinguish him from other candidates, pointing instead to experiences like his work with the BSU as evidence of his qualifications.
Childs said he chose to run for president after feeling GW’s cuts to student services across the University, starting when officials eliminated his position at the West Hall fitness center on the Mount Vernon Campus, which he suspects was a part of the University-wide budget cuts. He said officials relocated him to the Lerner Health and Wellness Center but also reduced his hours, a move he said added to his frustration as student services were being cut.
He said officials have not sought out sufficient student input when choosing which campus services to close, which he called a “slap in the face” to students, especially since they are the ones paying for the services through their tuition. He said he felt motivated to run after discussions with friends in SGA, who suggested that the president’s position would give him the ability to drive University-wide changes.
“I have a lot of friends in the SGA, and I would ask them, ‘Hey, was there anything that I can do to help this?’” Childs said. “They mentioned, ‘Well, you could run for president, and you would be the direct student advocate between the University and students.’”
Childs said in the event he faces rejections from officials on his proposals — like reopening District House and USC dining — he would be transparent with students about the loss and would reimagine with his team how to approach officials about his plans.
“I wouldn’t have a problem letting the community know that,” Childs said. “But it’s all about going back to the drawing board and taking what they say back to me and seeing how I can use that feedback to still push for the importance of things, even if it means reworking certain policies.”
Childs said he would create new student committees aimed at increasing engagement on campus, including one designed to help introduce incoming Provost Edward Balleisen to the student body and better communicate student priorities to his office. He also said another committee would connect international student organizations and students directly with the International Services Office, particularly as President Donald Trump’s scrutiny of student visas heightens concerns in the international student community.
“That’s a lack of student voice in those rooms,” Childs said. “I don’t think there’s enough interaction between them and international students so that they can know how to better help them.”
He said these new committees would report to him, similar to current SGA President Ethan Lynne’s committees, like one that helped cement the Student Advocacy Office’s existence or former SGA President Ethan Fitzgerald’s committee that founded the first annual Day for the Nations.
Childs said he also wants to work with University administration to tailor their communications about the Trump administration to be more empathetic, which aligns with the strategic framework’s goal of fostering a more empathetic student body. He said more empathetic messages would include clearer explanations of how actions like new immigration policies would affect communities at GW and would more directly direct affected students to available resources.
“Empathy goes a long way, especially how we deal with people who have opposing opinions,” Childs said. “That’s what I would like to see within these updates and more communication about that. I think they’ll also foster a more inclusive environment as well.”
