“It was more about making a name outside of my family,” said Spencer Blair ’20, sophomore class president, of his desire to run for the Student Government Association (SGA). A commuter student from Phoenix, Md., Blair was raised in a tight-knit family with a love of baseball ingrained in their heritage.

Blair’s father was a star athlete of Calvert Hall College High School in Towson, Md., the high school that Blair would also attend. Like his father, Blair excelled on the baseball field. However, his passion for community development and building rapport with peers ran deeper. Blair created his own name by running for and being elected  sophomore, junior, and senior class president within the Calvert Hall Student Council.

Despite his passion for sports, Blair has other interests. “I’m actually really into theater,” Blair said. “I was impressionable as a kid, and I always used to watch my sister in middle school plays. When I saw “Hamilton,” I thought it was just incredible.” Blair’s childhood was one of great memories and close friends. On Loyola’s campus, Blair’s infectious personality and charm make him a relatable student leader with whom anyone can converse.

Blair values his support systems more than anything, especially since his close childhood friend suffered a traumatic brain injury in a car accident. “Did I do enough? Am I doing enough to improve the lives around me?” These were some of the questions Blair asks himself to this day, which charges his role daily as SGA sophomore class president.

Although Blair’s dream job is to connect his passion for baseball and academia to work for a Major League Baseball (MLB)  team, he prepares himself through his leadership role in SGA. The mission of the association is to instill trust between the community, foster inclusivity within the student body, and to be unbound by the social construct of society. Blair actively works toward building cohesion within the class of 2021 while providing his peers a platform to grow and explore their interests, just as he did.

This year Blair has developed a new networking workshop at Loyola named “Career Discovery Forum.” This event will take place on November 12, 2018. It will serve as the kickoff event for the Center of Innovation and Entrepreneurship and Leadership Week at Loyola to bring talented and creative visionaries together. Loyola alumni will speak as well as attend the networking piece to follow.

After his first year, Blair has had a lot of to reflect on. He has seen “Don’t be afraid to go outside of your comfort zone,” Blair said.  “Experience the city and apply yourself in every way possible.”