Hearing their names announced as Southern Arkansas University’s Homecoming King and Queen 2016 might have been surreal for Babajide Aina and Gabrielle Davis, but it was a moment neither is likely to forget.
Aina, a senior biology pre-health major from Garland, Texas, said that although many of his fellow students have jokingly taken to calling him “Your Majesty” following his selection as Homecoming King on Oct. 1, “I don’t feel any different. I just feel like I’m the same old person.”
He not only found himself on the Homecoming Court but escorting the winning candidate for Queen, Davis, a senior political science major from Magnolia, Ark. Both said their hard work asking for votes paid off and now look forward to serving SAU in their newly-elected capacities.
“I feel very blessed and thankful,” Davis said of her selection. “It is definitely going to be a journey.”
For Aina, the journey to SAU Homecoming King took him through three other universities before an offer to play Mulerider basketball brought him to Magnolia. He attended Prairie View A&M University in Houston, Texas A&M University at Commerce and Kansas City Community College before deciding to continue his collegiate basketball career at SAU. He plays guard for the Muleriders and is passionate about not only the game but the University.
“When I came to visit the campus, classes were out, but I could visualize what kind of school it is,” Aina said. “It felt like home. For me, being a Mulerider means being an ambitious individual, helpful to others, and appreciative of all the memories and experiences gained at the University.”
Last summer he asked a co-worker at the Reynolds Center Information Desk about activities in which he could participate during his senior year. “I wanted to go out with a bang. I just said, ‘Hey, what about Homecoming King?’ She said, ‘I think you can do it.’ I talked to my boss, Victor Duke, who said I had the personality for it.”
“When school started, I started with the SGA elections, got my feet wet asking for votes and it just carried on into Homecoming,” he said. “I’ve never done anything like this in my life. It was a great experience.”
Davis said she has been prepared to campaign for Homecoming Queen since before arriving at SAU. “Last year, I told myself that would be me,” she said. “I had my mind set on it.”
“Once I was nominated to the Homecoming Court, I knew how to prepare,” Davis said. “As a political science major, I knew what it would take to campaign. I made up fliers and candy bags. I made buttons to give people at all the popular places on campus, and social media was huge – it really moved my (campaign) out into the community. Babajide also helped promote me whenever he talked to people.”
“I started campaigning as soon as I found out I was on the Court,” Aina said. “When I asked for votes, I would always say, ‘Hello, how you doing,’ and ‘Have a good day,’ because you never know what somebody is going through or who’s going to vote for you.”
“I met a ton of people,” Davis said. “I think there were some misperceptions about what it means to be on the Homecoming Court – people would say, ‘I’m not into sports!’ So I had the chance to explain what it is that the King and Queen do. It’s about being a good representative of the school.”
Aina and Davis agreed that Homecoming Week was a time of hard work and campaigning.
“I actually missed an assignment,” Davis said. “I never miss an assignment! It was stressful, I won’t sugarcoat that, but God worked it all out for me.”
“We held each other up at the end,” Aina said. “We worked really hard. When they called my name (as King), I felt like, ‘Did that happen?’”
“I wanted to cry, but I didn’t,” Davis recalled of hearing her name announced as Homecoming Queen. “I was just so happy. You don’t know who’s going to win until they call your name, and I felt it was well-deserved … we worked so hard. I felt like I built a foundation instead of resting on one.”
Like Aina, she said her fellow classmates now treat her like royalty. “I reciprocate the respect that’s shown,” Davis said. “It is a blessing to hold this position.”
Each expects the other to do a great job in their respective roles. “He’s going to be a great King,” Davis said of Aina. “He’s very involved, a lot of people know him; he’s very personable. It’s about that personal experience. People remember that better than a flier.”
“It’s the first impression that sticks,” Aina said. “You’ve got to give people a reason to vote. We prayed about it and put the work in.”
Aina, a Bronx, N.Y. native, said he plans to use his biology degree to apply to dental school. Davis said she plans to law school after she receives her undergraduate degree.
