In the past, the annual Singled Out event put on by the Associated Student Body (ASB) faced criticism for its lack of inclusivity, and for good reason.

The event featured one male and one female “single” that would answer this or that questions in front of the crowd. The rest of the participants, those hoping to be matched with the “single,” would be eliminated if they did not answer the same.

The “single” would get one save as the eliminated participants would walk past them on the stage; a ritual that felt very shallow as they would save the “prettiest” or most popular person. Singled Out always only featured heteronormative pairings, so girls would be matched with the male “single” and boys with the female “single.”

This made it so Titans who were not cisgendered or heterosexual could not participate in Singled Out adding to homophobia and intolerance on campus.

Fortunately, this year, ASB seniors Kate Bylsma and Morgan Kallman have switched things up to combat the heteronormativity and include all Titans wanting to participate in Singled Out.
“This year we are still having one boy and one girl as our “singles,” but all of our contestants are not limited to any gender or sexuality. There are 25 random contestants participating as contestants and will be matched with a new friend based on compatibility. We hope that students will be excited with an updated version of Singled Out, and for it to continue next year,” Bylsma said.

Although some people miss the traditional romantic matchmaking, and some critics still think ASB could do more to include LGBTQ+ students, the new friend matchmaking is a great compromise to make more Titans happy.