Fear Wrapped in Fun: Simba Chiunda Reflects on Leadership, Legacy, and Letting Go
Written by Liza Zahid
Thumbnail and banner Photo from the SMU Website
On a Thursday afternoon, Simba and I stood in the Tim’s line, chatting about his recent move and what he’s been up to. We sat down in the commons, my recorder rolling as Simba waved at students he knew walking by. I started by asking him to introduce himself. In true Simba fashion, he excitedly grabbed my phone and held it like a microphone.
“Hi everyone, my name is Simba Chiunda. Simbarashe Chiunda, and I am from Zimbabwe,” he announced.
He’s in his fourth year, studying Global Business Management - a degree he says is “silly but quite cool”. Life after SMUSA, he says, has come with a significant shift. “I thought I’d be struggling right now, but I wake up whenever I want.”
On April 30th, he transitioned out of the SMUSA President role. The next morning, he woke up at 6:30 a.m., got ready for the day, only to realize...it was over. He could slow down. Now, he’s finally making time for the coffees and lunches he had long promised to friends, alumni, and others.
Simba was elected President on February 15, 2024, with 672 votes. Throughout the campaign, he’d become one of the more familiar names on campus and a favorite among students.
We reminisced about his campaign, which he said “was focused on wellness initiatives and job opportunities for students.” One of his major goals was to create a job database that would make it easier to find jobs with SMU’s partners, like TD. While the project wasn’t completed during his term, it’s in the annual plan he passed on to incoming President Augustina Tucker.
Talking about his projects, he brought up Bounce with excitement - arguably his most beloved initiative. Bounce is a student engagement app launched during the Winter semester. Simba acknowledged that the timing may have impacted early adoption. About half of SMU’s societies are now using the app, and he’s seen meaningful engagement.
“We wanted it to be an online hub for Husky Patrol, waivers, and all society communications,” he explained.
The app aims to address frequent complaints of long response times and delayed emails. Through Bounce, Simba and his team hoped to streamline SMUSA’s communication and responsiveness.
I asked Simba about his first few months in office, expecting him to describe them as “fun.” Instead, he said, “Hectic.”
“There were a lot of interactions with people, including you,” he said. At first, he and his team were quite reserved, he says. They weren’t sure what to do and how to navigate their new roles, and he admits neither was he.
Photographed at the SMU Commerce Society’s 50th Annual Business Dinner from left to right: Mitchell Archibald, Liza Zahid, Simbarashe Chiunda
He mentioned conversations with Khuloud Saqib, the former Vice President of Societies, and how they both had regrets about how some situations were handled. Towards the end of the year, he started meeting up with individuals and resolved those issues, but at that time, it was “scary” and “difficult to understand boundaries.” He spoke about the challenges of being present, of knowing when to stop talking, and when to just listen.
“Silent advocacy goes far,” he said. “Talking to people in the background goes far.”
When I brought up his lack of use of the word “fun”, he smiled and replied, “It became fun when everyone started growing in the team.” He admitted that at the start, the stress of navigating his responsibilities and the potential repercussions of the role was overwhelming.
One of my favourite things Simba said during our conversation was:
“Sometimes fear is wrapped up in fun.”
When I asked what he was most proud of from his presidency, other than Bounce, he laughed and said: “Of course, other than Bounce, I’m proud of people being satisfied with every single thing we did, and being able to come into conversations with people, instead of people putting it all out on social media.”
That said, Simba’s presidency—especially his second semester as President—was marked by a lot of noise, both internally and externally. Contrary to his claim that people were satisfied with everything, students voiced dissatisfaction with aspects of his leadership. Concerns were raised about VPs’ conduct and recurring miscommunications. Simba says he made an effort to keep lines of communication open and create space for those conversations to happen face-to-face. Another achievement he’s proud of is the opening of the Black Student Space, located in the old BMO lounge. He also highlighted how his team raised significant funds during Welcome Weeks—about $10,000—which were then redistributed to support student societies. Additionally, SMUSA provided 70+ students with ELF (Experiential Learning Funds). Each grant was $200 per application, with students eligible for up to $500 in funding per academic year.
During his tenure, he got the opportunity to present to the Board of Governors, the highest body within the institution. “Presenting our concerns to them allowed us access to more avenues,” he explained, noting it opened doors for more student involvement in committees and decision-making spaces.
He’s also proud of helping to establish a stronger voice for SMUSA. “During my time, admin and even news channels would come to us to ask what students were thinking and what their issues were,” he said. “I don’t know if that happened before, but it does now, and I’m proud of that.”
He recalled forming a meaningful connection with the Atlantic Muslim Resource Center. He talks about the lack of “counselling for students from particular areas” and how this would help “facilitate different things for students that are affected by different things that are happening around the world”. Through his conversations with Sheikh Mohamed Yaffa, they are now in discussions about creating a larger prayer space on campus. However, what Simba values most from his presidency is the sense of family he built within SMUSA. “If your team isn’t happy, you won’t be happy,” he said.
Asking about things he wished he’d done, he took a long pause and said he wished he had taken more time to talk to the media. He acknowledged that Prajwal Shetty, former Vice President of Advocacy, did get to present students’ concerns, but wished to see more of it, like SMU’s recent decision to cut approximately 77 Arts courses. “I wish I lived with more people... I don’t want to say…disliked how I ran things, but-” He does, however, believe that the way he ran things brought results. “I would never change the way I did things, but you know, at the end of the day, you want to be able to go back to people and understand how they felt.”
“My Caribbean friends have a saying which is ‘have a broad back.’ Meaning if you have a broad back, you’ll be able to tackle anything,” he said. He added, “All the stuff that is being thrown at you is noise if it can’t be proved.”
He understands that “you have to apologize regardless. It’s the job, it’s the role. Even if you’re not in the wrong.”
He spoke candidly about how his parents were very strict in ensuring he could handle himself. “It’s interesting that some of the criticism is very personal and some of it isn’t even related to what’s wrong with SMUSA,” though he agrees there are things wrong with it.
He emphasized the importance of having facts straight: “If you’ve communicated those facts, then you should be fine.” After a long pause, he admitted that there were still moments when he couldn’t sleep, when anxiety built up, and he was afraid of showing his face because people were talking about him. “But as long as you can prove yourself…” he said, trailing off. When asked if he thinks he’s been able to prove himself, he answered: “Yes and no.”
He admits there were likely more ways he could have proven himself. As for the future of SMUSA, Simba says he sees it branching into new directions. With the new Board in place, he anticipates major policy changes that better align with student needs. During his time, there were a lot of things he said he couldn’t address properly due to a lack of policies. In his transition documents, he left recommendations on policy development and possible changes to the constitution.
Asking if he planned on staying involved with SMUSA, he said with delight that he’ll be returning to the Info Desk in the Fall. I smiled and said, “Full circle moment”. He extended the thought, saying he’s always available to help or advise anyone who needs it.
When asked about the one moment that made him feel like he’d “made it,” Simba thought for a second before answering: “Being able to leave SMUSA with a family dynamic.” He spoke of building a strong team ethic and lasting relationships in the office. Then he added, “But also, presenting at the Board of Governors dinner. That was big.” Perhaps his proudest moment came with a smile: “I made it out alive. I can walk without overthinking. I’m at peace with myself.”
Lastly, I asked Simba about the controversies that marked his final semester as President - how he navigated public criticism and internal team dynamics. I wanted to know what it was like in the office when people were speaking out against him and his VPs. Were there honest conversations happening behind closed doors?
He jumped right in, referring—presumably—to the widely discussed second Board of Directors meeting on February 26th, 2025, he said, they “came back and huddled and talked about what really happened.” While he appreciated that students brought their concerns forward and welcomed the engagement, he believes it was something that “could have been fixed in one meeting.” He says they did have that meeting, and everything was fixed, referring to a miscommunication with the SMU Bangladeshi Society, saying it was resolved through a genuine conversation. He said, “Sometimes you just need to talk to everyone,” he said. “Being genuine is all it takes to get something resolved.” That night, after everything unfolded, the executive team went out for sushi. “We were stressed,” he admitted, “but we hung out as a team and we grew as a team.”
As we wrapped up, I asked if there was anything he wanted students to know.
“Students play the biggest role. They’re the reason this school functions. Your voice matters. Even when it comes to provincial and governmental aspects. The youth are the ones that are going to change the whole of Canada, the whole world, honestly.”
When asked if he had any advice for incoming President Augustina Tucker, he said simply, “Just be genuine and don’t be shy…Do whatever you want to do, but make sure people understand why you did it.”
He ended with “I want to thank everyone for electing me. It was a wonderful journey. I want to thank everyone for working with me, especially my team, for trusting me and guiding me through everything. Even though I was supervising and advising, they were guiding me too. We held each other accountable. That was the best part. Thank you so much. Love you guys.”
Not everyone will agree with how Simba led, and he knows that. What’s clear is that he carried himself with dignity and kindness and that he cared. About the students. About the institution. About the team, he now calls family. He leaves SMUSA with lessons learned, a few battles behind him, and the quiet pride of someone who showed up, even when it was hard.