With the first month of 2023 drawing to a close, some people may have stuck to their 2023 New Year’s resolutions, while others decided that January would be a trial run for the rest of the year. Regardless of how committed someone is to the saying “new year, new me,” there are bound to be changes for everyone over the course of 365 days.

Here are my predictions for 2023, for Bridgewater and beyond.

The Bridgewater women’s soccer team will win the ODAC tournament

Last season, the women’s soccer team dominated the ODAC by claiming the first seed heading into the tournament. While they fell short to Shenandoah University in their final game, they had an impressive season, winning many contests by comfortable margins. I predict that the women’s team will come back with a vengeance and secure the ODAC tournament win during the 2023 season. 

A new social media platform will take the Internet by storm

During 2022, social media platforms like TikTok and Twitter had some shaky moments, and the future of their platforms was a bit uncertain. While no social media platform significantly nosedived last year, I predict that one go downhill in 2023, resulting in room for a new competitor to make its debut. 

The new Rebecca Quad will be unveiled by the proposed deadline

Construction of the new Rebecca Quad has been going on since the fall semester and is set to be completed by the middle of the spring semester. While other projects, like the construction of the FLC, were completed after the original deadline, there seems to be no reason to believe that the Rebecca Quad is falling behind schedule. I am taking an optimistic stance and predict that seniors will be able to enjoy the new quad in the weeks leading up to commencement. 

AI will be at the forefront of the headlines

With AI like ChatGPT, DALL-E and Midjourney making waves in 2022, I believe that artificial intelligence will be a controversial topic in the world of news, politics and academics during the new year. The question of “can AI take over the world?” has existed for quite some time, but I predict that the topic will resurface to its highest levels over the course of 2023. With the incredible improvements of open-source AI, I believe that the world will be divided on whether AI is helpful or harmful. 

The new engineering major will have a large first class

With the announcement of engineering during the fall semester, I believe that the new major will be a top pick for the incoming class of 2027. I predict that the engineering major will make Bridgewater College the small-town competitor for bigger engineering programs like Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia. With a few years of refinement, the engineering program at Bridgewater college has the chance to become an infamous part of the school. 

House prices will go down

2022 was an interesting year for the housing market, with Zillow buying up homes, and listings being grabbed at lightning speed. According to Bankrate, there was a slowdown in home sales during the second half of 2022. I predict that this trend will continue, and buying a house may be slightly easier than it was in previous years. 

The Town of Bridgewater will have a new restaurant open

Bridgewater’s cuisine has continued to grow over the past year with the 2022 opening of Magnolia’s Taco and Tequila Bar and Sam’s Hot Dog Stand on Main Street. I predict that in 2023, the Bridgewater eatery trend will continue with the opening of a new restaurant somewhere near campus. With active construction in the Town of Bridgewater, there are plenty of opportunities for an entrepreneur to come along and bring us something new before 2024.  

Music in Spanish will dominate the U.S. charts

In 2022, two songs written in Spanish made the Top 10 on Spotify’s Top Tracks of 2022 USA playlist. Bad Bunny’s hits, “Me Porto Bonito” and “Tití Me Preguntó,” claimed spots No. 4 and No. 6 respectively. In 2023, I predict that there will be an even greater influence of Spanish music on the U.S. charts. With artists like Bizzarap, Rosalía and Bad Bunny having massive success in 2022, the sky is the limit for Spanish-speaking musicians. 

There will be more construction on Bridgewater’s campus announced during the Spring semester 

Based on the announcement of an eSports team joining the Bridgewater College community, there will most likely be construction between now and next fall when the team officially launches. With the news of the eSports team, mock-ups were released of the new facility, featuring a practice space and competition area. Don’t expect the Rebecca Quad to be the only on-campus construction during 2023. 

A major airline will announce their closure

Over the past few years, the airline industry has had its fair share of controversies, including reputations of being abusive to customers, overbooking flights and leaving people stranded for days at a time without refunds or support. Finally, based on the inability of many airlines to maintain a positive character in the eyes of consumers, I predict that one major airline will announce its closure in 2023. 

Whether at the community level or international scale, 2023 is certain to bring many surprises. While no one can foresee the future, it is fun to predict what may happen over the course of the year. 

As we ring in the new year for 2024, we will know which of these predictions came true, and which were unlucky guesses. For my final 2023 prediction, I foresee at least one of these to come to life this year.