Prior to changeover on March 15, The Watch caught up with the incoming executive and board of governors representatives of the King’s Students’ Union and asked them what changes they want to see happen over the next year. Here’s some of what they had to say.
Aidan McNally (President):
“I’d like to see an increase in KSU-run events. I think that we do a lot of great work and a lot of that work can be very reactionary, depending on the situation. But I think, in line with helping students and empowering students to do the incredible work that happens on campus, there are a lot of hard skills and workshops that we can offer.”
Zoë Brimacombe (VP Financial), Liam Compton (BOG representative) (Photo: John Sandham)
Zoë Brimacombe (VP, Financial):
“One of the main things I’m going to be working on… is fighting the first $500 increase to FYP tuition that’s going to be coming forward this year. That’s one thing I hope to accomplish, is to not let that increase go through.”
Gina Grattan (VP, External):
“I’d work a lot with issues that are not only super important to talk about on campus, but also issues that are talked about in the community and in society as a whole. Things like bringing a better consent culture to campus, and working with FVP and other students on fighting for the tuition freeze.”
Julia-Simone Rutgers (VP, Communications):
“I want to see an increased sense of unity between the union and its members. I think that there’s lapses in communication between what the union is doing and what the membership sees, knows, and becomes involved in. I want to make the activities of the union better understood and encourage the membership to be active in their school community.”
Brennan McCracken (VP, Student Life):
“One of the things I’d like to change about society training is that I would like to add anti-oppression training to society training because societies are responsible for creating so many different events and spaces here on the King’s campus, and as the KSU oversees all the work that societies do… I’d like to make sure that those events are as safe as they can possibly be, and I don’t want any students to feel that they can’t go to a certain society event because that society isn’t very inclusive.”
Liam Compton (BOG Representative):
“I’d really like to see open board meetings. I think that they’re something we’re getting really close to already. In moving towards that, I’d also like to see more people get involved in this kind of thing. And so I really want to engage people in the community so that people are aware of what’s happening and how their input can get through to the board.”
Curran McConnell (BOG Representative):
“I think that the relationship between the board and the student body is not really great right now because as much as the current representatives on the board and the president have been doing a great job for this whole year, they are the only portal through which ordinary students can view what is happening in the board. Regular students can’t just see how the board does its work, and I think that’s critical. I want to see an open board because I think that’s basic to any kind of accountability.”