Kamva - President
My second first term as a Sabbatical Officer and I can easily say that the learning never stops. It has been a pleasure welcoming new students on campus and continuing our commitment as a Union to put our students first, whether that is supporting sports clubs and societies or helping students navigate academic or non-academic matters by providing guidance and support.
The SU part-time officers team has had new additions with a Med Liaison and Sustainability Officer joining the team after a tightly contested by-election campaign.
From University Council, Academic Senate and Exam boards we continue to represent our student body's best interests by challenging for better and practical class schedules, timely exam timetables and overall better student experience. We owe a lot of our progress in these areas to the various Academic Reps across faculties, who continue to raise their voices by providing constructive feedback.
The SU team are excited for the spring term so stay tuned in for more representation, advocacy and engagement.
Lydia - VP Communities
This term has been busy!
I kicked off my time as a Sabb by welcoming our January starters to the University. What simultaneously feels like last week, yet also a lifetime ago. From quiz nights to speed socials, we then rounded off the first few weeks of term with a sell-out freshers ball!
In February, I worked with the girls at ACS and the Women’s Network lead to host a Galentines day event, bringing together our female students for a chilled evening with paint, music and food. For male students, I worked with our Men’s Network Lead to host Guys Night In, gathering in the OTM to watch some Champions League football, grab a few slices of pizza and enjoy some friendly competition playing beer pong.
At the beginning of March, I teamed up with Desi society to celebrate Holi. The evening was full of vibrant colours, music and joy (plus a few water guns!). One of my biggest events of this term was our International Women’s Day celebrations, an event hosted by our Women’s Network Lead. With speakers from a range of faculties and backgrounds, the conversations brought to the event were both insightful and educational.
As the term began to draw to a close, I worked with other network leads on a few relaxed events. Our International Student Network Lead, Thisaga, hosted a lunchtime networking event with the opportunity to chat to fellow students and complete a survey on your choices as an international student (along with grabbing some free pizza!). In the final week of term, our Mature Student Network Lead, Megan, hosted a coffee afternoon for mature students. This event brought together our mature student base for relaxed conversations over a hot drink and some snacks.
Somewhere in between this all, I’ve found time to run weekly craft sessions on a Tuesday afternoon. Activities this term have included keychain making, canvas painting, coaster beads and clay. Why not pop down for one next term? Term 1 may only just be over, but mentally I’m already halfway through Term 2 . There’s a lot of fun stuff happening next term, so make sure to keep an eye out across our socials!
Maneeka - VP Voice
The end of the first term is already here! For me, this term was filled with a lot of firsts; first council, first UALTC, etc. It was filled with a lot of learning.
I have supported students with appeals; recruited new academic reps and managed our rep network and liaison officers.
One of my manifestos this year is to better communicate with the student body on what the sabbatical officers are working on. Posters on what the SU’s projects are now all over the campus! Please take some time to read them. We’ve also been doing regular pop-ups around our campus to hear what you wish to see (big shoutout to Lydia who made the pop-ups possible).
In summary, this term was busy with lots of learning. To the next!