The Strand: Let’s just start with Board of Regents, could you tell me about what has drawn you to Board of Regents in particular, why you want to run for it, and why you think you would be good at it?
The BoR is one of the highest governing bodies at Vic. Having had some experience through the VCC, and being in student government throughout high school, I believe that I could continue to advocate for students in this role. A lot of the financial aspects of the government and the maintenance of Vic is channeled through the Board of Regents, I figured that it would be a good way for me to advocate, to ensure that students’ values with regard to where our funds are going and to where Victoria College in general is investing its fund and putting its money toward.
Are there any kind of specific items or goals that you want to achieve in that role? Is there anything you’ve seen on the BoR in past that you think should be done differently, or something new that you would want to add?
For governing bodies in general, it’s been pointed out that there hasn’t been that much accountability for student representatives because the president sits on those boards. I want to improve that. I think it would be useful to have a unified Board of Regents email and a unified VCC email. It would make it easier for students to reach out to representatives in general, as opposed to individual members. We would be able to create a consensus and work things out on our end, and then also be able to advocate as a whole.
You’re running for VCC again, since you already have experience there, why do you want to run again, and what would be the same or different?
This was one of the first years that all the student roles had been filled. On one end, there were more of us to be able to have a presence at meetings, but on the other end, because there were multiple reps it was difficult to make distinct roles for ourselves. The only meetings that have happened so far have been the general ones, not specific committees. Typically, there’s a College Life Committee as a sub-committee of the VCC. While I and four or five other students were assigned to that committee, they haven’t run any meetings this year. The reason I got was that with the Dean’s Advisory committee, they wanted to see how that body would play out in terms of the overlap of student voice. The VCC is a body where the student reps are elected, and the Dean’s Advisory Committee is invited students. It’s important to have a voice for elected student representatives on these higher bodies.
Do you have anything specific in mind that you want to achieve next year? Is there anything within the operations of the VCC that you would want to change or add?
Meetings are always on Mondays between 4 and 6. Some reps have classes during those times have only been able to catch up after the meetings. I’d like to advocate to the Chair: when sending the agenda, if there are any major motions that need to be voted on, to make it easier for student reps proxy vote. Having a VCC Facebook page like VUSAC has, and a VCC VUSAC email would also allow more easy and efficient contact.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity
