A group of York students has won the opportunity to have their very own I-phone application developed after winning The App Challenge final, held at the Ron Cooke Hub on Wednesday, January 18.
YUSU Welfare officer Bob Hughes has warned students to be vigilant after a student loans phishing scam has been revealed.
Her Majesty the Queen will be visiting York on Maundy Thursday, 5th April, as part of the 800th anniversary of York’s Charter for the traditional “Royal Maundy” ceremony.
A flood caused by a heating system “failure” forced the university IT services to shut down many essential systems on Sunday night, causing problems for many students on the eve of their exams and assignment due-dates.
The Campaigns Committee, which works with students and JCRCs and is responsible for union campaigning, has elections with three candidates for the four available ordinary members. Current chair Andreas Gabrielsen said: “They are great opportunities for people with a wish to be involved in an active branch of YUSU, or who have issues they feel strongly about and wish to do something about.”
The committee has previously been involved in the YUSU-award winning Accommodation Troubleshooting Campaign, as well as pushing for better catering provisions on Heslington East, and is currently reviewing the effects and needs of the postering campaign.
Four ordinary member positions are also available on the Democracy Committee, which supervises the creation of new policy and holds officers to account. Luke Sandford, Union Chair, said: “When a student submits an idea to the union, the Democracy Committee will decide which assembly it should go to and mandate an officer to act if the people at the assembly agree. An ordinary member of democracy committee would help support these processes.”
Sandford also explained the role of the three NUS Delegate positions the most contested positions that are up for election, saying that they represent York at the NUS National Conference over Easter and vote on NUS policy and officer elections. He added that NUS Delegates should “vote in accordance with YUSU active policy” and can even propose union policy to the national conference.
The Entertainments Committee, which liaises with colleges and YUSU to organise events, has six Ents Assistants positions open and candidates will be expected to help out, put forward ideas and attend meetings. Only one candidate has put themselves forward for this position, so the further five positions will be open in a by-election later in the year. Every college JCRC Ents Office automatically joins the YUSU Ents Committee.
Entertainments Officers Chris Edwards told The Yorker that committee meetings “allow colleges to discuss any potential joint events”, such as Live & Loud, and plans are already underway for next year’s Summer Ball.
All non-United Kingdom students are eligible to run for the positions on the International Students Association Committee, which range from campaigners, sports and regional reps. Leslie Tay, current ISA president, revealed that their upcoming events include the ISA Winter ball (Week 9) and ISA Question Time (Week 10) and encouraged students to get involved and “showcase the cultures of from the region that you represent” as well as looking after fellow international students’ welfare. This is the committee see a high number of contested positions, with only 5 positions seeing no candidates running
The only position with a candidate for the Mature Students Committee, for students over 21, is for the position of secretary and Vikki Harrison, current president of the MSA, said: “This will help to bring the committee together and be able to offer more events. We offer social events, welfare and general support in being a mature student.”
The committee holds weekly events, including Wednesday afternoon socials in the Courtyard and nights out, and has a Christmas Party on December 16 at Revolution to look forward to.
The Racial Equality Committee, which has seen a high number of applications, needs three ordinary members and a press and publicity rep. Basim Al-Ahmadi told The Yorker that is key on campus as it “helps to achieve inclusivity” and “gets everyone from different backgrounds involved and raises awareness of cultural differences and issues”. The position of Secretary however received no candidates.
Their recent campaigns include promoting black history to move away from stereotypes and prejudices, and encouraging ethnic minorities to run for positions within YUSU and Al-Ahmadi added that the positions up for election are crucial to helping at these events and campaigns to create “tolerance and understanding” and helping students “get to know other people’s cultures, tastes and languages”.
The only position open on the RAG Committee is for two Woodstock organisers, who RAG Officer Baxter Willis said “will be responsible for running one of the biggest events on campus”. The annual festival-themed event attracts over 2,00 students and offers 12 hours of live music, alongside showcasing many of the university’s societies and raised over £8,000 last June.
However, the Disabled Students' Committee has only received nominations for LGBT reps, who must self-define as both LGBT and disabled, to help other students. No other position in the committee has attracted any student interest. Around 8–10% of students have a disability and the Disabled Committee offers help and support with academia and events to ensure students all the opportunities they can.
Positions with candidates on the Women’s Committee include two candidates for the four ordinary members, International Women’s rep and secretary. The committee runs gender rights campaigns regarding campus, national, and global affairs and encourages anyone to get involved “to actively campaign for gender liberation”.
The LGBT Committee has not seen any nominations for any of the positions.
Voting is open now on the YUSU website until midday of Monday Week 9 (December 5). A full list of candidates and their manifesto statements can be found here.
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