Alcuin JCRC elections 10/11

Alcuin College Crest

Unusually the position of Chair has just one candidate this year, second year English Literature student Lizzie Bartholomew, who has experience on the JCRC from 2010. Having taken on the role of Entertainment Officer for the past year, she boasts valuable know-how, which she believes will count in her favour in this weeks’ voting. Although this lead role is uncontested, she would still need votes to avoid a case of re-contest.

The Yorker got a brief insight into what Lizzie, who spoke lovingly of Alcuin College at Friday night’s hustings, hopes to bring to the top position on the JCRC board.

The Yorker: Why did you choose to run for Chair?

Lizzie: I am highly ambitious for the future of Alcuin College. I loved the experience of working as an Ent so this year I am keen to take on a position of more responsibility, which I believe I have the required skills for.

The Yorker: What characteristics can you bring to the role?

Lizzie: I intend to bring a highly positive and can-do attitude to the role, which from my experience is essential to the success of the JCRC. Furthermore, I am both creative and business-minded so I would be comfortable taking a lead on all aspects of the JCRC in order to get successful results.

The Yorker: If you are elected ahead of RON what changes can Alcuinites expect for 2011?

Lizzie: I plan to write a regular Alcuin blog to update the college on JCRC matters, to encourage college participation and to bring Alcuin into the wider university consciousness.

I am also keen to inject some energy into Alcuin events. Hence, I will be working closely with the Ents and Bar Reps to build on the success of our Live Music evenings in B Henrys by also working in collaboration with York nightclubs. With this relationship built we would be able to host themed pre-town nights out, bringing popular DJs from club nights in to play and securing reduced entry to the club itself.

I would also like to see more college interaction and really make use of the fact that this is a campus university - we've had really successful inter-college bar crawls in freshers week with and I'd like to continue this throughout the year as a way of broadening our students' university experience.

Elsewhere, Jane Catterall and Francesca Isherwood, the two uncontested runners for Vice Chair (Business and Services) and Vice Chair (Welfare) respectively, also spoke to the Yorker.

Jane, also an Alcuin Entertainment Office for 2010, wants to use her first year experiences to help integrate other JCRC members if she is elected, “I'd love the opportunity to advise and help out other candidates to make the transition into the JCRC a bit easier and to make sure that we deliver on everything we've promised the rest of the college.” She also showed her fun side at Friday’s hustings, downing a pint as part of her promise to compete with the more “hardcore colleges.”

Francesca was very keen to summarise her intentions and excitement for the role, “Being a very active student across the university, I feel I have excellent communication skills, and the right amount of confidence to liaise successfully with YUSU on behalf of the college.” She also went on to tell The Yorker of her infatuation for Alcuin as a college, “I can promise the full dedication and passion that the college deserves.”

One position that is hotly contested is that of Treasurer with second year Economics students Michael Paroussos and Becka Clancy, and third year Maths student Thomas Richardson all competing for it. The Yorker caught up with the three of them to see why they believe individually they are the standout candidate for the role. Richardson cited “strong numeracy skills” and ability to “cope with a large work load” as the key skills to him succeeding as Treasurer should he be voted in.

Becka was another to draw on previous experiences within the JCRC, having also been part of the Ents team for 2010, “This position involved handling a lot of cash and meant I became familiar with the process of how to claim back money that has been spent. This will make the transition between the old and new JCRC much smoother which will benefit everyone within Alcuin.”

In contrast, Paroussos believes the fact that he was not involved with the JCRC in the past year will allow him to bring a fresh approach to the role, “I have a lot of energy and new ideas to bring to the table. I want to introduce an Alcuin loyalty card, which I believe will be a good way to improve attendance to events held in B-Henry.”

The only other positions multi-contested are Male Welfare, Female Welfare and RAG Officer. A full list of the roles and candidates can be found below. Votes, which will open at 12pm Monday 29th, can be cast via the following link.

Chair: Lizzie Bartholomew

Vice Chair (Business and Services): Jane Catterall

Vice Chair (Welfare): Francesca Isherwood

Secretary: Issy Hall

Treasurer: Michael Paroussos

Becka Clancy

Thomas Richardson

Male Welfare: Tom Hargreaves, Ed Tyler and Jake West

Ali Paul, Philip Nayler and Joshua Grainger

Adam White and Pascal Dubois

Female Welfare: Aimee Clark, Chantelle Garbutt and Jenni Cohen Ewelina Taraszkiewicz

LGBT Reps: Catherine Hennigan and Joshua Sanderson

International Rep: Brina Tan

Ents: Matthew Bennett and Toby Huntston

RAG Officer: Camila Araya and Iona White

David Asquith

Sports: Alex Harrison, Charlotte Winter, Sarah Hammerton, Ian Packard and Liam Haeburn-Little

Social Sec: Pheobe Harris, Laura Nero and Farah Alia Razali

Merchandise: Rebekah Fong, Jo Mitchelmore and Emma Kyte

IT Officer: Tom Macgregor

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