It's election time once again so make your voice heard by casting your vote!
All enrolled Plymouth College of Art students get the chance to vote, cast yours via the Google Form sent over email. Voting begins on 21st March and ends on 27th March.
Want to be informed, hear about the Student Union President candidates manifestos or just have some questions for them? Come along to the Meet The Candidates event in the Students' Union on Wednesday, 16th March and make an informed choice this election.
Who will you elect as your next Student Union President? Read their manifestos below.
Fraizer White
A place for change: My main goal is to push for change as much as possible. As we enter this new and strange post-covid world, I want to ensure the Students' Union is a safe space for our students. I aim to do this by making myself as accessible as possible, encouraging students of all years to get involved with their Student Representatives and the Student Union Executive Committee, and providing forms and opportunities for students to voice their needs.
Using my experience: I’ve been fortunate enough to work as a Student Ambassador for the past four years, both for Plymouth College of Art and the Students' Union, and have served as your LGBTQ+ Representative (HE) this year too. If elected your next Student Union President, I plan to use my intimate knowledge of the college to really push forward towards a successful Students' Union.
Exploring Higher Education: PCA’s shared spaces between pre degree, undergraduate and postgraduate students are what makes it so special. If elected, I will try to create more opportunities for Pre-Degree and Foundation students to explore the prospects of Higher Education in the creative industry, and similarly, give undergraduate students chances to explore Postgraduate study.
If it isn’t broken?: Then I won’t fix it! I plan to look through all of the things that have worked over the past years and embrace them fully, continuing their legacies during my term. Things that work and things that don’t are, at their heart, at the will of the students. I’ll be sure to keep checking in with everyone to find out what works and what needs changing.
Equality at the heart of it all: I am, above all else, committed to being someone you would be proud to have run your Student Union. I want to create a completely voluntary and regular meeting drop-in with our BIPOC students to speak freely, openly and honestly about what needs to change. Furthermore, I want to explore the options of getting guest speakers in to teach and educate students and staff on issues about Race and Respect.
I’ll always be Queer: Voting for me could mean having a transman at the head of your Student Union. Even when my term of office as your LGBTQ+ Representative ends, I will always support and look out for our LGBTQIA+ family in Plymouth College of Art.
Instagram: @vote.fraizer
Harry McCallum
“Vote for a stronger community within PCA!”
Follow my campaign on Instagram! @HarryforSU
Building a stronger community within PCA:
If elected, I want to foster a stronger level of integration between students of every level and background throughout the college. This includes pre-degree, foundation and master’s students. I aim for wider collaboration between courses and one of the ways that I plan on doing this is to build a platform that allows students to view other courses’ lectures!
Making the campus greener:
This world is our future and we need to make sure we are looking after it! I pledge to ensure that if elected, I will hold the university accountable for all environmental and sustainable issues to the highest possible standard. This includes keeping an eye on resources being wasted, consistently looking for ways to make courses and the campus sustainable and getting the PCA community actively involved.
Student equality, experience, mental wellbeing and support:
I have been an active member of the student union, worked closely with the current SU president and manager for the past three years, been an SU ambassador for two years and was the LGBTQ+ society lead and representative in 2019/20. All this experience will support me if I am elected, as I am aware of how the SU currently functions. I would like to work with executive committee members as well as focus groups that I would form in order to recognise and target areas that the student body feels needs to be improved, including minority groups' opinions.
In addition to this, I strongly believe in supporting the mental health of students, especially when coming into a new and stressful environment for the first time. Having received mental health first aid training, I am aware first-hand how this has benefitted others, and therefore I would plan to continue to ensure that at least one student rep from each course is trained and all members of the executive committee. I would also pledge to continue beneficial resources such as the food bank that helps students struggling and the free sanitary products around the college to continue to help end period poverty.
Full transparency of course costs & support for students:
From my past years of study, as well as being a course representative for three years, some reoccurring feedback is confusion on exactly where our money is going! If elected, I would aim to work with all departments to help provide tuition fee receipts that show you where our tuition fees go. In addition to this, I would also work to help break down a full list of hidden course costs within each course. Furthermore, I would like to explore ways in which I can improve the financial support available to students.
Developing the campus:
I aim to help the SU reach its full potential and become a more social and inviting space, possibly looking into pool tables or other possible leisure activities that open the space to more fun and action outside of events! From working with the SU on events for over two years as well as also hosting some events of my own, I am aware of what works and what doesn’t, as well as what the SU would benefit from. I would also like to aim for more regular/weekly events that will take place within the SU that has full consultation from you, for what events you want to see. This includes more ‘drink & draw’ events, creative homework evenings and more alcohol-free events.
PCA and the wider community:
I believe that PCA and its students will strongly benefit from working together to build external connections and expand outwards into Plymouth and its wider community. If elected, I plan to fully support student events such as craft fairs and similar events that promote students’ work outside of the walls of PCA. I also plan to work closely with the careers team to support their already established mentor scheme and hope to expand this towards some of our alumni for them to become mentors too!
Lucy Mcmillan
Here to help the students
After a difficult and trying past 2 years with Covid- 19, I believe that it's important to have more communication from the Student Union, to the student body and allow the Students to be aware of any and all activities that go on in the SU. Not enough students know how their Student Union can support them or what they do. To listen to the students, while pointing them in the right direction along with helping anyway I am able. I aim to ensure that the students have a space for a student creative collaboration night in the SU space where students can meet and talk about potential projects along with the already established and amazing DragQueen nights and encourage and reach out to societies to collaborate.
From my experience, through being director of the Knitting society, I aim to strive to push the word out about every society and keep up to date with new up and coming events. Social media platforms are a hugely important part of keeping up with societies and events. And a very useful tool to use as, It is important within a creative university where there are so many different and creative ways to be involved and take part.
Comments