During our Students’ Union Elections Media Day on Saturday 24th February, we chatted to the candidates who are running to be elected as your Activities Officer for the 2018-19 academic year. Take a look at what they had to say.
Mike Flanagan
Mike Flanagan, a fourth-year Electrical and Electronic Engineering student, is running to be your Activities Officer.
In an interview with Impact, Mike said that he has been part of the Student Events Team and Welcome Week for over two years. He aims to make a difference to the way the Students’ Union is organizing its societies and activities.
“I want to get the advertisement out there and make sure people know what they can do.”
Based on his prior experience with the SU, Mike wants to focus on the Welcome Week by improving the support system. He especially wants to make sure that international students feel comfortable and integrated after the initial weekends of the year.
He told Impact: “I’ve seen first-hand that there is a lack of support for all students in their first year in terms of how they can get involved with the SU.”
Asking him how he would increase the participation, Mike said he would target the SU website. He said: “There is so much more available than people realise. I want to get the advertisement out there and make sure people know what they can do.”
Thus, he wants to make sure everyone is aware of all the opportunities the University has to offer.
Mike believes he stands out from his competition because of his close involvement with the Students’ Union. In addition, he says that he knows “how everything works around here.”
For the upcoming election week, Mike is looking forward to meeting and talking to different people. He goes on to say that he “like[s] the pace of it and just getting to know everyone.”
Pia Schäfer
Katie Clubb
Katie Clubb is a third-year Management student looking to be your next Activities Officer.
The main goal of the policies detailed in her manifesto is to increase participation of all students with SU activities. She told Impact that the main reason as to why she chose the University of Nottingham is because of “the opportunities offered by the SU.”
“Making Portland a hub for more students to gravitate to, with a number of policies such as having a “Portland Piano” and a photo booth.”
She continues: ”[These experiences] have had a vital role in shaping my University experience.”
She hopes to “recreate positive experiences for current and future students” and “increase the family dynamics of the SU” if she gets elected.
Some specific policies she details centre around making Portland a hub for more students to gravitate to, with a number of policies such as having a “Portland Piano” and a photo booth. “It will be funded by sponsorships and will centre around events going on around campus,” she states about the latter.
Katie cites her diverse range of experiences within the University and SU as making her a suitable candidate for the role. She is a music journalist for URN, social secretary for the Athletics society, cofounded and is a member of the social enterprise Foodprint, and she was Team Leader for Karni and Welcome Mentor for Broadgate Park.
She’s most looking forward to the campaign trail in order to “catch up with people, and be a part of something exciting around campus. There’s always a buzz around the air during campaign time, and I’m looking forward to be[ing] a part of that and mak[ing] an impact”.
Katie’s slogan is ’#JointheClubb’.
Nicolas Caballero
To read the manifestos for your Activities candidates, head to the Student Leader Elections website.
Featured image: Poppy Anne Malby
Images courtesy of Impact Images.
Follow our SU Elections 2017 coverage on Twitter and Facebook
