Polling for the sabbatical positions within the SRC will open via the UofG Life app at 9am on Wednesday 1 March.
The sabbatical positions, those are the most senior student positions within the SRC, are: SRC President (one candidate: Hailie Pentleton), Vice President Education (two candidates: Jordan Hunter and Ross Whip), Vice President Student Activities (two candidates: Mariama Bah and Theo Frater), and Vice President Student Support (one candidate: Tony Anderson).
The hustings for these positions took place at 6pm on Monday 27 February in the Boyd Orr building. The recording can be viewed via Facebook here.
Voting for the sabbatical positions opens via the UofG Life app on Wednesday 1 March at 9am and closes on Thursday 2 March at 5pm. Further information about the SRC elections, including all the candidates’ manifestos, can be accessed here.
Vice President Education
Ross Whip: After showing frustration with the recording team Ross began by outlining his experience serving on council as convenor for the college of social sciences this year. He argued that he has the required knowledge of student issues, and outlined four key areas in which he would like to help bring about change: improving the good cause system, discouraging the return to purely in-person exams, standardizing assessment feedback, and consulting students about changing the dissertation process.
Jordan Hunter: “We live in a wasteland and call it peace…and that is why I am running on a platform of no confidence in Anton Muscatelli.” was the preamble to Jordan’s speech. He believes that Principal of the University, Anton Muscatelli, has continuously failed the students through, for example, dealing with the pandemic and with gender-based violence. Jordan ultimately aims to push out Anton Muscatelli and bring in a more accountable administration. Beyond this, Jordan wants to find new ways to engage students in the SRC in order to better represent their interests. Speaking to The Glasgow Guardian last week, Jordan Hunter made it clear that, if elected, he will stand down and reopen nominations if the voter turnout is below 15%. Overall, Jordan Hunter makes it clear that a vote for him is a vote of no confidence in Anton Muscatelli.
Vice-President Student Activities
Mariama Bah: Mariamah outlines her main aims as VPSA: ensuring all students get to have a great University experience and providing students with a variety of options when it comes to activities. For welcome week, she plans to continue events such as the ceilidh, silent disco, and outdoor cinema. Mariama also wants to see more collaboration with the other student unions by holding competitions. However, her key aim seems to be boosting the number of student events taking place and making sure that there are options out there for all students regardless of their dietary requirements or whether or not they drink alcohol.
Theo Frater: Theo began his speech by invoking the words of former Principal of the University, John Caird: “It has long been felt to be a great defect in our Scottish system that it offers little or no opportunity for a common or corporate life among the students.” He argues that our student unions have worked tirelessly since then in order to prove this view wrong, although Theo believes that this may be at risk coming out of covid. Crucially, Theo wants to support clubs and societies by making it easier for students to join them and for them to book space to host events.Theo also points to his experience as SRC General Representative and Court Assessor as evidence that he can “hit the ground running as VPSA”.
Vice President Student Support
Tony Anderson: Tony had spent the previous two years on council as a First-year Representative and Mental Health Equality Officer. He mentioned some of the work he is most proud of, which included collaborating with the current VPSS helping to make students more aware of the SRC advice center, and proposing and passing a motion that recognised care-experience as a protected characteristic (the SRC being the first student council in the world to do this). His aims are based on five pledges: engaging with mature students, extending mental health support, supporting students in accommodation, continuing to tackle gender-based violence, and working with other student bodies on welfare issues.
SRC President
Hailie Pentleton-Owens: Hailie has been on the SRC council for the previous 3 years, and is the current Vice President Student Support. She stresses that focusing on improving the student experience, especially in terms of student welfare, has been central to her time at the SRC. Her pledges include measures to address the cost-of-living crisis such as offering more low-cost food options on campus and increasing university spending on financial support, as well as working with the University and Glasgow City Council to advocate for safe and affordable accommodation for all students. Hailie pointed to her successes as VPSS, such as the Cap Student Numbers Now campaign and introducing Widening Participation Officers to SRC council. Hailie took time during hustings to discuss her initial motivations for running for the SRC in 2020. She was motivated to run after having had a bad experience as a disabled student and she wanted to improve the lives of disabled students. Hailie concluded her speech by saying that she will “ensure that all students from all walks of life are supported to thrive during their time here”.
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