August 2019
August has flown by and it has been another exciting but challenging month. Myself and the Student Union’s General Manager Mick Davies went to Birmingham on a two day trip to meet with the Vice-chair of our Trustee Board. It was very informative and provided me with a broader understanding of the strategy and vision of Marjon Student Union.
This summer has been very different to my last two, as I have not been away at summer camp in America however it has still been very rewarding for many reasons. One of reasons being that I have already interviewed a few Marjon students for Camp America Summer 2020 and had interest from a few others. It is rewarding for me to help students on their way to an amazing summer.
I attended a session at Bristol Student Union about Brexit and how it will impact students and staff. It was worthwhile and helped me understand Brexit a little better (is that even possible?).
The plans for fresher’s week are also finalised and tickets are out on sale. It will be an exciting week full of day and night events to help new and current students socialise with each other and ultimately settle into University life.
There is not much else to report on, September will be a busy month. As well as welcoming students at Freshers I will be chairing my first trustee board meeting, attending my second Board of Governors meeting, going to the BUCS conference in Coventry and also going to student governor training in London.
July 2019
Hello and welcome to the first of my blogs as Student Union President. These blogs aim to give you a truthful and honest insight of what my role entails. I would like to start by saying congratulations to the outgoing officers Rhys and Laura who worked extremely hard alongside other Student Union staff to make our Student Union the best in the South West (National Student Survey, 2019).
My first month in office has been an experience to say the least, it has been a big learning curve in many ways. Making the transition from a full-time student to a full-time staff member. Interviewing my peers and close friends for the Student Engagement Role. Not understanding most of the Board of Governors meeting (it was a lot of finance talk) and a lot more. My time in office started with Sabbatical training at Exeter Guild alongside other Sabb’s from Student Union’s in the South West region. It was great to talk to outgoing and incoming officers on their time in the role and most importantly network with other Student Union officers.
I have been able to talk about my life journey and my current role as SU President to year 10 students, to show them that challenges in life can be overcome by perseverance and being motivated to do the right things.
Planning freshers has been a big responsibility, I hope that I have done it justice and tried my best to be creative with the events. This month I have met our nightclub sponsors Walkabout, Fever and Przym, to discuss how we can improve the student nightlife experience. I am one step closer to finalising details for the weekly bus trip to the supermarkets, so that all students are able to do their grocery shopping with ease.
The Student Union is now an ambassador for Plastic free Plymouth, we will be holding talks and campaigns throughout the year to raise awareness of single use plastic and much more. That is everything that July has consisted of in a brief summary. I look forward to seeing what August brings and getting closer to seeing campus back to being full of life with students.