MSU Elections: Presidential Candidate Interviews
AMINA TRABOUE STUDENT LIFE
1. What specific policies or initiatives do you plan to implement to improve student life within your remit, and how will you ensure they are achieved?
“I’m not too sure if you guys saw my hustings, but I mentioned that I was the co-creator of ID week – so Inclusivity and Diversity week – last year with one of my friends, who was also a senator for ethnic diversity, Kirstin [...]We worked on it for about half a semester and we realised what students really engage with and what students don’t. We saw that there was a lack of engagement with the after-6pm events, so we kind of shifted that and focused mostly on the day events. I had arts and crafts, which was very successful –a lot of people liked that – (and) we also had a culture fair, where people got to experience other culture, and then had the fashion show to end everything off. I was really happy about that; it was stressful, I can’t lie, but it was honestly worthwhile and I had a blast doing it [...] Then this year, as a postgraduate – a taught postgraduate officer – I realised there was a kind of a gap in what we can do for postgraduate students… But I do understand why postgraduates don't really engage as many undergrads; it's because they do long hours and once they're finished, they want to go home… to six of course after that, you don't want to see this university. So, I shifted to more upskilling; I did a free LinkedIn headshot workshop, and a meet up as well. So next year, I do really want to push ID week, especially since the current VP of welfare and equality [Baisat Alawiye] has shown me when I was helping her with Black History Month that we have so much power to do we can do anything as long as we put in the time and effort when. [Alawiye] also did the song bingo, which was fantastic, and got in food as well, but I feel like we can upgrade it more. I do want to also mandate the student life to do at least, PAW (postgraduate appreciation week), because as a post-grad who was working on this by myself, it was very stressful and very difficult with all my assignments, so if I had an officer to support me and also help, it would have been so much easier. So, I do really think student life should be for all students, not just undergrads.”
2. How do you plan to make the student union more inclusive and representative of all students, including marginalized groups?
“I kind of do want to shift PAW to two weeks instead of one week I feel like my second semester has been a lot less work. So, I do kind of want to have two – at least if some people miss the LinkedIn headshots, they have the opportunity to do it again second semester, so they're not racing to get it done. I feel like that's great, but I want to do something else in first semester. So, I want to do a fashion show, and I feel like I'm so ambitious. I do want to do a fashion show, because I'm kind of into fashion – and I do see a lot of students having the best style ever – and I'm like, you need to be on stage, we need to celebrate you guys. And I do want to bring back the puppies as well (pup therapy at the SU). I think everybody loved the puppies. They were great a stress reliever. When you're just finished your exams, there needs to be something help destress. I want to buy, two fold up chairs, and just go around and sit down, just interview students about their day. Because if I'm being honest, as a student, I don't care about, recent graduates. Nobody cares about that. Wow, you graduated with a degree! I don't care. I want to know what current students are talking about, what they want to see.
3) What experience do you have in leadership or advocacy, and how has it prepared you for this role?
“I've been involved with this union for a very long time. So I first got into the University in 2020, and I started as an academic rep for French. I was on two committees; one of them was the Entertainment Committee, and the other one was the feedback and Engagement Committee in first year. [...] Then, the second year, I was just on the Entertainment Committee. And then two years, I was a social science convener, so I got to work on ID Week. I also got to see what other departments are like. It's quite easy for me to go up to them and tell them what issues there are, because they're quite understanding. But I got to see in real time what departments just don't want to engage with issues at all, and how they're...I don't know what’s the best word to say, but their ideology doesn't align with the whole faculty, and one rule may apply to one that doesn't affect the other [...] It is quite confusing. But that got me, interested in it a little bit more. When, I graduated I decided to go for a post grad officer as well, and I got to sit on, other university committees, and it's interesting., everything comes from the top, and you're sitting there and you're kind of like, ‘I don't feel like I should be here because I'm still a student.’ [...] It’svery weird, but you kind of get into it. Also been on Senate for two years as an executive, so I got to review motions as well. Last year, I was able to be in the USI congress. I went there with a motion on just educating people about vaping. Because a lot of people are just it's like, yeah, cool, but you don't realize it may have the same effects of smoking. So, I was put that motion up, just to make sure, like, if you're gonna vape, at least you understand the risks of it. And this year, I'm also working on an SU motion about long commuters.
4. How will you ensure transparency and accountability in decision-making, and the allocation of student union funds?
“Well, we do it through (the Student Union’s) Senate, and when I was a (faculty) convener, we also did our faculty assembly, so we would tell students what we were doing with the money, what the university wants to do with our levy, and all that as well. But I also want to revive the vlog channel… I don't know how many years it's been. They had a vlog show where they –because it was COVID – couldn't necessarily have faculty assemblies add that. So I want to bring that back, just so we can be full on transparency, transparent to students, and hold them accountable as well, but also guest students to go around talking about their day as well, (who can) take over, just to see what they're experiencing. So I want to bring that back, just so we can be full on transparency, transparent to students, and hold them accountable for us as well. And then, we see that and we know what we have to do, to make sure that they're at least feeling like they're not here just for an education. University is great. You need to go here for an education. But I feel like there's much more. More than just going to class.
QUESTION: Why do you think your approach will be different from what has been done before? Given the millions spent on just conceptual drawings for a student centre, and now another €19–20 million on a gym and sports science extension, does the SU truly have the power to make a real difference and advocate for students? If so, why hasn’t it happened yet?
ANSWER: “Well, I know that last year, the previous president [Alex Balfe], she was basically making sure of that. She was basically laying the foundations and making sure that it will happen. The SU holds a lot of power, and the university is kind of scared that if they don't fulfil this, like “wheres our levy” (campaign) is going to happen way more. I love a good angry email – yeah, I love a good protest. The protest on Saturday for International Women’s Day, I had a blast. It was so good, and it got me thinking, why do we not do that more often?”
QUESTION: From speaking with students while preparing for this, one concern I heard repeatedly was that the SU operates within a structure controlled by the university itself. How can an institution truly hold the university accountable when it’s essentially run by the university? Do you think those running for SU or MSU genuinely believe they can make a difference, or are they doing it simply to pad their CVs? Would you say that’s a fair question?
ANSWER: “Because we've seen this in previous years, but they haven't fulfilled what they said in their manifesto. That's why my manifesto isn't very like cons, like, I'm very flexible, yeah, what I want to say, like, I said, my whole campaign is RACE. I want representation. I want to diversify the staff, because it's a huge issue.I we need training, anti-racism, anti-discrimination training, because people can come in and they can be so racist. And, nobody knows what to say. So, we need that training, and LGBTQ+ community. I feel like a lot of people think it's kind of fun, like saying these jokes that can be quite hurtful towards them. So we need to have training to make sure, so I really wanted to push that because, as someone who never got to experience culture day, I really do want other students who probably were in the same situation as me to feel like they're appreciated and seen, that's one of the big things driving me to do this. I know the current events and coordinator. She is amazing at her job. Honestly, I could not praise her enough, but she's just one person, so there needs to be a second person there to help accommodate more commuter events. All of our events are free anyways, so there's no issue with pricing. It's just that it's a different type of accessibility.”
5. What is one major challenge facing students right now, and what concrete steps will you take to address it if elected?
“That’s a tough question, because there's a lot, yeah...I would love to say with housing crisis. But realistically, I don't think that's possible to resolve any year. My campaign's slogan is 'Race to the Top. So, I am putting my priority list as commuters and engagement. I essentially want students to take over my job. I'm not here for some people who are getting paid on like €70k, or €100k; I'm here for students only. I've been on the executive for two years. I know how it's run. I do policy writing. I'm writing a policy motion for USI about long commuters, so I do want them to push on to the NTA (National Transport Agency).”
JACK KIERNAN PRESIDENT
1. What specific policies or initiatives do you plan to implement to improve student life within your remit, and how will you ensure they are achieved?
“That’s a great question. And one of the main policies I want to implement here, through the Student Union, and through the Senate, is I want to change one of the schedules in our constitution to let us elect a part-time officer for the position of housing. Housing is a huge issue across campus, and crops up all the time. It's never been needed more than now. We don’t have a senator for housing, and it's just, you know, we need it. We need more, really, you know what I mean. So, policy-wise, I want to implement a housing officer, and then I want to set up a committee around that officer, which will consist of a senator, the senator for Erasmus students, the senator for international students, that sort of craic. You know, get them all on a committee. Have the president and VP of Student life on the committee as well. Probably welfare as well, you know, get cracking on that sort of thing, because you need a team for this. Especially because, at the end of the day, we’re student activists. So that's one big policy that I really want to implement. And I have other policies, but I'll finish on this one; welfare. Studentwelfare, especially mental health, I want to implement a peer-to-peer system as you're aware or perhaps students might not be aware. I must have spoken to over 100 students this week, and in my time as an equality officer as well, the thing that has struck me most on this campus is the lack of awareness of the facilities here. I have to say that probably 70% of the students I speak to don't know there's mental health services on campus. First, they don't know it's there the GP is there as well, is another one. People think it's only there for, you know, the STD campaign. They only hear about it then, and they only think it's for STDs. So if I can say, here and now, even if I don't become president, it's not just for if you have STDs, it's cheap. It's paid for through your tuition, please start using it. But yeah, like you alluded to there .I'm from Cavan, and this, I don't know if you're familiar with SOSAD (, yeah, just recently closed down its call centres actually, because of funding. So yes, it's getting worse. As such I want to make sure that doesn't happen here. I want to secure funding for the mental health services, and then I, as I said, the peer-to-peer groups. I want to get peer to peer groups introduced, because the waiting list is so long, Nothing's worse than waiting. I am not insensitive or anything – but like stuff like say you're stressed with your exams or if you are having issues with your timetable. Sometimes, it can be just as simple as talking to somebody in a similar situation, you know, stuff like that. We can get peer-to-peer groups here in the SU; we can work with the MAP office to get them sorted professionally So those are my two big ones.”
2. How do you plan to make the student union more inclusive and representative of all students, including marginalized groups?
“This is what you're voting for, you know [...] To be honest with you, if you have an issue or if you want something done, to me personally…, the student union wouldn't be at the top of my list I want to see that changed. The Union should be where anybody can go if they have an issue, if they want information of if they want to relax. It’s what you should be able to come to the student union for. And I hope to return to this down to Earth approach, where you know, the student union is out there. It's talking to students. Students are talking to the student union We had that for awhile. It's very out-of-reach. The location doesn't help, but even without the location, when do you see your officers out and about? When do you see events on the campus green? You know, South Campus is a ghost town in terms of events. It needs to be improved. I also plan to introduce forums for, as you said, the marginalized; I hope to, I spoke of a committee earlier for housing. I’m hoping that when I become President I can set up a committee for, the marginalized, and also for the postgraduates, taught postgraduates, and the doctorates.”
3. What experience do you have in leadership or advocacy, and how has it prepared you for this role?
“Ultimately, at the end of the day, the equality officer position was brand new when I took it over, I was the first equality officer that the SU had, and it was a part-time position. So, comparing it to the president, the role has been there since the start of the Union, and it's well-defined, they're different. With the equality officer, I had the freedom to make the role my own, because I was the first one to be in the role with the president t's a little different. There are already jobs prescribed for the President – they have a full list of things they have to do [...] With my manifesto, I have to work my manifesto into the their work plan.. So I suppose, in one sense, it's a little bit more restrictive. I got some stuff done. I'm very proud of the work I did as an equality officer. The thing that I look back on fondly most would be becoming, the University of Sanctuary. We are a university of Sanctuary here in Maynooth, and we welcome, refugees seeking education [...] That was really thought-provoking work, you know, it opened my eyes to a lot of things. Other things we did are like International, Women's Day, you've got Black History Month, and you've got all of Shag Week, all that sort of craic, and things I've worked on myself; I got new quiet spaces implemented around campus. I worked closely with map to get Milo out there. I'd like to get Milo used by even more students. Its extremely useful, too.”
4. How will you ensure transparency and accountability in decision-making and the allocation of student union funds?
yeah. I'll just, can I loop back to the previous question just to finish? I did a lot with the equality officerrole, and obviously the skills learning; how the proper procedures, what I can do, what I can't do, who needs to do what, it all transfers over... So, the question you just asked me; regarding a very valid point. I mean, transparency is becoming more and more important, and probably always should have been the most important, if you're going by common sense. Do you know what I mean, being from Cavan now, do you know spending the money like Not a penny will go missing. But something I've always thought of is the Senate. You were talking about accountability; theSenate is the accountability body of the executive – I don't know if students will be familiar with the protocol, but basically, an executive member will do their work in a month, and then they'll write a report on it, and the report will either be passed or not passed by the Senate. If it's not passed twice in a row, that executive member is sent for disciplinary, and could lose their position. However, students are not looking for officer reports. They're not looking for them and if anybody that tells you they are, they're in a very small camp, and I'd like to see students doing it. So, what I was thinking is, that these Senate meetings could be live, they are recorded. Now, the likelihood of students looking for a recording, again, is probably not high. If there is an issue, at least the videos there to look back on.”
The SU claims to advocate for students, but during that advocacy , college costs have risen, general expenses have increased; there's still no student centre, not enough seating, and limited study spaces in the library. Can the SU actually do anything—not even to solve—but at least to address or alleviate these issues?
Answer: There’s the likes of car parking, that's a huge issue. I could talk about that all day. But talk about the seating just for a second, just ‘till I give you an idea of what the student union can, and probably should, do, in my opinion, because it's actually part of my manifesto. TSI (the building facing the crossroad on north campus) has no room for students. How does the newest building on campus not have a single room for students to sit in? That was very clearly – if you ask me, very clearly – designed to be some kind of communal area. I mean, it doesn't have the makings of a classroom, so clearly something happened there.I don't think it would be too out of the ordinary to push for a room like that, for it to be repurposed into a new seating area with microwaves. Now, I won't promise I can get it done, but that's something I feel like should have been done by the staff. And a new student building. You mentioned that we haven't gotten it yet; I probably won't get it by the time I'm finished here. However, I do know they are expanding the student union building. It's a little too late. I feel like it's great that we're getting it, don’tget me wrong. However, the where's my levy campaign was four years ago, it's four years on.”
5. What is one major challenge facing students right now, and what concrete steps will you take to address it if elected?
“We can say that there is an issue with, you know, commuting, there's an issue with housing,. Ans they’re there because they're not easily communicated to the people who can make a difference, and the people who can make a difference are not communicating with the people who have the issue. I feel I can fix that as President, specifically as president, with my experience with the student union, from rep all the way up to executive member, and hopefully President, I have the knowledge and the experience of the current student unions, you know, procedural body, the Constitution, all that sort of craic. I can take that information, and I want to re haul the student reps. I want to re haul how we get out there and communicate with students. We need to get this student union back to a state where students feel like they can come to us with a problem and that we can say to students, this is how we're going to address your problem. Not just say, Oh, that's a difficult issue. We'd really love to help but, you know, how about we'll take a look. We'll do this. You know, we might not be able to get to the end goal right now, but we can start making steps. So what do I do better than my running companions, and look they're fantastic people. However, I have the experience. I have the three years’ experience in the student union. I've been on the executive before. I know all inside and out, and that's what I bring to the table.”
HUSNA BAHDMUS PRESIDENT
1. What specific policies or initiatives do you plan to implement to improve student life within your remit, and how will you ensure they are achieved?
“Okay, so my main goal, is for making uni accessible, because it's better for it to be more accessible in terms of mental health issues and just stress in general, which could affect your academics among other things. Transportation needs to be better. So, I'm thinking of carpooling schemes; I know that’s one that sounds really big, and people might like think differently. I think we need an underground car park. I think that because an underground car park would have more levels and space and could be in one setting, and they can’t complain about “oh, it’s taking up too much space”, or anything like that.. So technically, we should figure all that out . We need to figure out where it's going to be – we would figure out the spaces and all.I know people might not agree with meon this, but you know, the MSU parking there, there, you could use that. I'm a bit of a big thinker, so I think, Manor Mills, the underground car parking, or we can talk to them for spaces. The carpools scheme is something I was thinking about, because there's people who live in parts in Kilcock that are really segregated, they’re away from public transport, their buses only come once or twice or three times a day. But then, for Cavan and there's a private bus or something. Yeah, the price is unreasonable, and I think that needs to be reduced. And also, I heard that they actually give out more bus tickets than they’re meant to, it’s not good. It's not good at all. So, the reason why my main thing is transport, if uni is more accessible to be at, it’s easier to come to, people will be on campus more often and people will create more connections. I feel like accessibility really plays a part into making stuff easy for people. It also influences your decision-making. Like, if it’s easier for you to come into uni, it’s not so much of an effort for you to come into un. There’s people who have to travel Dublin just to get here. And it is madness. It makes no sense. Yeah. Like, why am I traveling to Dublin? There's people who live in Dundalk and they’re Kilkenny as well. You're not meant to be exploiting students. We don't have much money [...] Why are you making students’ lives more stressful when they’re meant to be working for this economy in the future?”
And I feel like the more you make union life stressful for students, the more they're more prone to say, Yeah, I'm leaving this country. Some people obviously have to leave because there’s not enough work or job opportunities here, but some people just don’t like their experience here. They don’t feel connected to it. That’s another part of my campaign
2. How do you plan to make the student union more inclusive and representative of all students, including marginalized groups?
“I kind of said this in the hustings as well. In the hustings I really needed to put out my point, but I think collaborating with clubs and societies here in Maynooth is a big part of that I feel like it's kind of enclosed to the same group of people,. Collaborating with clubs and societies, having events here, really working together, spreading news and information and having talks. But I’ll see if there’s any other ways that people think are better”
3. What experience do you have in leadership or advocacy, and how has it prepared you for this role?
To be honest, I won't say I have main experience, but since childhood I was kind of put into roles where I lead people, and this is how it’s played out for me since primary and secondary school. It plays into this role of communication. I think communication is the key; I love communicating with people. It's everybody thinks in so like diverse, different ways. It's interesting. People might say something in a hard, straight way, and that's just the way they are. People need to understand that sometimes it might sound hurtful, but that's not how they mean it. Just think about their experience
4. How will you ensure transparency and accountability in decision-making and the allocation of student union funds?
“I think the main thing for transparency and accountability is we need to communicate with our students and let them know…” Rest of the sentence is fine And I think that's a main factor, because it's going into stuff for the students, and so it's, at the end of days, their choice In terms of accountability, people need to know who’s actually in charge of what’s going on. I feel like nobody really wants to say who's in charge, because when stuff goes down, they don't want to take accountability. But I think understanding your shortcomings from any experience would make people, understand where you're coming from, and you should really, when you take accountability, let people know that what you did wrong and how you're going to improve and actually improve, not just saying it. The decision making, obviously, that's going to be with the whole boards of executives, and I think the Senators will obviously be part of that. We need to leave room for the decision-making; we need to leave room for other people to complain or say what needs to be fixed. I don't think that's the only way because, you know, there's stuff that they won't listen to and that's a big part of this whole thing. I think solidarity really, really matters, that we should all fight for each other's needs. Although one thing might not be important to you, it's important for someone else, and that other person could be fighting for you the next time and you would never know So if we have to protest, I think that really matters. We need proper protests. Where we are a community, weshould stand in solidarity with each other. So many people don't know what's going on half of the time on the university. But I feel like this is why the societies really matter. They could obviously help spread out the word with stuff. And I really think spreading the word, word of mouth, hearing from somebody else that there’s a protest about something is important. If you see a poster up on the wall, that doesn't mean anything to you; it's just a poster up on the wall, rather than someone I know telling me something about the poster on the wall. So, I believe solidarity also matters with really getting what we want. My whole campaign is mainly based on engagement, community and accessibility because I feel like that’s what will really make the union whole
5. What is one major challenge facing students right now, and what concrete steps will you take to address it if elected?
“I want this to feel like you need their second home. I’m sorry, I don’t know why I’m so emotional about it, but I want people to be happy when they’re here. I don't want people to say, ‘ohyeah, I just have a lab today, and after the lab is done I'm leaving.’ Like, I want them to say, ‘I have a lab today, but I'm going to this event later.’ Or, like, ‘I'm going to go study with my friends.’ I, that's another thing I want. It doesn’t necessarily have to be friends, but community. Like, it's, it's the main reason why I'm running, because the amount of people I talk to, a lot of people I talk to they don't seem to be connected with the community – the university – at all. And are you part of any event, like societies or events that you want to go to? People are just like, sorry., I don't want to be here. Like, oh, I need to go home, because of the train timetable”
MAEVE FARRELL PRESIDENT
1. What specific policies or initiatives do you plan to implement to improve student life within your remit, and how will you ensure they are achieved?
“I'm running off a four-point manifesto, because one of my main points is that I don't want to make any promises to students that are unreasonable, and that I know I can't keep. My four main points are digs and accommodation, parking and public transport,campus security, and student engagement and student jobs. I think each of these has a unique impact on the life of students, and I think all four of them, together, are a really big aspect of student life here in Maynooth, and all universities, across the country. And so, firstly, for digs legislation and students living in digs do not have any legal protection, and it's not covered under the Residential Tenancies Act. And such I plan to lobby the government to get a digs legislation bill passed that gives students a legal foot to stand on, so basically covering things like minimum standards and a minimum notice period for evictions and like rent caps, so they have to fit in with the rent caps of the area. I also want to work on the long-term student accommodation strategy, to ensure that there is more purpose-built student accommodation for students in the because nobody has anywhere to live. And I myself lived in digs in second year as well. And I actually ended up having to take my landlord to court when I was in second year, because she refused to give me my rental deposit back. I did win, but it really just kick started the whole “we don’t have any legal foot to stand on here”, and it’s necessary. It should be there already, but it's not. That’s one of my most important things to get through secondly is parking. I think it is the most frequently mentioned issue by students, and I ensure everybody, even staff, have the same issues. Basically, again, I can't promise to make any miracles happen, but I want to do a review of the parking system; how the permits are distributed, because there's currently way too many being sold, and there's not enough space for students to park. As such a review of that needs to be done, and also lobbying for the creation of more parking spaces like the university has the land, I think it's a disgrace. I plan to get the university to incorporate parking as a standing item on the finance HR and campus development committee, just purely so students know that there's something being done about it. And we also need to work with the public transport providers for increased routes, and especially on really frequently used services such as the C4, W6 and 115 bus routes, because at the moment, they're a disgrace, and it's, really impacting students’ education, and it should not be. Third point is campus security, especially in light of recent incidents, I think it's really, really important that students feel safe on campus, and as a woman, it’s really not great, guys. There really needs to be more done there. We need to have more full-time security staff on campus, on the ground, and for students to see that, so they know that they may feel safe on campus, because it's not something that you should even have to worry about, like you shouldn't be coming to campus and being worried about your safety. That should be the bare minimum. Unfortunately, it's not. So there needs to be increased security presence on campus. And there also needs to be liaison with the local Garda, so that if incidents do happen, they need to be dealt with and dealt with in a prompt and a proper manner. And then finally, student union development and student engagement. So, the union has already done so much in terms of helping students out with the cost of living. There has been so much incredible work done like the MSU pantry, and obviously I plan to continue working on that and to expand it as much as I can. However, I think that we've tried everything when it comes to the cost-of-living crisis, and I think one of the most important things is to actually put money back into students' pockets directly. As such I want to create more student jobs within MSU and within the university. So do review of that, find out, can we get the funding for that. Can we actually get more students working in the Students Union, getting paid and also in the university as well?. Student engagement is at an all time low. Again, I don't need to explain this to anybody, and it's, not something that I can promise to work any miracles on, but I think we just need to take a longer look at why student engagement is so low,why people aren't interacting with the union, and what we can do about it.”
You're talking about the food pantry—but do you think the university should be proud of the fact that they've created an environment where a food bank is even necessary in the first place?
ANSWER: “Not even to mince my words, I think is a disgrace. I think the university has really, really skewed priorities in terms of where their funding is going. And I mean, and you could talk about till the cows come home, art students have basically been in a conversion prefab for the past 30 years. I'm an Arts and Humanity student. Guys, trust me, I am annoyed as you are?. I think if there’s 20 million to be put into a sports science building, that’s great for those students. I'm not denying however, that when the union has to create a pantry to feed the students coming to the university, I think there is a fundamental issue there as to where the university is failing. Your students are coming to campus hungry, there is an issue. …. a glaring issue. And unfortunately, I think the higher-ups often do not see that. And so, that is something that I and whoever else gets elected will work on, because we're students.” we understand their struggles
2. How do you plan to make the student union more inclusive and representative of all students, including marginalized groups?
“Its a fundamental part of student unions; it's in the name. We’rehere for the students, and we need to be here for every single student, regardless of who they are, what they believe in and where they come from. I think that, potentially, is something that students feel like they’re missing. I want it to be a space for everybody, like the new students’ union, needs to be a place where every student feels like they're represented, and obviously we've made leaps and bounds in recent years in terms of diversity. But I think education is one of the most important things surrounding that point. So, I think we need to be aware of the structures in place and isn't any issues in terms of like discrimination or anything along the lines of that, but I want people to know where they can go to report these procedures to. I know there are procedures and policies in place, but I feel like a lot of students aren't aware of that. So, if they experience discriminatory behaviour, along any lines, they don't know who to go to, and they don't know if it's going to be dealt with, and they don't even know if they're going to be relieved in that regard. So I think we need to go back to our court and just really look at the structures in place and make sure that everybody feels safe and everybody feels included.
SO WOULD YOU SAY THE SU HAS NOT DONE ENOUGH IN THAT REGARD?
No, I definitely think they have. I just think like myself, I'm white, I'm coming from a privileged position here. So I think the most important thing, and that what they have been doing and what they need to continue to do, is to listen to students from minority backgrounds, of all minority backgrounds, because we don't know the experience until we well, no one knows the experience until they've lived it. So I think just listening to people and finding out what they need and what they feel like should be done better is the most important point here.
3. What experience do you have in leadership or advocacy, and how has it prepared you for this role?
And in terms of MSU, I accidentally fell into student politics. I'll be honest with you, I got forcefully signed up to be an academic rep when I was in first year, and did that for two years, then continued on to departmental representative, which is what I am this year. And I'm also on Senate as the American humanities faculty Senator this year. And honestly, I know it's a bit of a weird thing to say, but I feel like some people are just, I'm not going to say the whole board leaders concept is a real thing. However, I do feel like some people are naturally more drawn to positions like that, and I was, I was always the bossy one in school, you can ask my friends, they hated me” I think that’s what she meant? Bit weird to say your friends hated you though. Like, the good thing is my degree doesn't have too much to do with group projects, because I would be insufferable. I mean, the President's big role. It's a super big role. And to be quite honest, it's quite terrifying. And I'm kind of waking up in the morning and going, Oh my God. Like, what am I doing? Like, I've never, obviously done anything like this before, but I love student politics. I, like I said, I accidentally fell into it, but I really, really do love it, and MSU has given me so much, and I feel like I can give a lot back to MSU again, like I said, I want to be a president for every student. I want them to feel: Yes, this is someone that I'm proud to have representing my university.
4. How will you ensure transparency and accountability in decision-making and the allocation of student union funds?
Well, that's a big question. That's a really big one. And I think even just going back to, like I said, going back to the core. I feel like, especially the full time officers, are often quite shut away in their little office down the back of the SU. And that's something that I really don't agree with. We're elected by the students. Sorry, that was very presumptuous, I definitely meant that as a general term. They should be there, and they should be more visible. And it is actually one of the things I have in my manifesto that I want to establish regular drop in clinics with the full time officers, so for at least an hour every single day, to have at least one of the full time officers available, where students can just come in freely. And whatever it may be, whatever your problem is, like, it literally does not matter. And to be able to come in and to be able to see that we actually care, and this is, again, absolutely nothing going against the current members. Just for clarification, Just from a student perspective, like, this is my fourth year here, and I do feel like there is a disconnect between the Students Union and the university, and from out on campus, from being on the ground and talking to people, a lot of people don't even know what MSU is and what its function is and why it's there. And I think that's a real problem if our own students don't even know what we're there for, Transparency and accountability isn’t going to happen if the students don’t even know what we’re doing, so I think that in order to tackle that we need to be out there more. But I think MSU needs to go to the students and, there's so much work that has been done on this. And obviously student engagement is such an extreme problem. But I think at the end of the day, if there's no engagement and people don't know why MSU is there, then you can't even begin to look at transparency and accountability. And obviously that is something that I would like to work on down the line. But I think first and foremost, we need to get that connection back with the students. Personally, I was here for the where’s my levy campaign, great memories. Guys, no. But, if students don't know where their money is going, they're going to be like, well, Why do I bother engaging with this union? Then, if they're taking my money for this promised Student Centre, that never happens, students deserve to know what their levy is going towards. Like, if I was to sit here and ask a student, do you know where your 150 student levy is going, they'd be like, No, I don't have a notion. Like some of us who've been around for a few more years might say, Oh, it's gone towards that student centre that we never saw. You know? So I think even just first and foremost for students, like a new commercial major breakdown of where their €150 student levy goes, so that they know themselves, the money that's coming out of their pocket, where it goes from, and then in terms of the overall budget for the Union, and more clarity on where it goes, you know, because, again, if you asked a regular student, what do you think we don’t have a student centre, why not? Should I have to mention like, does it go on campaigns? Like they don't know.
5. What is one major challenge facing students right now, and what concrete steps will you take to address it if elected?
I just feel like there's so many glaring issues at the moment. And if I was to put it into one for many students currently, I'm going to be cheeky and say accessibility, because then I can cover both students who live in Maynooth and students who are commuters. Because I think fundamentally, one of the biggest concerns for students is being able to get to classes, if you boil it down to that, whether it's if you're living in digs, if you're living in shared accommodation, if you're living in student accommodation, if you're commuting through public transport, or if you're driving all of those things have glaring issues that are interfering with your education. And I think if we strip it back to the core, students are here to get an education, and MSU should be doing their best to support them in that regard. And so in terms of that, in in my manifesto, as I have explained the points already. I think all of those kind of do come under the banner of accessibility, because should not be having an impact on education. It really shouldn't, but unfortunately, it is and if I am elected president, I promise to fight tooth and nail for it, because I've experienced all of these. I've commuted, I've lived in digs, I've lived in student accommodation. I've lived in a car, and I've experienced it all. So I think, I know what students are facing, and I happen to be ridiculously stubborn, if you ask anybody who knows me knows that once I sink my teeth into a problem, I will be like a dog with a bone. I won't let it go until I get a reasonable solution. And even if I can make life easier for even one or two students, then I'll say it's job well done.
