UFV’s student governing body, the Student Union Society (SUS), is holding their annual election for 2023, with voting taking place between March 13-16. All the candidates were invited to interview with The Cascade to share their platforms and what they hope to achieve in their positions if elected. We encourage everyone to check out all the candidates at the SUS Elections website for more information and official statements. The responses below have been lightly edited for clarity and flow.
SUS President
Ashley McDougall (running unopposed): Bachelor of arts student studying economics and political science
Why do you want to be in this position?
I decided to run for President after gaining a lot of experience and leadership over my past two terms as Vice President External. I had a lot of success with my advocacy for a fall reading break at UFV, which is now being implemented for next fall, and so seeing the success of this — the success of our engagement on campus with our events such as Kickback — really inspired me to move forward in my student leadership by running for President. I also did get to see a lot of our current President, Nikiel, in his work, which really let me see the inside scoop of what the President does day-to-day. I do feel pretty prepared going into the role as well, given all this experience and my knowledge of the job.
Can you briefly talk about your platform?
A lot of my platform focuses on student engagement and building up our sense of community on campus. One of the main ways I want to do that is, after seeing the success of our Kickback event during the past two years, I want to host another Kickback in the winter semester to take place on the Chilliwack campus. Something I’ve noticed is that the Chilliwack campus is often forgotten about, and I think it would be really great to do a big event out in Chilliwack. I’m really looking forward to moving forward with that in the next term, as well [as] doing other events, or student rush night with the Abbotsford Canucks. I hope to continue with those events and focus on student engagement that way.
We have already been doing a lot of work at SUS on moving away from UFV being such a commuter campus. We want students to feel welcome to stay after class [and] hang out. We want there to be activities going on on campus. So I hope to promote less of a commuter culture and more of a community culture at UFV. I’m also hoping to work with our team on making transit to campus accessible through both the campus shuttle and also through working with local transit.
We also have something that I think a lot of people don’t really know about SUS. One of our programs is our Student Perks program, which [provides] discounts for students in the local communities. I’m looking forward to building up awareness about this program and building up our partnerships, so that more students are aware of the discounts they can get and so our partners feel like it’s a reciprocal relationship as well.
I hope to also still be involved in advocacy through our federal advocacy partner, the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA). Also, I’m hoping to — in the name of transparency with the SUS executives — hold office hours for students to drop by, if they just want to say ‘hi,’ or if they have a concern to bring forward. To provide an open space for students if they feel like they want to come forward with any concerns or even just meet us to build up that sense of connection between the SUS executives and students.
Vice President Internal
Alana Awram (running unopposed): Third-year student majoring in political science with a minor in economics.
Why do you want to be in this role?
I would love the opportunity to serve as VPI because I’m really passionate about campus culture and making sure that the Student Union Society has a strong presence here at UFV.
Can you briefly talk about your platform?
As VPI I hope to work closely with the rest of the SUS executives to accomplish a wide variety of goals to provide for and represent students. Two specific goals I hope to get to work on are expanding SUS presence to UFV’s other campuses, and help clubs and associations get more exposure and engagement on campus.
Vice President External
Jayden Hovey (running unopposed): Fourth-year political science major
Why do you want to be in this role?
I have a big passion for policy and for governance. I think that Vice President External would be a great position for me just because I get to have that sort of connection with political entities, and other student organizations. I can help UFV and the student union to progress further with those organizations.
Can you briefly talk about your platform?
I’m a big fan of transparency and engagement. I definitely want to get more students involved and I want them to know what we’re doing at SUS. I know that my first few years on campus, I didn’t even know the student union existed… and I feel like that’s a problem where we’re not really getting that engagement. So I want students to know what [SUS is] doing. I want to put more things out there. I have an idea to lay out where student fees are going to — for every dollar that they’re paying… I definitely want the students to be aware of what’s going on. I definitely want to get involved more with organizations like CASA. That’s the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations and [I] definitely want to get UFV involved with what’s going on there and the decision making process.
I just want to help students get more government resources — get more student aid. There’s something called OER’s, which is open educational resources…it’s essentially free student resources and educational aids, like textbooks and things like that. I think that would be very valuable, especially for the students who struggle financially or have to worry about paying for very expensive textbooks. I think that would be very valuable to have.
Vice President Students
Moninder Grewal: Global development studies student
Why do you want to be in this position?
I want to bring more of a community feeling or vibe to UFV… I believe people come to UFV, study and go home but people don’t want to study 24/7. They want to chill, they want to relax, they want to have the feeling of togetherness. Also, raising awareness of [struggles that] international students face on a daily basis [at] university and outside university. And raising awareness about accessibility at UFV. Something that’s very impressive to me is accessibility, as I’m a student who has a learning disability.
Can you briefly talk about your platform?
What I hope to achieve is hopefully more people are aware of what resources are available for accessibility, but also having more events. That students feel like they’re together, like Kickback, but also when there’s no Kickback going on… having events once a week or something to keep the students engaged with community activities too.
Gabriella Wertheimer: Second-year political science student
Why do you want to be in this position?
Currently, I work at UFV International. I’m a global student associate and my position there is working with engagement, so I already have been working for over a year very closely with the whole SUS team. I really got to know a lot about the position and all the things that they do, and I took great interest in that because I really saw it as an opportunity to do all the engagement work that I have already been doing on a larger scale so I can reach more students. I feel like engagement is way more important than people think. I’ve had students come up to me, especially international students, saying things like, “I don’t know why I felt so lonely before,” and “this really gives me a sense of home,” or “it’s so nice seeing a lively campus.” So what I really wanna do is bring forth a more active student experience — for people to be proud of being UFV students.
Can you briefly talk about your platform?
So my main ideas surround having a lot of different types of events on campus. I want to have a second Kickback in the winter semester because I feel that’s the event that the students like the most. It’s the most requested. So I want to see it two times a year. And having more events in Chilliwack. I [noticed] Chilliwack campus gets very neglected and it’s very hard for the communities and associations that we have to get out there. So one of my ideas is building this stronger bridge between both campuses and seeing more engagement there. So my idea of having a second Kickback would be having the second Kickback in Chilliwack.
I also want to have a physical space for clubs and associations. I feel like people that actually see their interest being represented on campus really makes them want to be involved, so having a physical space and not only on Instagram or something can really change the impact that it has. Also, having a crafts week together with the mental health week before exams, because I feel like when you do craft work, you really get your mind working and it really de-stresses you. I feel like [combining] that with this amazing program we already have would be a great idea.
One more thing that I really want to do is have more cultural events — having the [greatest number] of cultures represented and [each] having their own little piece of home-away-from-home here at UFV, because I am an international student — I’m from Brazil — and I can say that I really found myself. I live on campus, so I live in university, I study in university, I work in university, and I feel like I got to know a lot of amazing international students [who] say sometimes that they have not been very well represented. Overall I feel like engagement has really improved since I’ve started as a student.
Harsharndeep Singh Boparai: Studying business administration with an interest in politics and government
Student Representative at Large
Rashpinder Singh Laicha: Third-year business administration student
Why do you want to be in this position?
I have a family background [where] my parents, my grandparents are in political positions right now and I also want to go into politics. This is the right opportunity that I found for myself.
Can you briefly talk about your platform?
As the student representative at large, as it suggested, I’ll be representing students from different groups. Right now for international students, [the minimum is] twelve credits they must pay for. And it’s quite hard for them to pay such a big amount and do work as well, so [there] should be [a] minimum [of] 9 credits that are [the] legal requirement. And it’s also in most of the universities and colleges. It’s 9 credits minimum required. So I believe it should be in UFV as well. I just want to be the best inspiration for all of the other students, and serve the position at my best.
Jashandeep Dhindsa: Associate of arts degree student with an interest in politics and government
Naman Tachilote: Fourth-year business administration student
Rachel is working towards a BA with a concentration in English and Theatre. She has been employed at The Cascade since Fall 2021 as a Staff Writer and a Jr. News Editor. Currently, she is the sectional News Editor and enjoys meeting and interviewing people as well as taking long walks in nature. Rachel also likes to stay up to date on the latest trends and informs students through her fashion column entitled Campus Fashion.