This is Faisal’s third year working at SUS, and he expressed his confidence and excitement regarding the new administration.
“I think we’ve got a great team. Everybody’s very passionate about doing the work that SUS does and amplifying the voices of students.”
With the team starting work right away, several events have already been confirmed for the upcoming semesters including Summer Fest and Kickback. Despite being in the early stages of planning the next Kickback and not yet having a theme, the Marketing and Program & Services teams are already discussing vendors and looking at student feedback from last year.
Faisal commented on last year’s success of Clubs & Associations recruiting new students and showed an interest in repeating the formula.
“They were super happy. They got a lot of new club members from the event because a lot of new students start in the fall and they want to be involved on campus, and do something that they are interested in … Having all the Clubs & Associations at one place where students have to walk through each and every table and they get to talk to so many clubs … that was a great addition.”
Students can also expect Kickback to happen in the same location as last year; the hybrid model of combining the SUB and the parking lot proved effective, according to Faisal. As per student feedback, SUS is also concentrating on potential restrictions with registration and accessibility factors.
Faisal is confident in the direction he wants to take with his presidency. When asked about his election process, he expressed a sense of relief to be the only candidate for president but also acknowledged the increased accountability he felt to meet the standards he would be held to.
“If there wasn’t a choice, then you would have to stick with that one choice that you get. But then it’s my responsibility to make the most out of it and more.”
When Faisal decided to run for president, he shared that it was because he was passionate about the events SUS runs and connecting with students. Last year, as vice president of students, he launched the Chai with Bilal project — once a month throughout the whole year, he made himself available to UFV students for questions regarding SUS or UFV, while also offering cookies and chai.
Faisal conveyed his joy and pride at how well the project worked and how it inspired him to continue the tradition as president.
“I thought, ‘How cool would it be if I do that even when I’m the president?’ And out of everyone at SUS, you get the president themselves sitting outside and talking to students and getting into day-to-day conversations and not just showing up when there’s something big happening.”
Faisal will be available one hour per month this summer semester, and in the fall and winter semesters, it will increase to two hours, since there’s a higher influx of students. The next opportunity to chat with him is May 27 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Part of the continuance of Chai with Bilal stems from his goal of transparency, something he wants to improve on from past administrations.
“The reason why I want to continue it is so that I can have more transparency. I can have students asking the questions that they want … holding myself accountable or just putting myself out there with the students, that is something that I want to achieve.”
Regarding advocacy projects, Faisal mentioned that making the Fraser Valley Express route 66 more accessible to students is dear to his heart, due in part to personal experience.
“Eight months straight, seven days a week. I used to take that bus, I don’t know how much money I’ve spent on that bus, and it’s bad.”
In closing, Faisal reflected on SUS’s primary objectives and encouraged students to reach out with their thoughts and questions.
“My entire executive team and SUS are here for the UFV students. Our main goal is to build a community and make university life one of the best experiences that any student has. I think SUS has done that for me, and I would like to do that for the rest of the UFV students.”
The information for upcoming events and projects will be available to students through posters, their website, and the SUS Instagram account.
