Student Activities and Development

 

 

2007 has been a busy year, a year of change, it has been a year of new problems and of new solutions. Now that 2008 is upon us the question must now be asked, what has your Union done for you in 2007 and, perhaps more importantly, what are we going to do in 2008? The following is a brief report about what has been achieved in the field of activities and development as well as my goals for the months ahead.

 

Before we continue I would like to take this opportunity to draw your attention to the hard working permanent members of staff who strives hard to make this Union work and without whose support none of the developments mentioned below would be possible. Thanks must go to Steve Baker, Mike Cooter, Rena Ellis, Tracey Anderson and Cherylyn Cuthbert for their continued dedication to UPSU, especially in those areas mentioned below.

 

2007: A review

 

 

Societies

 

 

At Presidents day at the start of term I stated that the academic year 2007/2008 would be “the year of the society”, I predicted an increase in society representation, activity and ownership of the Union and urged those present to hold me to my claim. It is with great pleasure that I report that as of December 2007 the number of students who are signed up members of societies has now passed the 3060 mark, with 500 outstanding membership forms. This means that, provided those forms are returned, society members now outnumber AU club members, this makes societies the largest, most diverse and most representative group of students within the Union and a proud testament to everything the Union stands for.

 

Since I took office in July we have seen the establishment of many new societies and we have also seen a huge rise in society events. From the creation of the new Hellenic and Cypriot society who have hosted live football, and a very successful Greek night, to the outstanding events organised by the Hindu society. Finally these, and many other society events, are getting the publicity and the credit they deserve, not only from the wider media but also from UPSU’s new Pugwash news Newspaper created by media officer Alex Harries. Thanks to Alex societies now have the opportunity to raise their profile and show the world the great things they have done.

 

The Society executive, the body of 6 elected students who meet to represent and coordinate societies as well as hold me to account, has also had a radical makeover for 2007. A change in the roles and the direction of the exec means that there is now an elected representative for each category of society, from cultural rep to religious rep. The exec now works on developing the role of societies within the Union , ensuring that societies are represented at every level of the Union ’s democratic structure as well as helping to coordinate inter-society events. At the time of writing the society exec are busy drafting a new constitution, a new societies handbook and are looking to organise refresher’s fair and the societies takeover event, which could potentially be the largest social event ever hosted by UPSU.  

 

For more info on student societies have a look at:

http://www.upsu.net/getinvolved/societies

 

 

Student Training:

 

 

Upon coming into office it appeared to me that it was the development aspect of my job role that was, ironically, the least developed. With the changes of higher education over the past few years student development has become of paramount importance. More students are going to University, this is arguably causing greater competition in the job market, therefore students need something to make them stand out, to separate them from the generic mass, they needed an opportunity to showcase their individual skills. My, and the Union’s answer to this question is STAND, student training and new development, a brand new training package which aimed to provide real tangible and transferable skills. The first semester has seen four training courses being written and presented by myself: Media skills, Campaign Coordination, Club and Society management and Train the trainer. I have been pleased by the turnout and the feedback and look forward to working with students to further develop STAND in semester two.

 

Each of the twenty four workshops can be found at: 

 

http://www.upsu.net/getinvolved/stand

 

 

Alternatively I can provide them, and more info on how to get involved and how to write training of your own. Just get in touch at: Ben.norman@port.ac.uk

 

Volunteering

 

 

V.I.P, Volunteering in Portsmouth is the Students’ Union’s volunteering arm and it is an organisation of which I take great pride as it has grown to become a proud example of everything the Union stands for. Democracy, student ownership and altruism are the foundations from which VIP is built and has flourished. Throughout the year VIP has been transformed into an organisation run entirely for the students and by the students. This year we have seen more projects, with more student involvement. Such projects include the Santa’s little helper event which took place on the 8^th December. This event was attended by over 40 volunteers, a record number for this project. We also saw the first ever Senior Citizen Christmas lunch which was attended by 50 local residents. These large projects have been run simultaneously to regular smaller projects such as weekly trips to the Meadow house residential home, and regular visits to the Saturday club to work alongside Enable ability. The hard work of the Volunteers was given national recognition in December when VIP won the best team award at the National higher education volunteer awards. The award, presented in Wembley by Danny Wallace, is grand testament to the work of VIP and the continued drive to be a link between students and the local community. All credit for these developments must go to the VIP student committee, whose dedication to volunteering continues to astound, impress and inspire.  

 

If you would like more information on VIP, to get involved in the projects or to read the new volunteering handbook, please go to:

 

http://www.upsu.net/getinvolved/vip   

 

 

 

Campaign Coalition

 

 

It is no secret that I come from a campaigning background, during my time as a student I was a member of the socialist student’s society and worked with other societies on campaigns ranging from the Israel-Palestine awareness week, the Coca-cola boycott and the stand against top-up fees. Since coming into office it has been my intention to use this experience to the benefit of the Union and its members, the intention has manifested in the UPSU Campaign Coalition. There are two perennial problems with student run campaigns, the lack of resources and membership. The coalition aims to allow campaigning students to pool resources and with full Union backing, to have an official space in which to network and coordinate joint campaigns. Currently various individuals and societies have joined including Socialist students, Respect, SWSS, the Feminist Society, People & Planet, LGBT and the 101 Things society. These groups have in turn been given support by the sabbatical team and the society executive. Since its launch the coalition has been moving forward on two campaigns, for an out of hours Islamic prayer space and for a fairer education system.

 

 

http://www.upsu.net/getinvolved/societies/coalition

 

 

 

2008: Promises for the year ahead.

 

 

2008 is a year for optimism, and for good reason. Finally we are seeing the UPSU become a true reflection of the student body. There is however a lot of work still to be done. One of the greatest problems facing the students’ union, and indeed most other students’ unions is the student apathy. By this I do not mean that the blame lies with students, indeed the problem is that Unions do not understand how to engage with students. There is therefore a very pressing need for the Union to prove itself relevant to student life. In order to do this the Union needs to prove that it understands the problems that face students today, before proving that it can be a source of solution to those problems. Step one must be regular contact and communication between the Students and the Union who is supposed to represent, support and organise those very students. The Union ’s media arm is currently engaged in doing this but I believe that the Union must go out to the students, to the very grass roots, to talk to you the students about issues facing you. It is hubris for us to simply sit in the Union waiting for you to come to us, this must change. Throughout the year I will endeavour to push this ethos across everything the Union does, part of this effort will include regular UPSU travelling surgeries. This will see me, pitching up in various locations across campus in order to engage and talk to as many students as possible in order to bring the Union to you.  

 

Societies:

 

 

If 2008 is to be the year of the society then this is not the time for me to rest upon my laurels, indeed various new society led projects, facilitated by myself and the society executive will be taking place throughout the second semester.

 

 

• STARS

This is a new imitative which aims to act as a reward system by ranking societies and judging them on their contribution to the Union and the student experience. This is a project which is being planned as a joint project between the Society executive and the AU Exec. Currently there may be three categories, Bronze, Silver and Gold and societies and clubs will be awarded these standards if they, participate in Union democracy, advertise themselves in the media, hold successful events, attend STAND training. The intention is to provide a comprehensive system for society and club development. 

   

• Societies Takeover

One of the more ambitious projects for the Society exec this year includes the Society Takeover. Scheduled for February 22^nd an alliance of societies, led by Society Exec rep Jenny Leggott will be claiming their stake in the Union building by booking out the entire venue and using it to allow societies to showcase themselves. So far over 2o societies are signed up, and aim to make it the event of the year. If you want to get involved, join the facebook group or e-mail me.

 

Campaign Coalition:

 

 

Now that it has been established the campaign coalition will continue to go from strength to strength, incorporating more members, raising its profile and working together on new campaigns. The Fair Education campaign will continue to move forward and will build towards two key dates. On the second of February the coalition are organising transportation to Southampton to take part in a regional lobbying of John Denham, the minister for higher education. We will be working with our counterparts in Unions across the region to make this event happen and to allow students to voice their concerns to the highest levels of national government. I will also be working alongside Andrew Machin, our Education and representation officer to organise a debate between Vice-Chancellor John Craven and student representatives on the question of top-up fees.

 

Activist Academy

 

 

I will also be working with the coalition and student support officer Kat King to organise an Activist academy in March. We will be pooling our resources and calling upon or extensive contacts to organise a day of workshops, guest lectures and films for all students from Portsmouth and across the region. It is our aim that this day will signify the transformation of Portsmouth into a strong campaigning union that not only stands up for students but also gives students the opportunity and the tools to stand up for what they believe in. 

 

Volunteering

 

 

In 2008 VIP will continue to build upon the success of 2007, my main initiative to ensure this is the application for external funding which is successful could guarantee the continued growth of volunteering projects. There will also be a concentrated effort on my part to grow the Environmental projects and to finally launch the Gorilla volunteering project.

 

 

STAND

 

 

In semester two I expect to devolve stand and hand it over to students. Whilst I will continue to build upon the training that I currently give it is time that students should come forward to demonstrate and pass over their own skills in their own STAND sessions. I will also be aiming to launch, STAND: Give it a go sessions, regular slots handed over to willing clubs and societies so that they can showcase their activates and promote themselves to new students.

 

 

 

 

So where do we go from here? It is only through your involvement that the Union can move forward, that it can be a true Union run for students and by students. It is essential that the gap is closed between the Union and the student body that via our media, our societies, our clubs and our course reps the Union reaches out to you the students. It is imperative that you in turn reach out and work with us. For it is only by working together that we can ensure that 2008 is the year of change, that 2008 is the year of true student representation and true student empowerment. It is only by working together that we in UPSU can ensure that you, the student, becomes part of the solution to whatever problems you may have and that the UPSU has a real, a relevant and a positive impact on the lives of each of the 20,000 students studying in Portsmouth. Today I pledge to you that with your support we will make this happen. 

 

Want to know more? Don’t like what I’m up too? Have a question, comment or other mental meandering? Throw me a line at:

Ben.norman@port.ac.uk

Or give me a ring:  02392 843659