On Monday, November 2, the Camosun College Student Society (CCSS) board of governors ratified its fall 2020 election results; voting took place from October 27 to 29.
In the election, Arshnoor Kaur was elected wellness and access director; Manvi Chona, Melaniia Frolova, Sandra Fehler, and Sophia Cecilia Plus were elected Interurban directors; Mehar Kapoor, Abhin Jose, and Mai Nguyen were elected Lansdowne directors. Simranjit Singh was elected the off-campus director.
A total of 747 voters took to the polls, which is about 8 percent of the student population. The number is more or less on par with past years: in last year’s fall elections, 877 students voted. In fall 2018, 697 students voted. (The CCSS switched to an online voting platform in 2017.)
CCSS external executive Quinn Cunningham says that while he would love to see more students voting, this is still a good turnout and the CCSS is happy with it. He adds that having new voices, faces, and lived experiences on the CCSS board is vitally important, especially when it comes to helping students through current economic circumstances.
“It is difficult times right now, and you have to look out for your mental health,” he says. “The message is probably feeling repetitive at this point because we keep hearing these things, but that’s because it’s just that important.”
Cunningham says that having CCSS representatives sit down with members of parliament to discuss financial aid is also of particular importance to students right now.
“Job opportunities during the shutdown over the summer were definitely limited for tens of thousands of students in our province,” he says. “I think any way for government, or levels of college and organizations such as the CCSS, to provide financial support in any way they can… increased spending in student grants, or bursaries… that’s an area that needs to be of focus.”
Cunningham acknowledges that many of the duties surrounding the positions that were open during the election, such as the Interurban and Lansdowne directors, have changed significantly because students aren’t on campus as much, and says that now is a really important time to a have a full board with as many voices as possible.
“To have a small group of people making decisions for a large group of students… It’s somewhat necessary to have a small group, but we try to have our board as broad as possible to represent [the] interests of a variety of Interurban students—trades, Nursing, or Business—and then at Lansdowne, there’s a variety of studies there, too.”
The CCSS also recently appointed Richard Doucet as First Nations director, a position that was previously vacant.
“Having that voice at the table is critical,” says Cunningham. “Hearing from students that we wouldn’t hear from in our own positions is necessary and that’s why we try to have a rounded out board.”