The Camosun College Student Society (CCSS) held its fall student elections from October 21 to October 23.
A total of 688 students voted in the elections. That’s down from last year’s fall election turnout of 784 students, but CCSS external executive Prince Solanki is still happy with the turnout.
“It was a successful voting this time. We got around 688 students that participated, but we are still missing some positions which we are planning to fill up,” says Solanki. “There are three positions still left… for the Lansdowne directors. I have been talking to students from both campuses and I will talk to all the board members so we can still hire some students that still want to run for these positions.”
Although some of the positions remain vacant, Solanki says he believes there will be many students that would love to step up to them. Also, for Solanki, being part of the board is deeply meaningful, as he says he is able to make a difference on campus.
“It means a lot to me to be part of [this year’s board],” he says. “We can see how to help students, how to make it safer for students, how to help new students coming to campus… We help provide lots of information that they need to know. I feel like the student positions are very important.”
Jaspreet Kaur was voted in as Lansdowne executive, David Vazquez Covarrubias as the off-campus director, and Arshdeep Singh as Lansdowne director.
The four elected Interurban directors were Gurleen Kour Nagra, Hector Campoy Peralta, Manvi Chona, and Pedro Jose Gudiel Pineda.
Solanki says the board’s goal is to help more students and fight for student rights.
“Students [should] feel safe, they [should] have all the information that they need to know,” he says. “We [have] students from many different cultures… and we are trying to let them know that they matter. We try to [help] all of the students.”
Solanki says the CCSS is committed to creating an inclusive environment where students feel supported, informed, and valued. He says that this year’s board is unique and will be able to connect with the students in a meaningful way. He also stresses the importance of having a diverse board, saying that representation from different cultures is important when connecting with students.
“This year’s board is very diverse and it is very important to be having a diverse board because the more diverse we are, the more students we are able to reach out to,” says Solanki. “If we compare it to last year, this year we have people from very diverse cultures, and that makes it easier for the student society to stay in touch with students and with certain communities as well.”
The referendum to raise the Nexus student levy by 30 cents a month did not pass. Referendums need 51 percent of students to vote yes to pass, and only 49 percent of students voted yes. It was 15 votes away from passing, which Solanki says is “heartbreaking, actually.”
“I think maybe students aren’t aware of this thing,” says Solanki. “I think Nexus is doing an amazing job letting students know about what’s happening in the campus and that is very important. I think we will also try our best to let students know more about Nexus. So, they will look into the newspaper and see how important it is.”
See camosunstudent.org for more information on the student society.