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Joe Elected for Second Term as Union Votes

Election fever swept campuses across the county as Cornwall College students voted to see their peers win various roles in the Students' Union (CCSU).

President Joe Vinson defended his role, the only paid position in the Union, and will now lead the student body through to August 2013.  He beat St Austell A-level student Angharad Dymond with 68.5 per cent of the vote.

Joe, 18 from St Agnes and a former A-level student at the Camborne campus, said: “It’s a real honour to be re-elected as CCSU President. Over the past year I’ve been working hard to improve the student experience here at Cornwall College, and I’m thoroughly looking forward to carrying on this work next year.
 
“From introducing a text-in service to re-launching the website, I've made sure that opinions have been heard at every level in the College. On top of that, I've ensured that higher education (HE) students get better funding, that certain campuses have more CCSU staff and I've campaigned strongly against the removal of EMA and the raising of tuition fees. In the coming months I’ll create more officer positions, develop a CCSU iPhone app, fight to bring back EMA, make CCSU more relevant to HE students and I'll campaign to get payment by card in all campus canteens.”

Joe has, this week, been elected onto the National Union of Students’ LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) Committee, following on from other smaller roles within the national union, where he will be tasked with representing all further education LGBT students, taking a lead on campaigning for equal marriage and to break down the barriers that face LGBT students across the country.

The election process began in March when students had two weeks to enter nominations for Executive Officer positions available on Union committees at each of Cornwall College’s seven campuses in Camborne, Newquay, Saltash and St Austell, as well as Duchy College in Stoke Climsland and Rosewarne, and Falmouth Marine School, as well as the coveted role of Students’ Union President.  Candidates had to be seconded by five other students and submit a manifesto outlining their aims for the next year. 

Nominees then had ten days to encourage their peers to vote for them before polling week when the candidates spent their time campaigning against each other to win their desired role.  Over 1500 students turned out to cast their vote, many of them for the first time.

Ben Rowswell, Student Liaison Manager and the election’s Returning Officer, said: “Across all campuses we aim to ensure participating in the SU election is a fun and positive experience for everyone involved as we believe students are more likely to engage with democracy outside of college as a result.”

Non-paid roles up for the vote on each campus included chairperson, vice-chairperson, entertainment co-ordinator, diversity officer, sustainability officer, treasurer, secretary, and non-portfolio officer.

The role of chairperson at Camborne went to foundation degree student Rosie Sutton, 18, from Liskeard; at Newquay to foundation degree student Alex Dawson from Truro; at Saltash to Hairdressing student Harriet Hartley, 18 from Torpoint; at St Austell to A-level student Charlotte Knight, 17 from Par; at Stoke Climsland to Animal Care student Alex Knott, 19 from Tavistock; at Rosewarne to Animal Care student Leanne Wheston, 18 from Carn Brea; and at Falmouth Marine School to foundation degree student Jack O’Byrne, 19 from Derbyshire but living in Falmouth.

Dave Linnell, Principal of Cornwall College, said: “The College works closely with the Students’ Union to ensure that the voice of the student body is heard and suggestions are acted on.  The elections are a key part of the year as they give our students a chance to experience voting, something which many of them will soon be doing for the first time in the upcoming local elections in May.  Congratulations to all those elected; I look forward to working with them over the coming year.”

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