Jeremy Kilgour President Well...what a great start to semester one, not! The start of the semester has been bloody bumpy. What I thought was going to be a great start to the semester wasn’t. We were lucky to run some events during O’Week, in particular Clubs Market Day. This was an awesome opportunity for students to take interest in clubs and other organisations. If you couldn’t make Clubs Market Day but are keen to join a club, head to the LUSA website and all our clubs and contact details are there. Joining a club makes your university experience so much better and there is definitely a club for everyone! There have been students isolating since the start of uni which has made campus seem deserted. However, in the last week, there have been more students on campus making the most of face-to-face lecturers and our wonderful facilities such as the library and Grounded. LUSA has been doing a lot to support students who have been isolating, such as providing care packages and food. LUSA will continue to work with the university to support students on all matters of student life, whether it be COVID related or not. I have been in many meetings since the start of the semester giving student opinions on many issues, particularly COVID issues. I am pushing for all lecture, lab, and field trip material to be available online and pushing for an aegrotat/moderate impairment for assessments for all students as COVID impacts students in a variety of ways, whether students have covid or not. LUSA has attended several meetings academicrelated. These meetings have discussed implementing new programmes, courses, strategies, and other general items that will benefit all tauira in the future. I have also been in meetings discussing the student
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services fee. This is a fee that you pay which goes towards LUSA, Whare Hākinakina (LU Gym), the Health Centre, Te Ahwioraki, and Careers. For a full year, students pay $850 whether students use the services or not. There will be an article in the next issue of RAM magazine which discusses the fee more. I am keen to hear your feedback on this fee, whether it should be increased/decreased or spent elsewhere. While LUSA raises student concerns and gives student input, we understand that we cannot capture 3000 students’ concerns and opinions. If you have any concerns and opinions about absolutely anything, please get in contact with me or the exec. It is our job to make sure students have the best time at Lincoln University. Did you know that students pay over $137,000 for student execs salaries? A lot of money comes out of students’ pockets, so we want to make sure you are getting the most out of your money by raising any concerns or opinions about LUSA or Lincoln University. LUSA’s upcoming meetings are on the 29th of March, 3rd of May, and 24th of May, in-person and online. If you are interested in attending, please get in contact with me. We will be discussing things such as monthly profit and loss, operational reports, policies, and several other important topics. It is a great way to understand how LUSA works. I am eager to hear your thoughts and experiences about life at Lincoln University. The LUSA office is on the ground floor of Forbes building so pop in and say hello. Alternatively, you can contact me at president@lusa.org.nz or 03 423 0580.
