Issue Number 13 : May 19th 2008 Oli Cotterill Vice-President Finance & Activities
It has been over five years since Keele University has seen a Raising & Giving Week. Finally, after two months of determination, long working days and pure hard work, RAG Week will begin in just a few days time! Publicity is starting to appear, a website has been created and yet I still here you say “What is it all about?”. Well, here is your chance to sit back, relax and things will all come clear.
RAG Week 2008
fessionally produced a full-colour 16-page RAG MAG full of more information about the charities, timetable of events, entertainment sections and Keele quizzes. This novelty keepsake will only cost you £1 and you will find them on sale at KUSU Reception or ask any Sabbatical Officer where you can buy yours from. In addition to your RAG MAG, you will also get one free ticket into one of our top raffle prizes of the week, an ASUS EEEPC Laptop. This top-of-the-range wireless ready laptop has been donated from a
Raising and Giving Weeks are organised for the purpose of raising money for charity. We have organised this years RAG Week to run between Saturday 24th May and Saturday 31st May which is the week after the majority of exams are all over. This will be the perfect chance for you to unwind and take part in the fun-packed events that we have in store for you! So far lots of hard work and planning has gone into the events for this week by the RAG Committee comprising of myself, Sophia Baker and Pollyanna Jones. Bringing back a RAG Week to Keele will be a monumental achievement and through the hard-work and dedication of several key staff and students, RAG Week 2008 is now a reality. There are quite simply too many names to list in this article but you know who you all are and my appreciation goes out to each and every one of you.
This year we will be raising money for two fantastic charities: ARCH and VillageByVillage. ARCH is a local charity dedicated to preventing homelessness in North Staffordshire. ARCH works with over 2000 local people each year including single people and families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, and women and children who are affected by domestic violence. VillageByVillage is an international development charity dedicated to fighting poverty by empowering communities in rural villages in Ghana. We work fully in partnership with people living in poverty in Ghana to provide schooling, eye care, trade links and sanitation.
To commemorate this event we have pro-
local computer company especially for RAG Week.
The second of our top prize raffle draws is for a gap-month in Ghana volunteering directly for VillageByVillage where you can make a meaningful contribution in the fight against poverty in Africa. You will encounter and join the culture, rather than just observe it. The Gap Month project will provide you with the opportunity to teach English, coach sports and develop rural Ghanaian villages, first hand! All this could be yours if you win the raffle. Raffle tickets are only £5 and everything is paid for you except your flight; which will work out very cheap if you book in advance.
In Concourse Issue 13 Whoʼs Visiting the University? > Page 4
The week starts with Jailbreak Weekend where your task is to simply get as far away from Keele as possible without spending any personal funds. This will be a fantastic event which will test your powers of persuasion and sharpen up those ‘blagging’ skills.
Monday 26th May promises to be crammed with fun-packed carnival stalls on the Concourse. We will be taking you back to the days of school fetes with stalls such as the Coconut Shy, Hook-a-Duck, Tombola, Play Your Cards Right and much much more. You will get the chance to bounce away in the bouncy castle and battle your friends on the inflatable Gladiator Duel! A BBQ will be simmering away all day in addition to an ice cream truck and also a stall selling the world-renowned Krispey Kreme Donoughts! Entertainment will be provided all day in the form of the return of the KUBE 24Hour Broadcast.
Tuesday 27th May showcases a fun day over at the Athletic Union. We will be giving you the chance to give your friends a right good soaking in the Stocks, you will also be able to show us your skills on the inflatable Human Table Football! Why not compete against your friends on the inflatable Bungee Run? You may even like to take part in the Students V’s Police Rounders match. Societies and Clubs will also be playing their part teaching you how to dance, play poker, play table football and much much more. The night-time event is not to be missed as we are organising a sponsored sleepout from 10pm, do you have what it takes to sleep rough for the night? If you are, why not register for the sponsored sleepout. Wednesday 28th May introduces the Summer Party and don’t think us Sabbatical Officers are getting off lightly! Soak-a-Sabb
The Summer of Love > Pages 6&7
kusu.net/concourse
buckets will be going around all week with each of our faces on and the Sabb that collects the most money in their bucket throughout the week will be put in the stocks for a long period of time and anybody who is around will be given free ammunition to throw at them!
Thursday 29th May will include a 6-a-side football match from 11am over on the Astroturf. The evening will be a little less energetic with a quiz hosted by myself in the Ballroom from 9pm; featuring special Keele rounds with the odd game of pass-the-parcel and Play Your Cards Right.
Friday 30th May brings KUSU’s very own version of popular gameshows of “The Weakest KUSU Link” and “KUSU Family Fortunes”. We will also be having giant board games and the odd game of Bingo for all you bingo-lovers out there!
The final day of RAG Week will be Saturday 31st May and Keele will get to see something spectacular, a one-in-a-lifetime experience of me, Oli Cotterill, doing a sponsored silence for the duration of Pigfest! I already have had a lot of people sponsoring me obscene amounts because they are so sure that I will not be able to keep it up, so keep the sponsorship money coming!
There are some amazing prizes to be won at this years RAG Week. These prizes have been donated by local and national companies, including tickets to Water World, meal vouchers, pottery, theatre tickets, Sainsbury’s vouchers, gig tickets, bottles of wine, Stoke FC signed football and much more.
Finally, RAG Week 08 will be a fantastic event for Keele and may I use this opportunity to show my appreciation once again for the help and support of University staff, KUSU staff and the students that have helped to make this event a success. You can view more details if you log onto the RAG Week website at www.rag.virtualkeele.com or join the Facebook event, Keele University RAG Week 2008. I hope you all enjoy the events we have put on for you and find it a nice way to unwind after the pressures of exams are over. I hope you have a fantastic and safe end to your academic year.
Athletics Union > Page 11
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19th May 2008
A Ye ar i n Offic e.. N a de em P at el - KU SU Pre si d en t A Ye ar in the Li f e : C h as in g Pa mbi ’s Rai nb ow s Na de em’s ye ar a s th e ca ptai n of th e KUSU sh ip h as be en th e e pitome of suc cess an d en joym en t. Thi s e f fe r vesce nt you ng ma n h as ch amp ione d s tu de nt r igh ts acr o s s th e Ke el e gal a x y an d r epr e se n ted a l l Ke el e s tud en ts o n a n atio n al l e vel . Be in g Pr e si de nt r eq ui re s b ri co l age an d d ete rmi n at i o n an d i s w it h o ut a d o ubt a c ha l le n ge t h at o n ly f e w co u l d co mmi t t o. Naz ha s d ea l t w it h var io u s i s s ue s o f gr avit a s an d ha s n o t be en t oo a rr o ga nt to ge t in vo l ved wi th th e l es s gl am o ro u s a ctivi tie s. Th ro u gh do in g th is h is tr ue pul c hr itu de ha s bec o me a ppa re n t. Th e P re s ide nt c o mm an ds a ro l e e qui val e nt t o a p o t en t at e , an d t hu s co m man ds hi s o w n ba n d o f myr mid o n. H igh l ig ht s o f h is y ear s ha ve in cl u ded K e el e g et t in g o n to t h e Mo n o po l y bo ar d, wi nn in g t h e U.K ’ s f avo u ri t e Un ive rs it y a nd w in n in g co mpe n s at io n fo r th o s e w ro n ge d in t he Ho l l ycr o ss s h ow e rs in cid en t . A s he ne ar s th e e nd of h is ten ur e h e f igh ts hi s n atu r al in cl in atio n to r etu rn to b ei ng a sl u ga bed , al te rn ati vel y co mm ittin g to en s ur in g tha t h is s u cce s so r h as an e qu al l y p ro du ct i ve pr es id en t ia l co t er mi no u s . Tr u ly ma gn an imo u s as eve r he w an t s t o t ha nk eve r yo ne h o w ha s s u ppo r t ed h im t h is ye ar ( es pe ci al l y t he D uke , t h e C h is el a nd Li t t l e O l i’) an d w o ul d l ike t o wi sh Mi s s Omr an a ll t h e bes t i n ch a si ng Naz ’s Rai nb o ws .
M at t he w Ale xa n d er - V ic e- Pre si d en t Democ ra cy & C ommun i ca t i on s Th e ex pe r ien ce o f w at c hi ng my f ri en ds s i t e xa ms a nd s u bmi t t h eir dis s e rt at i o ns o ver t h e l as t f e w we e ks h as b ee n pe cu li ar . O nl y a yea r ago I w as slavi ng a wa y in the libr ar y for m y deg re e a nd now I’m si ttin g be hi nd a de sk pu ttin g the last issu e of Con cour se toge the r w h ist w atch in g th e b ui l der s co n s tru ct T he O utb ack br ick by br ick. Th e l as t 1 2 mo n th s as V ice Pr e s ide nt as b ee n su ch a un iq ue e x per ie n ce an d s o me thi ng th at I’ll ne ve r exp er ience a gai n. Befor e I star t r anting a bou t all the gre at time s this yea r I’d fir stly lik e to tak e a step ba ck and re -thank all th os e pe o pl e wh o h ave s up po rte d m e a nd en ab l ed me to g et th is j ob . W ith ou t al l o f yo u I w o ul d no t h ave l ea rn t s o mu ch thi s yea r a nd be pr ivile ge d en ough to w ork f or th e Stu de nts’ Uni on. I’d a lso lik e to th an k those p eople w h o h av e supp orte d me th is yea r an d ma de me fe el like th e ch an ge s I’ve wa nte d to b ri ng ha ve b ee n w orth w hi le. I’ve h ad s o me g re at e x pe ri en ce s th is ye ar r an gin g f ro m atte nd in g NU S co n f er en ce s , b ei ng in vo l ve d w ith camp aig ns an d se ttin g up w or ks h o ps f o r s t u de nt s . I f ou n d t h e e xp er ie nc e o f s pe nd in g an o t he r yea r a t K e el e qu it e dau n ti ng in it ia l l y, e sp ec ial l y a s m o st o f s o cia l cir cl e h ad mo ve d o n to f o l l o w th ei r o wn c ar ee rs , bu t a s ti me h as g o ne b y I ’ve re al i se d tha t b ei ng a Sa bb h as b ee n go o d f un . I ’ve al w ays ha d a gr eat time w o rki ng cl o s el y w it h t h e s tu de n t s an d I ’ ve e n jo yed w o rki ng in t h e U ni on a l l yea r, ev en w he n t he re h ave be en t h e bad da ys ( o r w e eks ! ) I h ave alw ays w an te d to come bac k in to wor k th e n ext d ay. I’d l ike t o t h an k al l o f t h e s t u de nt j o ur na l is t s o ut t he re w h o ha ve co nt r ib ut e d t o t h e n ew s pap er a nd mad e my j ob t h at l i t t le b it mo r e en jo ya bl e! Th er e h ave b ee n s o me f an t as t i c a rt i cl es t h is y ear as we l l a s a h ug e in cr ea se in t h e n um ber l an din g o n my d es k, w h ich h as en a bl ed t h e n ew s pa pe r t o o cc as io n al l y ex pa nd to a w h o ppi ng 1 6 pa ger ! D e sp ite the ho r re n do us n um ber o f ho u rs an d l a te n igh ts tha t I h ave put i n to th e pa pe r, an d th e al l to o f re qu en t fr u str ati o n o f ch as in g Ja ck an d O l i u p w it h t he ir a rt ic l es , I h ave act u al l y r e al l y en jo ye d w o r kin g w it h C on co u rs e . I h op e th a t t he ch an ge s t ha t I h av e b ro u gh t abo u t t h is yea r ha ve en co ur ag ed mo re o f yo u to pi ck up the p aper and get involved ! I w an t to th an k Naz, Oli an d Ja ck for a gr ea t year in office . We r eally a re 4 comple tely d iffer en t pe ople a nd I fe el like th ey h ave tau gh t me a lot. I’d also like to th an k th e s taf f at KUS U fo r th e l o n g h ou r s th e y pu t in to m ake thi s Uni o n w o r k f or yo u . I w is h n ex t ye ar s Sab bati cal s an d m emb er s o f Uni o n C o mmitte e th e v er y be s t in t h eir r o l es an d I ’d a ls o l ik e t h e s t u de nt s o f K ee l e t o s up po r t t he m a s m uch as p o ss i bl e bec au se t h e l o n g ho u rs t h at t h e y pu t i n des e rv e yo u r r es p ect . F in al l y I’ l l w ra p u p my l a s t ar t icl e by s ayi ng t ha t my t im e a t Ke el e Un ive rs i t y ha s bee n mo re t h an I co u ld h ave eve r h o pe d f o r . I’ ve me t s om e i ncr e dib l e p eo pl e he r e a nd I’m l u cky e n ou gh to cal l th em fr ie n ds .
Jac k ‘Th e Duk e’ Cor ri ga n - V ic e- Pre si d en t E d uc at i on & W elf a re The E nd of a n E ra Th e Du ke ’ s re ig n i s re ac hi ng it s gl o a min g p er io d an d d es pi t e th e ef f o rt s o f v ar io us q ui dn un cs h e wi ll no t b e l e avi ng w it h ou t s ayi ng go o db ye t o t h e m as s es . Ag ain de mo n s tr at i ng hi s id io s ync ra t ic a nyt h in g b ut p us il l a ni mo us n at u re , h e co mmit t e d t o w r it in g t h is o n e f in al d ed ica t io n t o h is a ccr ue d p lenipote nti ar y. To avoid enga ging i n a a dve ntu re of ple ona sm, the Philomath sim ply wants to de monstra te his g ra titud e to e ve ryone w h o h as b ee n in h is p re s en ce t h es e pa s t 3 65 days . Wi t ho u t de s ce nd in g i nt o th e u se o f b il l in gs ga t e t o de s cri be h o w t ru l y e nj o yabl e h is t en ur e h as be en , h e ju st w an ts to l eav e ha ppy th at he emb ar ked o n s uch a cha l l en ge a nd w is h h is s uc ces s o r Mr Mas o n th e be s t o f l uck f o r h is ten ur e a s Du ke of Ke ele Uni ver sity.
Ol iv e r Cot te ri ll - V ic e- Pre s id e nt F i n an c e & Ac ti v i ti es We l l , wh at ca n I s ay, i t is al mo s t the en d o f my ye ar i n o f fi ce an d I h ave h ad s o me of th e mo s t am az in g e x per ie n ces a nd go t so m uch o ut o f the pr evi o us 5 2 w e eks . The ro l l e r co as t er r ide t h at is b ein g a S abba t ical Of f icer s t ar t ed l as t J ul y w h en I s at on th e t o p fl o o r o f KUS U i n my tin y l ittl e o f f ice f o r th e f ir st time , s pi nn in g ar o un d o n the c ha ir th in kin g “ t h is i s go in g to be ab s ol u t el y ama z in g” ! Pio n ee r in g s u cces s f u l eve n t s s uch a s Fr e sh e r Gu id es , So cie ty Sig n- Up D a ys, Th ur s day Nigh t Q uiz z e s , Ta l en t Sh ow a nd a RA G W ee k al l ma ke th is jo b s o s ati sf yi ng a n d I ca n qu ite ho n es tl y s ay I h av e w o rke d a s h ar d a s I po s s ib l y ca n to be th e be s t Sab ba tica l O ff ic er th at I c an be . I mu st be a ppr o ach in g s om e ki nd o f re co r d ve r gin g o n be in g at t h is l o ve l y Un ive rs i ty f or s i x yea rs . I w il l be mo vin g o n s o o n but t h is f o r me h as be en t he bes t cl i max t o my Un ive rs i t y li f e. Th e re ha ve b ee n some hig h a nd low points du ring this ye ar b ut I hope I ha ve b ee n a ppr oachab le, he lpful, re lia ble an d so met imes or ganis ed ( ok, maybe n ot !) . Jokin g a side , I w ou ld l ike to sa y a huge t h an k yo u t o t h e Uni ver s it y s t af f , KU SU s t af f an d a l l of t h e s t u de nt s t h at h ave be en t h er e f o r me o ver t he pa s t yea r; thr ough the good ti mes a nd the bad . You r help , sup por t a nd ad vice is most ap pr eci ated and I hope I have live d u p to al l o f you r ex pe ctati o ns . Bes t Wi s he s an d tak e it e as y!
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Concourse
Win a trip to Alton Towers!
It’s that time of year again when all the exams are finished and you’re left with nothing to do but relax with friends until your contact on accommodation runs out. Luckily there’s plenty to get up to over the next few weeks before you are forced to leave Keele and we’re going to give you a head start with this competition to win 2 tickets to Alton Towers! To enter just answer this simple question;
KUSU Survey Winners!
Over the last few weeks KUSU has been enitiating a research project to better understand the students of Keele. Prizes were awarded to those who took part in the project.
Who are the KUSU Sabbatical Officers for next year (2008/9)?
a) Janet Finch, Simon Morris, Jenny Tucker & Ray Cocks b) Naz Patel, Matt Alexander, Jack ‘The Duke’ Corrigan & Oli Cotterill c) Talah Omran, Rich Hill, Adam Mason & Dauda Bappa
The first prize winner is Amanda Baxendale, a part-time postgraduate who has won £250!
Send your answers to Matt Alexander at vp.comms@kusu.keele.ac.uk before 5pm on Friday the 23rd of May. The winner will be notified by e-mail. Good Luck!
Alton Towers have been working on new rides and attractions for thrill-seekers, ahead of it’s re-opening this year. Escape for a day and be one of the first to experience their fantastic new rides and attractions. Make sure to explore Alton Towers Resort’s latest attractions:
* Mutiny Bay: This fantastic new pirate- themed land (which cost a cool £6million to develop,) contains battle galleons and an interactive water attraction set to challenge all ages. Aboard the eight galleons, wannabe swashbucklers will take part in a fun-filled splash battle of their lives with no one, riders and spectators alike, safe from a spectacular soaking! * Cariba Creek Waterpark: Soak up some water fun at the Caribbean themed water park where you can be blasted up and away by the fantastic Masterblaster wet rollercoaster or explore the Wacky Waterworks and Treehouse before relaxing in the Lazy River! Check out the thrilling watercoasters and flumes!
* Extraordinary Golf: Extraordinary Golf consists of two 9-hole adventure golf courses themed around the park’s iconic rides and attractions. Players of all ages can shoot a birdie into air, putt their way into Oblivion, face the hazards of the Flume, and swing over Nemesis and around the roundabouts of the Peugeot 207 Driving School. And if that’s not enough the Alton Towers Resort is filled with everything from a relaxing Spa to unlimited rollercoaster thrills for adrenaline junkies! Afraid of having to wait in queues? Beat the rush! Come in May June or September, whilst the kids are at school, and enjoy the park with practically no queues! Tickets are available now online at www.altontowers.com, by phone 0871 222 9901, or you can buy them from KUSU reception priced at £18
Rubbing along together ‘Rights freedoms and culturalism’
Jason Davies
Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty (the National Council for Civil Liberties) gave a public lecture on Monday 12th May to a packed audience in the Westminster theatre at Keele. She spoke in her capacity as Director of liberty on how groups in society can rub along together through a human rights framework. She began by outlining her beliefs that a
society must be open and tolerant, and how there is currently confusion over the limits of tolerance. She then guided the audience with real life case examples through the Human Rights Act (HRA) 1998 and how it protects people and their civil liberties. An emphasis was placed on how limitations on human rights could affect minority groups who may face more persecution than others. This emphasises that there is an importance to have an even hand when infringing rights on all groups in society. In addition, Shami touched on a possible future clash of global religion, or civilisations and how human rights can guide us through. On the topic of freedom of speech we learnt of her title as ‘the most dangerous woman in the world’ because of her defence on human rights. However more interesting on this as-
Concourse Editor : Matt Alexander Concourse Issue 13 contained articles from; Oli Cotterill, Jason Davies, Martyn Harris, Matthew Doore, Kim Topham, Becky Taylor, Jamie Barker, Rebecca Smith, Todd Specht, Stephen Johns, Katie Ryan,
The second prize winner is David Webb (a first year Chemistry & Astrophysics student), who wins £100 presented by Vice-President Finance & Activities (pictured).
pect were her views on the right to offend. As her speech came to a close I remained a little silent after hearing such a public and optimistic defence of human rights and the HRA 1998 in Britain. After all the demonisation of human rights it was a breath of fresh air to hear such a defence of them. Questions after the speech were lively and topical, firstly on the chastisement of children and the limits the law imposes. Secondly, on the right to offend interesting analogies were made to John Stuart Mills theory on how the law should impose limits where personal harm may be caused. Thirdly definitions of religion and ethnicity were discussed and analogies were drawn to the definition of scientology as a cult or religion. Fourthly the right to offend was questioned further in regard to a Danish film insulting Islam. And how Shami believes that Western values of human rights are in fact global rights which are just as relevant to democracies in Europe as in India and Zimbabwe. The last question related to forced marriage which included an interesting civil order idea to help women in forced marriages. To conclude although the speech illustrated that human rights may not always offer a magic bullet to societies problems however they do provide a framework to work within. Therefore I will finish with a West Wing quote that was used by Shami, ‘this (Human Rights) was not designed to make us comfortable, this was designed to keep us free.’
Want to write for Concourse? You can submit articles and adverts to Matt Alexander in the VP Comms office on the top floor of the Students’ Union, or at; vp.comms@kusu.keele.ac.uk
The next edition of Concourse will be available in September 2008.
Please submitt articles to Rich Hill, next years editor of Concourse
Concourse
Omnipotence replaced by Incompetence
Martyn Harris Speaker of the House
The last issue of Concourse documented the request made by the Leader of the House of Lords and Lord President of the Privy Council in her position as Visitor to Keele University requested that the University halt the redundancy plans for staff in the School of Economic and Management Studies (SEMS) and the Centre for Health Planning and Management.
This request was made following a complaint made to the Visitor, who subsequently accepted a petition from by an academic member of staff at Keele about the manner in which the University by-passed its own rules and regulations to get the job cuts agreed.
The Visitor’s request ‘to take no further steps towards implementing the proposals’ was made on Tuesday 29th April 2008, the day after it was announced there would be an assessment boycott in SEMS (which began on 6th May). Whilst waiting for a response from the University to this request, the University continued proceedings as normal until Thursday 8th May before announcing that the procedures to begin implementing the restructuring be indefinitely postponed. It is unclear how long this postponement of the procedures will last, as it is pending the outcome of the in-
19th May 2008
vestigation by the Visitor. It is possible that this may last over the summer vacation, depending on how long the investigation takes, which will cause further damage to University, and ultimately the students.
In an email sent by the Vice-Chancellor Janet Finch to all campus staff, it was stated that ‘our students deserve to be treated properly and to be allowed their studies without interference’. Whilst this is true, it is unclear how the University is calming student fears. Students still remain unsure who will be teaching their degree programme next year, due to University plans, regardless of any action taken by the UCU. Of greater concern to the student body is the statement made in the very same email, that students ‘have no role in the current dispute’. Yet students have been asked by the University to attend numerous consultation meetings and focus groups since December, when the plans for the restructuring were initially announced, and KUSU voted in favour of unconditional support to the UCU following an Emergency General Meeting in January. In a meeting organised by KUSU on 21st January, it was stated by the then UCU president that the UCU had hoped to avoid any action damaging students, and this is something that has been maintained throughout the dispute. Whilst no promises were made, it has continuously been made clear on several occasions that it was never the intention to harm students, and this is clear with the assessment boycott not including PhD and MPhil vivas, writing references for students, or giving revision lectures/advising students on their past assessment results and how to improve their work, as long as such advice is not expressed in terms of predicted marks or grades.
Yet again it would seem as if Keele students are in limbo, caught between the University’s plans to restructure and close courses, and the fight for lecturers to keep their jobs. When will this end? Nobody knows; especially Professor Finch.
19th May 2008
Quality Assured: Prizes Won
Jack Corrigan Vice- President Education & Welfare
The week starting the 12th May 2008, Keele University completed its series of audit visits from the quality assurance audit team. The process is undertaken every 4 years to review the standards of the learning and teaching provisions being delivered here at Keele.
As a part of this process Keele University Students’ Union is asked create a student written submission, which is a commentary on the aforementioned provisions from student perspective. This means that you had the opportunity to review how good the teaching you are receiving is.
How KUSU undertook this process was create a questionnaire which could be filled in both in hard copy and electronically on kusu.net and advertised the fact that students could win a one of the £1000 worth of prizes which were up for grabs. The questionnaire was rather a large task to complete, but has to be worth while when it is considered that it will directly influence the direction and decisions of this University for years to come. The response rate from you the students was rather disappointing. There was the possibility of 3,000 students to complete a hard copy questionnaire and an infinite amount electronically. Yet only around 140 people completed the process. If you where not one of the people who did complete the questionnaire, ask yourself why?
This was your opportunity to directly influence your education and comment on the shortcomings and comment on the exemplary aspects of education at Keele University, Your University. To often people in our generation complain and criticise, but do little to change, and the student written submission is another great example of this. The hypocrisy of peo-
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ple who complain but are unwilling to try and insight change is simply staggering. To put it into perspective and to maybe allow you to think that your priorities might be miss guided consider this, 4x more people cared to vote on who are the ‘legends of Keele’ rather than cared to comment on the education for which they pay £3000 a year for.
The fact that it was a simple way to enter a £1000 prize draw only exacerbates the shock held by the sabbatical team that the turn-out was so low. This was once again a great example of terrific opportunity provided by KUSU for you, which are poorly taken up. This is a plea to all 08-09 Keele students who find themselves complaining about the University or the Union. Get involved with the Union, its run by elected students, for you, and if you fail to get involved, you have no right to complain about anything, including the price of beer or the opening hours of the library.
While some many students decided not to get involved in the students written submission created here at KUSU, some did, and thus where automatically entered into £1000 prize draw. The prizes varied from an i-pod shuffle to £50 waterstones vouchers. The following winners have all won a prize for committing 15 minutes of their lives to fill in the questionnaire. If you filled in the QAA questionnaire and your name appears below, there is a good chance you have won a prize. The winners are Craig, Miller, Delano, Reed, Wilkinson, Weaver, Bullock, Bowling, Grisdale, Potts and Levitt. To claim your prize come up to the sabbatical corridor with your Keele card and collect it from either Naz or Jack.
Dirty, Filthy Money:
Kim Topham
For students the question of money is often met with the shrug of a shoulder and a cringing “I don’t have any”. Even the word student itself is now heavily chained to a taboo of financial hardships and struggles. The cost of simply paying for our degrees means by the time we graduate many of us will be faced with a wall of debt reaching costs in thousands that not even our slaving away of minimum wage summer jobs will ever come close to covering. However debt is not an issue that can be forgotten until after we receive our scrolls and graduating certificates because for many the cost of day to day living at university places a constant strain
In Praise of Uzupis …and Frank Zappa?
Matthew A. Doore
Frank Zappa. A multi-talented musician from the USA, most renowned for the sixty or so albums he released as part of the band, The Mothers of Intervention, which included among others, such inspired names as ‘Jazz from Hell’ and ‘We’re Only in It for the Money’. Zappa died in 1993 after a life time active in nearly all areas of the music industry, he never visited Lithuania, he never knew Uzupis.
In 1997 Uzupis was declared a Republic with its own currency, flag, president and army that approximately numbers 12 men. Independence started with the erecting of a monument at the heart of Vilnius (Lithuania’s capital), which was to fill the vacuum left once the old statues and ideals of Lenin and Marx had been thrown out with the collapse of Soviet Russia. Saulius Paukstys, a civil servant and resident of the Uzupis district, suggested an appropriate symbol to the new and free future of Lithuania was Frank Zappa. When asked by those in power, what Zappa had to do with Lithuania and its new future, Paukstys replied, “Nothing really”.
The monument to Zappa was eventually founded, and with this a rising passion for independence within the Uzupis district of Vilnius. Culminating only a short time after Zappa’s appearance, with the announcement of a new republic, one that parallels that of, say, the Vatican City in Rome, but which has a unique character and numerous eccentricities that seem extraordinary in today’s day and age, where concise reasons and purpose are paramount. It is now a republic of galleries, art workshops and popular cafes that bare some likeness to Paris’s Monmartre district, which on the surface makes the area seem almost prosaic, but when the visitor takes the time to study its constitution a more playful side arises. It is presented in three languages and affixed to a wall within the republic; it proudly states small nuggets of wisdom, such as “Everyone has the right to be idle”, “Everyone has the right to have no rights”, “Everyone has a right to die, but this is not an obligation” and “Everyone has the right to live by the River Vilnel?, while the River Vilnel? has the right to flow by everyone”.
The unique and endearing style of the republic does not end there, with membership to the Zappa fan club at an all-time high, interest in the musician has spawned a weekly radio broadcast of his philosophy and music, as well as the ‘Zappa Love Letter Club’, Uzupis’s answer to the lonely hearts column. Furthermore, it is alleged that there are a series of banners adorning the front of some of Uzupis’s larger buildings, which seem to mockingly label them with the well-known but intentionally misspelt international brands of ‘Sheraton’, ‘Chanel’ and ‘Harods’. The Uzupians even once adorned there central square with an entirely ambiguous and iconoclastic column, crowned by an enormous egg, which could perhaps be in homage towards Salvador Dali and his iconic egg-topped museum in Figueres, near Barcelona.
The Republic of Uzupis has much more to offer, if one is willing to search long enough and regardless of its clear diversion from logic or clear purpose, it does symbolise the extraordinary things a people are capable of in the face of what is considered to be the ‘common’, ‘pragmatic’, ‘usual’ or even ‘ best’ way. It even reflects the days when Keele had the arrogance to become a republic, even if it was short-lived and not exactly practical. Concise reasons and purpose are paramount behind any action, but so is a sense of humour.
upon their bank balances. As a result having a job at university which are often your typical retail positions, bar jobs and employment in the hospitality trade are an unavoidable necessity for many students. However a recent survey conducted by Cambridge’s student newspaper, Varsity, showed a different form of employment that many students are engaging in, in order to make quick money, notable the role of prostitution and other involvements within the sex trade. The student ‘Call Girl’ who was interviewed by Varsity admitted that she slept with between 40-50 clients over the period of 2 months, sometimes 7 men in a single evening and was charging £50 an hour (which was her share of the £120 that was charged by the agency). In the interview she remarked:
“at the time i did have a day job at the same time but it just wasn’t paying enough, i met other students who did it too. Once you’ve done it, it is tempting. If you need quick and easy money it’s there. I would sleep with between one and seven clients a night and most being at Christmas when it was really busy. If it was a quiet night and someone wanted a deal I would offer it for cheaper than £50, or if someone
only wanted half an hour. I probably earned between £5-6k in the time I was at the agency, about £1000 per week cash in hand. I would sometime get tips, the most being £150. The money went on going out, partying, clothes etc it went on absolutely nothing. It was just a day to day lifestyle thing but very extravagant for a student”. She then went onto say “The clients were really varied. The youngest I saw was 18, the eldest 80 (although we couldn’t really do a great deal). Some houses would be really amazing, others weren’t that well-off. Some had wives who were away, some had just got divorced, and there were stag dos”.
The fact that students have to turn these degrading methods of money making whereby they are forced to exploit not only their bodies but also their own self respect merely to cover the cost of their university fees is an obvious indication of how serious the problems are that students are facing concerning debts. If they are willing to act this way to obtain money just to fund their day to day living then more needs to be done to aid students financially.
19th Manic Monday 20th ---------------21st Rewind 22nd Quiz night 23rd ‘Ave It Caribbean Beach Party feat. Thabani 24th Snatch 25th Society Awards 26th Manic Monday 27th UGM 28th Woodstoke Summer Of Love Party 29th Quiz 30th Reloaded 31st ---------------1st Open Session
End of the 2007/8 Entertainments
Lizzie Leeson Entertainments Officer
I cant believe it…finally summer is here! This year has gone so quickly and these last couple of weeks at Keele are always set to be the best. The hip around the summer party and graduation ball is building up, with lineups announced and tickets now on sale it’s set to be the best night Keele has seen for a while. It’s not just a summer party this year… ohh no; its Keele’s own mini festival and we have so much more to offer you this year; a hog roost and veggie bbq, tattoo artists, inflatable fun and not forgetting the free funfair in the car park, the summer party is for everyone! I wouldn’t want anyone to miss out on the biggest night at the union so get yourself down to the union box office, hand over £25 and get yourself a tickets of love!! Other goings on in the world of KUSU entertainments including lots of post exam partying!! With your regular nights stilling running this semester there is just enough time to get your fix of the union before we leave for summer! Over the past year ive had such an awesome time as ents officer, and I just want to thank a couple of people who have been real stars. Jayne has really turned ents around this year and all you lucky people still around next year, Jayne has a lot more to offer you so watch this space. I also want to thank everyone that’s helped out with ents this year including Amy, Liv, Dave and Katy. I really urge all of you to get involved next year, it such good experience and you really do get to have a say in how your union is run!! That’s all for now! Keep enjoying the sun people and remember the ents forum is held every Monday at 1pm in K2, come along find out how to help out at the summer party!
Rob & Jayne Entertainments Deptartment Staff
Hi all, Yet another year at Keele is coming to an end; the sun is shining, exams are nearly over and the partying has started! It’s been a fantastic year for us and hopefully you too! It’s always difficult to see part of the Keele family leaving the bubble but exciting to imagine where you’ll end up and what you’ll do.
Those of you who will be leaving this year will never forget your time here and we’re proud to have been a small part of your experience of Keele…..we are going to miss you. For those who will be back next year, we can promise a great start to the term with some fantastic events already lined up. Don’t forget to keep in touch with us over the break via Facebook and the website to keep
up-to-date with all the latest info and access to tickets. We don’t want you to miss out on anything!
We’d like to give a massive ‘thank you’ to all the people who have helped us out this year; those who have worked, given time, given advice, feedback and particular to everyone who has supported the Union’s services by coming to events. Every last penny made by the Union ensures that we can continue providing our students with the services they deserve and carry on supporting our members for generations to come. We truly appreciate it!
So, kick back, relax, enjoy your last few weeks of freedom before you go back home and we hope to see you for the Woodstoke Summer Of Love Party, Graduation Ball, and maybe even the O2 party again if you lot keep voting!! Take Care
Battle of the Bands Finale
Katie Ryan
So after weeks of tense Battle of the Bands’ heats, the night finally arrived whereby the ultimate winners would be crowned. The crowd tonight was impressive; K2’s dance floor was filled to the brim with music-lovers and supporters who all turned out to watch the bands. In the running were: Frankie and the Eyes, The Smoking Kills, Cats in the Alley and The Seconds. Each band offered a completely innovative style of music which made it a challenge to pick a favourite. Nonetheless, the judges thought long and hard, with a vote from the audience too, and finally Cats in the Alley were crowned the winners of Keele’s Battle of the Bands 2008! Here is what I originally had to say about them…
‘Cats in the Alley are a conservative suit-wearing, 3-piece band from Stoke-onTrent who really surprised their audience tonight with their electro-pop dynamic. Influenced by Daft Punk, Har Mar Superstar and Jurassic five, Cats in the Alley musically fall between Hot Chip and Bloc Party with an element of Dance’.
By the time Cats in the Alley returned to the final, they had really tightened up their set with a 100% professional sound and a sharper, more charismatic performance. Backstage, after they had just found out they had won, I asked the band how they were feeling. Naturally words like ‘very pleased’, ‘great’ and ‘excellent’ were at the top of their list. One of the guys told me that he was smoking a cigarette and was blissfully ignorant of their success, until he bumped into the rest of the band who enlightened him. The band was immediately given a bottle of tequila, as a novelty prize, which they insisted that everybody who was involved in Battle of the Bands should have a gulp of. Equally, the runners-up received crates of beer. Cats in the Alley are now looking forward to performing at the PigFest, a private gig at Keele and supporting a band at the Sugarmill in Hanley, which were the main prizes. Therefore, congratulations to Cats in the Alley and of course to the runners-up. To round off the night’s celebrations, last year’s winners Radio Free Europe took to the stage and belted out some old and new songs, which went down a storm. To absolutely everybody involved, especially Dave Little who made it all happen, I would like to thank and applaud the bands and the students because this year they truly did justice to Battle of the Bands at Keele University.
Volunteers celebrate in style‌
Becky Taylor VE Coordinator
On Thursday 15th May 2008, VE @ Keele held its annual volunteer celebration evening to say thank you to volunteers and placement providers. The evening got underway with a champagne reception, followed by a buffet and speeches from Jack Corrigan, KUSU VP Education & Welfare officer, Pro-vice chancellor Ray Cocks, and representatives from key VE @ Keele placement providers.
The following Volunteers who completed VE @ Keele Awards in 2007/2008 were formally presented with their certificates by Pro-Vice chancellor, Ray Cocks:
Alexander Allen - Gold Award Mary Breeze - Bronze Rebekah Clark - Bronze, Silver Jason Davies - Silver Olivia Foster - Bronze, Silver, Gold Leanne Green - Bronze, Silver, Gold Chanelle Hardware - Bronze Colette Horsburgh - Bronze Mertle John - Bronze, Silver, Platinum Natasha Kinsmore - Silver Debra Murphy - Bronze, Silver, Gold Gemma Newbold - Bronze Emily Quiggin - Bronze Rebecca Shelby - Bronze
Presentations were also made to the following students who gave up their time to a volunteering placement in 2007/2008, but did not undertake a VE @ Keele award:
Fiona Brown (staff volunteer), Makinder Chahal, James Courthold, Gemma Ferguson, Xuwen Guan, Ann Kilanska, Michael Lawton, Sarah Lloyd, Zichu Liu, Debra Murphy, Louise Thompson
Student Volunteering England Gold Awards 2007/2008 went to:
Natasha Kinsmore – for individual volunteering achievement
Student Volunteering Group - for a group volunteering achievement
Best Placement provider of the Year Award 2007/2008 went to:
Oxfam shop, Newcastle-Under-Lyme Barbara Plant, shop Manager collected the award on behalf of Oxfam
For more information on any of these awards, please contact Becky Taylor at VE @ Keele Tel: 01782 583626 Email: volunteering@kusu.keele.ac.uk
Well done to all our volunteers and placement providers for taking part in VE @ Keele in 2007/2008
Concourse
19th May 2008
19th May 2008
Concourse Gig Reviews
Jamie Barker Music Editor
Late Of The Pier – Space And The Woods/Focker While they may occupy a similar genre to the Klaxons and Hadouken’s of the world, there’s something significantly darker about the mindset of Late Of The Pier. While Hadouken are singing of gatecrashing parties LOTP are opening ‘Space and The Woods’ with the revelation that “suicide is in my blood”. This darkness reverberates throughout the track and comes across like the most sinister dance party ever. ‘Focker’ is slightly less haunting. The first 25 seconds sound like the introduction to a twisted latenight sci-fi marathon, while the rest of the track bounds along like The Strokes and Muse having an all-night Nintendo face-off. There’s something special here, so it looks like a dark, beat-fuelled summer this year.
I Was A Cub Scout – Victoria Hall, Stoke Supporting a band like The Wombats usually calls for a similarly straight-forward, inoffensive, catchy pop rock act, but I Was A Cub Scout provide nothing of the sort. Their chunky sound-clash is heavier live than on record, but loses some of its intricacy as a result. The muddy sound of the visually striking but audially lacking venue means the brass section struggles to make any real impact on the overall mix of sounds. Songs like
recent single ‘Pink Squares’ draw a surprisingly chaotic reaction from the fans, leading the band to suggest that the response is “much better than the last time we were in Stoke” and leaving them looking surprised for the majority of the set. Overall they blow the crowd away tonight, coming across like a more adventurous, but less complex version of Foals. They’ve already been overlooked for far too long as it is.
Pendulum – The Guild Of Students, Liverpool Pendulum have marketed themselves more intelligently than any other band since the turn of the millennium. Spending years appearing at union events rather than indulging in ‘typical’ touring patterns has saw them go from an ‘impossible to market’ drum & bass outfit, to a mainstream act playing huge venues and reaching the top ten. Tonight draws heavily from their forthcoming album ‘In Silico’, which travels much further down the light rock road than the dance of their debut. This has been met with considerable backlash by large portions of their fanbase, but judging by the crowd reaction none of those particular fans are here tonight. Tracks such as, recent hit single, ‘Propane Nightmares’ and Fresher’s Week staple ‘Slam’ sound fantastic live and provide clear highlights tonight. Pendulum are a very different beast to the one they were when they released ‘Hold Your Colour’, but they still put on a fantastic live show.
Concourse
Creative Writing Society (CWS)
Rebecca Smith
Are you interested in creatively writing, stories, poetry, plays, songs? …you should join our society!
Good times to include:
19th May 2008
Keele Pyrate Network WINE AND CHEESE NIGHT - MAY 26th from 8pm.
Todd Specht Society Secretary
Keele Pyrate Network is a Scout Network based in Keele. We camp, we play sport, we light fires, we travel, we get very drunk and we have a hell of a lot of fun.
However, it has come to our attention that not many people really know who Keele Pyrate Network is, or what we do. So we have decided to host a Wine and Cheese evening to give you a chance to see our sophisticated side.
We are opening Lindsay Studio 2 to a formal evening of upper class music, dancing and socialising. And more importantly, cheese and wine!
MONTHLY COMPETITION to be held, judged by Eminence Grise, otherwise known as James Sheard, head of Creative Writing Module. Entry This is event and is open to all comers. We will price of 50p, variety of prizes and inclusion in yearly anthology publi- be giving out free cheese and free wine all night, and will be planning a series of (optional!) cation, plus… games and activities throughout the night. SLAMS mixture of reading poetry, short stories and drinking copious We have also enlisted a lounge pianist to set amounts of booze to make it all a happy, fuzzy memory. the scene for the evening, and with a dedicated WORKSHOPS places to share work and express ideas, there are no photographer for the evening, we will be trying our best to show our upper class sides. wrong answers, only the search for the right words!
Leave your mark on the world’s surface, feel the power of creating new Important details: worlds with words, unlock the door of your subconscious with your pen Monday May 26th, at 8pm and pencil. Lindsay Studio 2 Sign up at Freshers Fair in September 2008, or come to a social and Formal/smart dress sign up then. Join the Facebook group for more information: Cost: £2 for members, £3 for non-members. All the wine you can drink and cheese you can eat! http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=12857526389&ref=ts Live music from our guest lounge pianists Event photographer Or contact: President- Rebecca Smith- u6h71@ugh.keele.ac.uk Treasurer- Jordan Lewis- u5s25@ugs.keele.ac.uk Secretary- Steven Lewis- u6l04@ugl.keele.ac.uk
Why Keele Students can’t afford to be apathetic.
Baron Smackfish
All too often we hear the vague rumblings of relatively cluedup students joking about Keele’s revolutionary past; of sitins and independence declarations. All to often we see another facebook group declaring war upon Professor Finch, “eVISION” or the fact that calling lecturers C**** is apparently unacceptable. As much of an annoyance all these groups seem to be, these lazy attempts at pretending to protest do more harm than good. The only victory Armchair activism will succeed in will be to add more badly punctuated, ill-informed arguments to the steaming pile that is the internet.
It has thus become very easy to trick oneself into assuming that by joining “1 million strong for the badgers” or some such other ridiculous cause means that everything will get better overnight. It is this delusion that has fuelled record lows in political activism in KUSU.
This problem is not just the fault of the “facebooker” but of KUSU and most students. A lack of ambition over improving the lives of students, coupled with an apparent inability to
Check out the Facebook group for more details: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=14699847692 Or get in contact with the Keele Pyrate Network exec: keelenetwork@googlemail.com
engage with the “grassroots” has meant that the relevance of the politic of KUSU to students hangs in the balance. It is not without reason that in other students’ unions sabbatical officers are routinely re-elected to a second term of office, whilst at Keele it is nigh unheard-of. What has KUSU done for you this year which has made your education or welfare better? The library opens for the same hours, despite all of us wishing it was open longer, car parking is still ridiculous and the athletics track is still unusable, due to the fact the surface is terrible. Oh, and it’s full of cars.
This isn’t the fault of the current sabbaticals, but unfortunately I fear a culture of reactionary politics in KUSU which has been entrenched over the last few years. It is a vicious circle of low expectations, met with low attainment. We are sometimes (vaguely) encouraged to spend our money in the Union building as opposed to CFM outlets, to “recycle our pound”. What I cannot currently see is where the money goes on improving the lives of the most students at Keele.
As someone who has been involved in the political side of the union in my time at Keele, I know that there is capacity and feeling in KUSU for change; there are those willing and able to make KUSU work for the better. My main problem is those who are willing to talk the talk, but wont walk into the union and find out what both they can do for the union, and what KUSU can do about it.
This increasing apathy comes at the most dangerous time for students and grassroots activism. The University seems to have decided to close world-renowned courses to fund new buildings on campus with questionable use to the stu-
dents. We were told that the Moser centre would be the vital space needed for postgraduates on campus. The first external conferences are being booked in the Moser centre now, before postgraduates have even had chance to move in. This example will no doubt be repeated in the phase 3 development, where its “mixed use” buildings will no doubt be home to big business or the civil service at the expense of academic resources and new accommodation for students.
The aim of this article is not to impart cynicism. Students are the stakeholder in the business of the university. Without us, the place wouldn’t exist – the power which the students can wield if provoked could be enormous. I hope that some readers will realise that a Union is what we make of it, and we can only rely on ourselves to improve the lives of Keele students by getting involved in the union and giving it strong direction to actually improve the lives of students. To this end, it is the responsibility and duty for every student to engage with the union, to make KUSU better, so that it can fight the battles on behalf of the students, full time.
Some of us voted in the elections in February to elect new sabbaticals to be the instruments of our will. I hope that they realise that they are here to serve the students, to meet the students halfway on the road to student politics, to make it easy for them to do there bit. Only when the sabbaticals make the required effort to engage with students will students see the point or merit of getting off their arses.
Apparently “Janet Finch: Something must be done”. Fair point, but who will step up to the plate and fight for students? I hope it will be KUSU.
19th May 2008
Concourse
Lacrosse end of season review
Stephen Johns Mens Club Captain
After a hectic year the lacrosse season has come to an end. It has been a brilliant year for all the teams (men’s, mixed, and women’s) It was another successful year of recruitment with many new players entering the ranks and they improved rapidly as the season went on. The club would like to thank the outgoing committee of Stephen Johns, Anna Jenkyns, Max van Praag, Daniel Richards, Toby Pochron, Katherine Bell and Sophie for all their work throughout the season and Stephen Johns managed to win the Sandra Alderton cup. The men’s team have had an outstanding season with them winning 6 games (compared to 1 last season!) They recorded 3 wins over Staffs that included the all important Varsity win! They also collected wins over Aberystwyth, Warwick 2nds and Gloucester The mixed team had a good year but unfortunately did not play many games due to constant cancellations by the other teams. Even so they won two games against Man Met and Sheffield and lost one to Liverpool and won the mixed league! A women’s team was established by Anna Jenkyns this season and all their hard work and training paid off with two out of two wins against Aberystwyth and Sheffield Hallem, both well established women’s lacrosse teams.
Outgoing Club Captain Stephen Johns would like to thank everyone from the club for everything they have done this season and wishes all third years a successful future and hopes that the new committee will build on the clubs success to improve even further. The new committee for next season is Club Captain Men’s Captain Mixed/ Women’s Captain Deputy mixed/women’s Treasurer Social Secretaries
Scott Little Shez Anna Jenkyns Tara Duke Stephen Johns Craig Rosenbloom and Rupinder Kalsi
Concourse
19th May 2008
Life in Keele 2007/8!
K
a ins aw UBE w
rds
Jack in a box
SEM
KUSU wins Environmental Award
NUS A
nnual Confe renc
e Dele
Students Protest
gates
k g Wee n i r e e t Volun
GI Jonnies
VE Fair
st rote P S
CAC
Stee r
the
EGM
Elections 2008
Haircuts!
The views and opinions contained in Concourse do not necessarily represent those of KUSU