WELCOME Thanks for showing an interest in becoming a Students’ Union officer and running in the election! Elections are an incredibly exciting and vibrant time for our Union. They allow you to get involved with your Union and give you the opportunity to run the place for a year. Throughout the election & campaigns period you will have the chance to show how much you care about your union, what you want to see done differently and outline how you will go about this. This pack will outline the positions available, provide you with information you need to run in the election, key dates and important contact details. In addition, there is an all important nomination form that you will need to fill in, in order to nominate yourself and run in the election. This pack is a companion to the candidates’ meeting which will take place on February 11th at midday in the Students’ Union’s activities room in Cooper Building, Greenwich Campus. Attendance for the candidates’ meeting is mandatory. Also, you are strongly recommended to attend one of the candidates’ info sessions and one of the training sessions, details of which are in this pack. Best wishes and happy campaigning, Gary Naylor Deputy Returning Officer
Al Ghaff Deputy Returning Officer
If you have any further questions about any of the positions or anything that is not clear in this information pack then please e-mail us at elections@gre.ac.uk More information may also be posted at www.suug.co.uk/elections2013 and candidates are advised to check this page regularly throughout the nominations and election periods. Please note that you can obtain a paper copy of the nominations pack from the reception at Cooper Building on Greenwich Campus.
PLEASE NOTE: you must be a Voting Member of the Students’ Union (i.e. a current University of Greenwich student based at Greenwich, Avery Hill or Medway) to run in these elections. Students at Partner or Link colleges are not eligible to vote or run. SUUG ELECTIONS NOMINATIONS PACK
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CONTENTS FAQs ...........................................................Page 4 Key Dates ...................................................Page 5 So you want to be a... ..............................Page 7 a) Sabbatical Officer b) Student Representative c) NUS Delegate Winning Votes – Campaigning ..............Page11 The Voting System ..................................Page 12 Promote your Candidacy – Publicity......Page 13 Support for Candidates...........................Page 16
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FAQs
Why do we hold Elections?
The Students’ Union is a democratic organisation run by students for students. Crosscampus elections are held every academic year so the students can choose their representatives for the coming academic year.
Why is this important? The Students’ Union is your Union. Elected officers play a big part in ensuring that the Union operates in the way you want it to. The Union receives a significant subvention grant from the University every year so it’s important that this money is spent properly and on services that you, the students, want and need.
Why should I run? Being part of the leadership of a rapidly improving and growing organisation is not something that many people get to do. It’ll give you new skills, experiences, friends and contacts. It’ll be fun, challenging and rewarding. It’ll look fantastic on your CV and you’ll be playing a part in improving the University experience for over 28,000 students. As well as giving you great experience, becoming an elected officer would allow you to take a role at the forefront of the Student Movement. Recent student protests have shown that students are willing to stand up and make their voices heard. Your Union needs people like you to lead the movement, as an elected officer of the Union you will be able to represent students locally, nationally and internationally as well as to the University.
What position should I run for? Overall there are 19 positions that are up for election in March 2013, these positions are outlined later in this information pack, the available positions are listed below to give you a basic idea of the positions that are being contested: - 4 Paid Full Time Sabbatical Officer Posts - 8 Part-time Unpaid Portfolio-based Student Representatives - 7 Unpaid NUS Delegates Which position you run for is ultimately up to you - read the job descriptions online and consider which role would suit you best. If you are in your final year as an undergraduate or you are registered for 1-year postgraduate programme and you expect to complete your studies before January 2014 at university you cannot serve as a Part-time Student Representative for 2013/14. SUUG ELECTIONS NOMINATIONS PACK
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KEY DATES
Full details of events and any additional dates will be posted on www.suug.co.uk/elections2013 - Monday 14th January: Nominations open.
Important Note: Please note that the nominations will only be done online. - Monday 21st January, 5pm – 7 pm, Candidates’ info session (All Candidates) at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. - Thursday 24th January, 3pm – 5pm, Candidates’ info session (All Candidates) at Avery Hill Campus (S010). - Tuesday 29th January, 12pm – 2pm, Candidates’ info session (All Candidates) at Medway Campus in Kent(PK106). - Thursday 31st January, 5pm – 7pm, Candidates’ info session (For Female Candidates ONLY) at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. Important Note: There are three Candidates’ info sessions (for all candidates) and one specifically for female Candidates ONLY. They are not mandatory to attend. However, you are strongly recommended to attend one of them. - Friday 8th February, 12pm: Nominations close. - Monday 11th February, 12pm – 2pm: Mandatory Candidates’ Meeting at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. Important Note: The Candidates’ Meeting is Mandatory to attend for all Candidates, unless you have a valid reason not to, which should be approved by the Returning Officer or her nominees. - Monday 11th February, 2pm – 5pm: Candidates’ Photo Session at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. Important Note: The Candidates’ Photo Session is voluntary to attend. The SU will provide the opportunity to have the Candidates’ photos taken professionally for publicity materials, but Candidates are free to provide their own photos. - Tuesday 12th February, 5pm: Deadline for Manifesto for Latitude Lookout. - Tuesday 12th February, 5pm – 6pm: Candidates Training at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. - Thursday 14th February, 5pm: Deadline for uploading Digital materials online. SUUG ELECTIONS NOMINATIONS PACK
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KEY DATES
- Thursday 14th February, 1pm – 2pm: Candidates Training, Medway Campus (PK127). - Friday 15th February, 1pm – 2pm: Candidates Training, Avery Hill Campus (S307). Important Note: The Candidates’ Training sessions are voluntary to attend, but
you are strongly recommended to attend at least one of them. In these sessions there will be training on ‘How to Campaign and Win Elections’. - Friday 15th February, 5 pm: Deadline for Publicity Materials (To be available on Wednesday Feb 20th 2013). - Monday 25th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Avery Hill Campus. - Monday 25th February, 5 pm: Deadline for Publicity Materials (To be available on Wednesday 27th 2013). - Tuesday 26th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Medway Campus in Kent (PK008). - Thursday 28th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Greenwich Campus. Important Note: You must attend and speak on a minimum of one of the Question Times (Hustings), unless you have a valid reason not to, which should be approved by the Returning Officer or her nominees. You may attend and speak at all three of the Question Times (Hustings). - Monday 4th March – Thursday 7th March, 10am – 5 pm: Voting across all University of Greenwich Campuses. , - Friday 8th March: Results counted and announced.
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POSITIONS
So you want to be a... Sabbatical officer
Sabbatical officers are full time, paid representatives who take a year off during or after their course. They will start their term of office on 1st August 2013 and finish on 31st July 2014. Initial training is scheduled to take place in the last two weeks of July. Sabbatical Officers are Trustees of the union. The list below explains the basics of each role and the skills that would suit the position. Full Job Descriptions are available from www.suug.co.uk/elections2013.
President: This role would suit you if you want... to be the figurehead of the Union and develop your leadership skills. You will be required to lead the Sabb team and co-ordinate their activities and be the main point of contact for external organisations, including the University and partner colleges.
Vice President Campaigns and Representation: This role would suit you if you want... to lead the campaigns of the Union, encourage more student engagement and develop your communication and representation skills. You will be required to stand up for students, to argue the case for those you are representing and to engage as many students as possible with the Union. You will be heavily involved in the Union’s communications.
Vice President Education and Welfare: This role would suit you if you want... to ensure the personal welfare and academic success of students at the University of Greenwich. You will be required to represent students on disciplinary committees, be the main sabbatical contact for school and course representatives and to take the lead on welfare and education issues at the University.
Vice President Student Activities: This role would suit you if you want... to improve the activities and facilities offered by the Union. You will be required to lead on the provision and development of a wide range of accessible activities, facilities and services for the student body. You will represent and further the aims of Sports Clubs & Societies and ensure that the right facilities are available for them. You will also be responsible for ensuring that all of these activities and services are of a high standard.
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POSITIONS
So you want to be a... Part-time Student Representative
PLEASE NOTE: If you are in your final year as an undergraduate or you are registered for 1-year postgraduate programme and you expect to complete your studies before January 2014 at university, you cannot serve as a Part-time Student Representative 2013/14. Student Representatives fulfil their responsibilities whilst still on their course. They are unpaid part-time roles. There are 8 Student Representative Positions available in this election. As a result of Union Council’s approval (Tuesday December 18th 2012), Part-time Student Representatives will now be defined by separate, portfolio-based titles. You may run for one of the following eight Part-time Student Representatives: • • • • • • • •
Women’s Students Officer Black Students Officer International Students Officer Mature Students Officer Postgraduate and Part-time Students Officer Avery Hill Campus Officer Medway Campus Officer Equality, Disability and Diversity Officer
IMPORTANT NOTES:
a)Students who stand for these portfolios must belong to the specific groups of students that they are seeking to represent i.e. a male student cannot stand for the “Women’s Students Officer” position and only a Postgraduate/Part-time student can stand for the “Postgraduate/Part-time students Officer” Position and so on for other portfolios. b)The “Medway Campus” and the “Avery Hill Campus” Officers must be studying at Medway and Avery Hill respectively. c)All Students are eligible to stand and vote for the position of “Equality, Disability and Diversity Officer”. d)Only students who belong to these specific groups will be eligible to vote for the positions. For example, a Greenwich Student cannot vote for the positions of “Medway Campus Officer” and “Avery Hill Campus Officer”. However, Voting for the positions of Women’s Students Officer and Black Students Officer are based on self-definition. Therefore, should you self-define as a ‘Women/Female Student’, you will be allowed to vote for the “Women’s Students Officer” position. Similarly, should you self-define as a SUUG ELECTIONS NOMINATIONS PACK
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POSITIONS Black Student; you will be allowed to vote for the “Black Students Officer� position. Student Representatives are an important part of the Union. The term of office is twelve months, starting from 1st August to coincide with the start of the new Sabbatical Officers term. Student Representatives may be re-elected for a further term of twelve months. The maximum total term that a Student Representative may serve is, therefore, twenty-four months. Each Student Representative must be a Voting Member of the Union for the full period of their term of office. This is a part-time, voluntary role. Some expenses may be awarded, at the discretion of the Union Council.
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POSITIONS
So you want to be a... NUS Delegate
NUS Delegates represent University of Greenwich students at the annual NUS national conference. The purpose of the conference is to: • Democratically debate motions and pass policy from students unions across the UK; • Hold current leadership to account for their work over the past year; • Discuss, amend and approve policy reports from each of the five Zones; • Adopt decisions made by each of the Nations, Student Sections and Liberation Campaigns; • Elect and appoint people to various committees, trustee board and student leadership positions; •Hold an AGM, receiving the annual report and accounts and approving the budget for the coming year; The conference this year takes place in Sheffield 8-10 April 2013. All reasonable expenses (including travel, accommodation, food & drink) will be paid by the Union. More information about the conference can be found here: http://www.nusconnect.org. uk/conference/. Important Note: You can run for a Sabbatical Officer position and as an NUS Delegate, or you can run for a Part-Time Student Representative position and an NUS Delegate or you can run for one Sabbatical position or one Part-Time Student Representative position or for an NUS Delegate position only.
Get yourself nominated
If you want to be a candidate for an officer position you need to fill out the nomination form online at www.suug.co.uk/elections2013 before 12pm, Friday 8th February. Please Note: Nominations are online only. IMPORTANT: If your nomination is late it will not be accepted.
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WINNING VOTES - CAMPAIGNING Polling runs between 4th March and 7th March. Voting is computerised at polling stations on each campus between 10 am and 5pm during the voting period. The Union reserves the right to alter polling times if necessary to increase participation or any other good reason. To win votes you will need to run an election campaign. Tips on how to campaign and the main events that the union puts on to help candidates promote themselves have been mentioned earlier in this document. You may also find further information on www.suug.co.uk/elections2013. Please Note: Candidates may, upon written notification to and approval from, the Returning Officer or her nominee, use the internet for the purpose of publicising their candidacy.
Candidates’ Question Times: - Monday 25th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Avery Hill Campus. - Tuesday 26th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Medway Campus in Kent. - Thursday 28th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Greenwich Campus. In the Candidates’ Question Times, you will get the chance to speak directly to students about why you are running, what you will do if you are elected, explain your manifesto and answer their questions. You can find more information about the Candidates’ Question Times in the SUUG Elections 2013 Rulebook at www.suug.co.uk/elections2013. IMPORTANT: All Candidates must attend Candidate Question Time and speak. Failure to do this without a legitimate excuse approved by the Returning Officer or her nominees may result in disqualification. The election will be overseen by the Returning Officer, Emma Powell (NUS) and two Deputy Returning Officers, Gary Naylor and Al Ghaff.
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THE VOTING SYSTEM In all officer elections, Voters mark candidates in order of preference with the numbers 1, 2, 3, etc. For the four Sabbatical positions and the eight Part Time Student Representative positions, the winner is decided by the following method: In the first round, votes are counted by tallying first preferences, if no candidate has over 50% of the votes cast, the candidate with the fewest number of votes is eliminated and that candidate’s votes are transferred to the remaining candidates according to the next preference on each ballot. This process repeats until one candidate obtains a majority of votes. In NUS Delegate elections seven different candidates are elected, so once a candidate gets enough votes to get elected their second choices are used and so on. An understanding of this system is important as it means you, as a candidate, should aim to get votes from everyone, even those already committed to supporting another candidate, as second, third (etc.). Preference votes will have a big impact on who is elected.
Re-Open Nominations (RON) All elections will include RON or Re-open Nominations, which will allow voters to choose none of the candidates and vote for the election to Re-open.
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PROMOTE YOUR CANDIDACY - PUBLICITY What is provided? According to the SUUG Elections Rulebook 2013 (amended and approved by the Union Council on Tuesday 18th Dec 2012): • Each candidate shall be allowed up to 400 sheets of A4 paper (printed in colour or black & white) and 40 sheets of A3 paper (printed in colour or black & white) for the purpose of publicising their candidacy. • If standing as a slate or team (defined as two or more candidates sharing a slogan or name and campaigning together), the slate’s or team’s allocation is also limited to 400 A4 and 40 A3 sheets divided equally amongst all the candidates comprising the slate or team. • Should candidates wish to use any other size of paper, this must first be agreed by the Returning Officer or his/her nominee. • Candidates in Sabbatical Officer Elections shall be allowed an additional 100 sheets of A4 paper (printed in colour or black & white) for a day of poll leaflet. • Space for a manifesto box (photo & up to 500 word manifesto) in the election supplement of the March issue of the Latitude Lookout (www.suug.co.uk/latitudelookout), will be provided. • A manifesto page (as above) on suug.co.uk/elections2013.
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PROMOTE YOUR CANDIDACY - PUBLICITY
How to submit publicity
Candidates should send all publicity to elections@gre.ac.uk and provide the following before the following deadlines: Materials 1 x 500 word manifesto in plain text (no formatting) in Microsoft Word format
Deadline For printing in Latitude Lookout: Tuesday 12th February, 5pm.
For the SU website: Thursday 14th February, 5pm. 1 x portrait ‘passport’ photo in .jpg format For printing in Latitude Lookout: Tuesday and no more than 1 MB 12th February, 5pm.
1 x A4 sized (no more than 1 MB) and 1 x A3 sized (no more than 2 MB) poster in PDF format.
For the SU website: Thursday 14th February, 5pm. Friday 15th February before 5 pm, in order to be available on Wednesday Feb 20th 2013. If you miss the above deadline, you can submit for the second deadline below: Monday 25th February before 5 pm, in order to be available on Wednesday 27th 2013.
In addition, candidates for Sabbatical officer positions may submit a further A4 poster in PDF format (no more than 1MB) for the ‘day of polling’ leaflet. Please note that the deadline for submitting materials is 12pm on Friday 1st March 2013. IMPORTANT: Any materials submitted after these deadlines will not be accepted for use. All of the above needs to be submitted by the deadlines mentioned above to elections@gre.ac.uk. Please put ‘Election Publicity- Your Name’ in the subject line. Candidates should save their files with both their first and last names in the file name. You will be able to pick up your printed publicity from the SU, Cooper Building, Greenwich Campus, on the dates specified above. All printing is done in colour however candidates should avoid heavy use of photos and/or complicated images – if you are unsure about this, please contact elections@gre.ac.uk. SUUG ELECTIONS NOMINATIONS PACK
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PROMOTE YOUR CANDIDACY - PUBLICITY Candidates may wish to produce a smaller (A5, A6 etc.) poster/flyer and have multiple copies printed per sheet of A4 or A3. Candidates are responsible for designing their own documents accordingly; the Union will simply print what is contained in the PDF file. Candidates are responsible for any cutting or trimming. All publicity material will be approved by the Returning Officer or her nominees prior to printing/publication.
Expenses Sabbatical Officer Candidates may also spend up to an additional ÂŁ10 on more innovative promotional materials, but these will be subject to the approval of the Returning Officer, or his/her nominee, in advance of their purchase. Candidates will then have this amount reimbursed upon production of receipts in conjunction with a fully complete expenses form by the expenses deadline. All additional election expenses must be logged by candidates on an Election Expenses Form, and submitted, with receipts by 5pm 11th March. Forms can be collected from the Al Ghaff, Deputy Returning Officer. IMPORTANT (1): Candidates should not spend any money on additional printed materials or photocopying as only SUUG provided printed materials may be used for campaigning. IMPORTANT (2): Use of SUUG facilities (including photocopying, computers, phones, accommodation or staff time during contracted hours) is strictly forbidden and may lead to disqualification.
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SUPPORT FOR CANDIDATES The Students’ Union will be supporting candidates by arranging info sessions, training on ‘how to campaign’ and by providing opportunities for candidates to promote themselves. - Monday 21st January, 5pm – 7 pm, Candidates’ info session (All Candidates) at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. - Thursday 24th January, 3pm – 5pm, Candidates’ info session (All Candidates) at Avery Hill Campus. - Tuesday 29th January, 12pm – 2pm, Candidates’ info session (All Candidates) at Medway Campus in Kent. - Thursday 31st January, 5pm – 7pm, Candidates’ info session (For Female Candidates ONLY) at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. - Monday 11th February, 12pm – 2pm: Mandatory Candidates’ Meeting at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. - Monday 11th February, 2pm – 5pm: Candidates’ Photo Session at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. - Tuesday 12th February, 5pm – 6pm: Candidates’ Training at Greenwich Campus, Cooper Building, Union’s Activities Room. - Thursday 14th February, 1pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Training, Medway Campus, Kent. - Friday 15th February, 1pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Training, Avery Hill Campus. - Friday 15th February, 5 pm: Deadline for Publicity Materials (To be available on Wednesday Feb 20th 2013). - Monday 25th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Avery Hill Campus. - Monday 25th February, 5 pm: Deadline for Publicity Materials (To be available on Wednesday 27th 2013). - Tuesday 26th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Medway Campus in Kent.
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SUPPORT FOR CANDIDATES - Thursday 28th February, 12pm – 2pm: Candidates’ Question Time, Greenwich Campus. - Printed Campaign materials. - Space for the manifestos in the Latitude Lookout and on the SUUG’s website: www.suug.co.uk/elections2013. Full details will be available at the Mandatory Candidates’ Meeting on Monday 11th February, 12pm – 2pm, which all candidates must attend and on the SUUG’s website (www.suug.co.uk/elections2013). Full details of the rules and regulations governing the election are listed in the Election Rulebook available from www.suug.co.uk/elections2013. Candidates should familiarise themselves with this - ignorance of the rules will not be accepted as an excuse. If in doubt about any of the rules & regulations surrounding the election, please e-mail elections@gre.ac.uk
IMPORTANT CONTACTS Queries elections@gre.ac.uk
Gary Naylor, Deputy Returning Officer g.naylor@gre.ac.uk
Al Ghaff, Deputy Returning Officer a.ghaff@greenwich.ac.uk
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