“It’s an organization where somehow each year we end up with a bunch of people driven by empathy.” These were the words that Damon said to me back in 2022 when I first started working for the Union. At that time, most of what we did was so new to me – campaigning, press releases, events, BCFS, all the voting on decisions and so much more.
Confluence was odd in the sense that it was the only student position in the union which was hired by the board and not elected by the students. So, I basically walked into a team of eight individuals chosen by students – talk about pressure! But this one’s not about me.
Thinking back to it now, I remember the energy that room used to have: Darien, Clark, Gulshan and everyone else – every single person was living the student experience and each one of them fought to make the experience better for everyone in their own ways. The biggest victory that year for us – besides winning the ‘Dream Team’ Award at BCFS AGM held in January 2023, was Knocking Out Interest on Student Debt. That wasn’t us alone, but the result of collective efforts made by numerous Student Unions across Post Secondary institutions in British Columbia.
I rejoined CNCSU in December of 2023 and obviously this time around there was a whole new team I got to work with (not entirely new but you guys probably understand my emotions here). I liked the fact that this board was a lot more diverse than the last one – not just in terms of their visible identities but in terms of their life experiences and what they had to say. The conversations were fierce, the experiences we stood together through were tough to say the least, and the efforts put towards events this year really showed.
Just when I was getting used to things, here comes election season. Each year in May, the CNCSU Staff team welcomes a new group of individuals striving to be the voice of students not only at CNC but across the province.
It also means that the current board finishes their term to pass things onto the incoming representatives. I’m personally really excited about the incoming board – at the election forum, they highlighted a number of things: mental health, bullying, the need for more events and engagement, educating the student population on inclusivity and indigenous culture – we even got our first Pride Students’ Representative.
At the same time, the farewell aspect feels bad – especially since Anuroop, Chantel and Jasvir have been there since the first time I joined the Union. Riley and Hunter were super passionate about Coffee Mondays and Discord. Moreover, I’ve loved working with Kartik and Holliness as they both enjoy “constructive debates” which I most certainly am a fan of.
There is a lot I’ll miss and there’s a lot I’ll get to experience. One thing which, however, would remain a constant is that the incoming board that though is filled with very different individuals, appears to share that drive motivated by empathy.
Not only as a team member of the Students’ Union but also as a student, I’m thankful to the
student representatives for supporting the student experience here at CNC, and I’m excited to experience the victories of the incoming board over the course of next year.
