Housing officer candidate Louis Kennedy is hoping to use his knowledge of social policy to make the role his own in the coming elections this month.
The third year social policy and politics student is hoping to emerge on top from the student elections as he announced his manifesto earlier this month.
Also in contention is Tristan Ghigo.
Amongst the stand-out promises Louis made, the Stirling University footballer announced that he would be attending Stirling Council meetings to address student worries directly.
Louis said: “A couple of lads in the football team in student accommodation didn’t actually even feel safe. It seemed fairly disorganised and they had difficulty getting money back, they felt they were being lied to about online learning and it seemed like wasted money.
“I hope to be attending meetings if they were running – if they were virtual I would be going! But yes, I can commit my time and I am willing to commit my time to help students as much as I possibly can.
“By attending these meetings, I just think it could possibly accelerate the process of the private and rented team possibly speaking to landlords and fixing some situations.”
Also at the forefront of his manifesto was the phased return to teaching, and ensuring that students get what they pay for when they decide to move into campus.
“One of the main points in my manifesto is ensuring we keep in constant contact with the university about the return to face-to-face teaching.
“I think it would be ridiculous to have a repeat of this year, where students were told that they were going to be doing mixed learning, got flats and accommodation in Stirling, then they had wasted their money.
“There’s also a clause which means that students can waive their accommodation within 28 days for a coronavirus reason – I would be making sure that is something that is being upheld on the university’s end.”
The coronavirus of course also poses serious challenges in regard to communicating with students and conducting tasks in general however Louis had a plan to tackle the issue:
“It is quite challenging to go and see the students right now, you’re only going off online connections over Zoom. It’s almost like being a virtual housing officer!
“I’m looking to set up an accessible online platform, I have a few ideas on how I might do that. It would let students give me ideas and also let them voice their concerns. It’s important to use all of the technology available.”
You can read Louis’s manifesto at this website here:
Don’t forget voting opens on March 8 at 9am and closes on March 9 at 6.15pm.
Second year student at University of Stirling studying Sport and Journalism.
