Fight for a Fairer Goldsmiths!
A radical education for everyone
I have had the privilege of serving as a student trustee for two years, meaning I am well informed on both the day-to-day activities of the Student Union, as well as the broader themes and goals that it is working towards — from its financial position to previous projects —so from day one I’ll be able to get on with my pledges, building on the successes of my predecessors.
Before coming to Goldsmiths, I was a Trade Union activist, so I bring with me the unique experience of already advocating for the collective interest of others in negotiations and discussions with organisations. It is this experience that I hope to utilise at Goldsmiths, to push the Senior Leadership towards a path that puts Goldsmiths back on a radical student-focused path, rather than the failed marketised approach that has led the University to enter a managed decline with severe financial issues, dwindling student numbers, and a worsening student experience. My Trade Union experience is also one I hope to utilise to create a unified approach between the Student Union and Staff Trade Unions, to ensure that no group is disadvantaged by the actions of the other.
With its obsession with numbers, Goldsmiths has missed the importance of listening to the substance of students’ opinions, abstracting from metrics what they feel students think, instead of just listening to them. The answer to this problem is at the heart of the approach that I intend to adopt, listening to the concerns of all members of the student community and marginalised groups, to advocate in the best interests of everyone. As the University looks to implement changes, it must consider how these changes may disproportionately affect people, thus I shall ensure that I work collaboratively with students from different disadvantaged groups to ensure that no one is left behind.
Like many other people, I was brought to Goldsmiths because it offered opportunities for those who historically haven’t been afforded the opportunity to study at University, who brought with them diverse views and perspectives, combined with its unique course offerings that were equally reflected by this diversity. Right now, Goldsmiths is at a crossroads, and if elected I promise to fight to return it to a radical path, to ensure it continues to preserve those elements that made Goldsmiths a truly unique place to study.
- Facilitate review of Goldsmiths Anti-Racist Action commitment implementation, and encourage action on Incomplete commitments
- Lobby the University to create and implement a viable Climate Policy to reduce environmental impact
- Centre Goldsmiths’ Radical and Alternative history in its educational offering, rather than advertising for corporations
- Continue expanding intersectional/BAME/Queer perspectives in courses
- Push the University to be more transparent with students about its Financial Position, so students are adequately informed
- Ensure Goldsmiths maintains a unique educational offering, specifically reviewing the closure of courses and modules where no comparable alternative exists elsewhere
- Conduct a review of SEATS, to find a solution that improves students’ experience registering attendance whilst simultaneously addressing the issues of International Students’ security
- Ensure that Investment in IT infrastructure improvements prioritise student experience, to remove administrative barriers that are a drain on Students’ time and resources
- Ensure that Students have a more democratic input to how the University changes should be challenged
- Push for more democratic module feedback, to take place during modules to allow for opportunities for change
- Ensure that an Equality Impact Assessment is conducted for all closures of courses and modules, and in departmental cuts.
- Challenge the University on organisational failures in the Disability Service, improve the functioning of RASAs, and ensure staff are adequately equipped to help student