Building trust with students is at the top of ASUS candidates’ agendas.
ASUS Presidential candidate Cole Olidis, ArtSci ’25, Vice-President (Operations) candidate Silas Tamlyn, ArtSci ’25, and Vice-President (Student Affairs) candidate Helena Shimwell, ArtSci ’25 shared plans to boost student engagement and improve budget transparency with the University.
Despite looming concerns about the University’s budget cuts, only 10 students showed up to hear candidates discuss their platforms on Jan. 25 in Kingston Hall.
Presidential candidate Olidis shared several initiatives he intends to undertake if elected, including coffee chats between ASUS executives and students. These low-stakes meetings would allow students to ask Olidis about concerns such as the budget cuts.
Vice-President (Student Affairs) candidate Shimwell wants to help rebuild that trust. She plans to share budgetary information with students immediately following meetings with Faculty of Arts and Science Dean Barbara Crow.
“While we as executives aren’t capable of solving budget issues, we can put students at ease and make them feel more involved in the process,” Shimwell said.
Tamlyn himself only became aware of the ASUS Assembly Town Hall with Provost Matthew Evans after the event had happened.
READ MORE: Low student turnout at ASUS Assembly with Global News deterred from attending
Telling students where ASUS is spending their budget is a top priority for Tamlyn.
“Full transparency with [student] government spending is very important as the majority of the ASUS budget is funded by the ASUS fee, which is money straight out of students’ pockets,” Tamlyn said.
All candidates emphasized reversing low student engagement. As an example of his concern, Tamlyn pointed to the small crowd of students and the uncontested ASUS election.
“I think if more of an effort were put into making these things public, more people would be able to run for these positions, which would be good,” Tamlyn said. “I would feel bad if you hate me and you don’t want me in this role, but nobody else is running.”
Shimwell wants to plant “ boxes” around campus where students can anonymously submit events they want ASUS to host. Shimwell and Tamlyn claimed they’ll connect with the Engineering Society (EngSoc)—a faculty society with historically high engagement—to understand if any tactics could transfer to ASUS.
For Olidis, engagement doesn’t end with students. He wants to improve students’ relationship with the Kingston community. Olidis plans to market the September Sidewalk Sale—an event he considers highly successful—to the Kingston community.
Expanding existing events and creating new ones are on the agenda. If elected, Olidis wants to create an honorarium events position for ASUS.
“I know firsthand from running so many events with ASUS that it can be challenging to know where to start, where to buy things, what to do, and who to talk to [when] booking your space,” Olidis said. “This [position] will help current volunteers and employees successfully run events.”
Olidis’ campaign revolves around conveying to students he’s just one of them. By adopting a grassroots approach, he hopes to create a more comfortable environment for students to come talk to him.
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