Part Time Officers are elected to represent particular groups or demographics of students and to support them, all whilst making sure that their voice is heard at all levels across the university and Students’ Union. The winner of this award will have made time for students, used appropriate and tailored methods to proactively collect students – feeding the outcome back to the students they represent. They will have shown that they’re passionate about influencing positive change and motivated their fellow students to take part in campaigns.
And the winner is...
Martins Akhemigbeze, Postgraduate Students’ Part Time Officer
“His actions and gathering of feedback from students from the post-grad study room really shows he is passionate about student representation.”
“Martins is a naturally supportive person and therefore encourages those around him to achieve their best (whether this be fellow course mates or part-time reps).”
“He has shown dedication to student representation, by frequently seeking feedback from students about how their student experience can be improved (especially postgrads).”
“I communicated some of the challenges I was initially facing as an international postgraduate student to him, and he has been really proactive about trying to help me and others in similar position get our voices and concerns heard. Although he does not have all the answers and solutions (especially being a student also), I can see the dedication he has to his duty and the welfare of other students.”
“Although I am not a postgraduate student, the changes he lobbied the university to make in the library (as I saw announced in the students bulletin has had a huge impact on my studies and my use of the library. The new signage now placed in more open places in the library have helped me navigate the library better and access better and relevant resources for my studies.”
Due to the strength of the nominations and the recognition this Part Time Officer has received from their peers we have awarded a Highly Commended in this category.
Highly Commended: Alex Butters, Welfare Part-Time Officer
“Alex has a strong passion for mental health and working Hard so that all students are able to recognise signs to be able to support each other.”
“Alex is the most kindhearted person I have ever met and I am every day in awe of how thoughtful he is. I am so pleased to have him as our part time welfare officer and I really do hope that he is able to progress with his work around mental health awareness as he is so passionate and deserving. I am proud to have him as part of our UPSU.”
“Mental health is a rising issue within university students and I feel that all Alex’s hard work needs to be recognised and support to enable him progress with it. It’s often people don’t recognise mental health issues until it’s too late, Alex’s work will enable us all to have a wider knowledge on how to prevent these situations happening.”
All nominees:
- Martins Akhemigbeze
- Sandra Chiamaka Ikeh
- Jannike Smye
- Alex Butters