Meet the Candidates in this Year’s KSA By-Election

BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE (Two Positions Available)

Vanshi Kapoor

Why are you running for this position?

I believe that there are issues I would like to solve. Firstly, alerting the students about the policies that KPU has. Also, I would like to bridge the gap between students and the administration of the university because not every student in Canada knows the opportunities they have being a student of KPU. Also, I will [try to help] students in any way, including accommodation or jobs. I would like to help them in every manner. Also, I believe there are some initiatives that should be taken, like a platform for the students to use by organizing some social events. A social, inclusive environment should be created in the university by organizing some social events. These are the things that I would like to do.

Why should students vote for you?

Firstly, I am enrolled here at KPU, and also I have a good connection to students. So far I have made many friends, and through volunteer experience I think students know me.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

My experience is that I came [to] Canada all the way from India. I came independent, and coming here to Canada I learned a lot. I learned to live alone, and there were no friends when I came here. I wasn’t aware of my courses, how to go about them, and I have been through all that. From that experience, I would help students. I know, as a student, what are the problems that they face.

What would you like to change about the Kwantlen Student Association?

First of all, that students should be given more opportunities, as in jobs. They should be encouraged to attend more social events so that they can [achieve] a better person in life and also that they can do something in life when they step out of the university.

I think that they should create a policy where students should be given a chance to meet new people and also they should get encouraged by meeting people from other cultures because here at KPU … we have [a divide between] lots of students here who are Indian and those who are not Indian, so there should [be] social events with other students from other cultures and they should get open to change.

Gunjanpreet Kaur

Why are you running for this position?

I’m doing the courses for [Human Resources Management: Bachelor of Business Administration at KPU]. I’m pretty much active for all of the volunteering and all of the case competitions that I’ve been to, which is why that gave me the information and knowledge about the school of business. I would like to extend all the knowledge that I have to the maximum [number] of people.

Why should students vote for you?

I think that I am the right choice because I can empathize really well and I know how everybody feels—all the students. I also mentioned in my candidate statement that I am for you. I am going to be representing all of you and be helping out all of you.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

The experience that I have going into this is as a peer advisor at Kwantlen Polytechnic University and as a peer tutor as well, because I extend help for whatever the students need, help them out in whatever way possible, and with whatever I can do.

What would you like to change about the Kwantlen Student Association?

According to my own experience, I would like to see a little bit more of communication extended towards the students. I’ve seen there’s a lot of communication right now that the KSA does for students … [but] another thing [that they could communicate better] is the Multi-Pass [pricing].

Amrick Sidhu

Why are you running for this position?

The basic reason for running for this position is that most of the students who are in the school of business are facing some sort of problems in choosing their own courses and feel like their concerns are not going to [KSA Council], so the basic thing is that I want to be a voice for them as a person who can put their concerns in front of the council.

Why should students vote for you?

I get involved in society most of the time and have been volunteering at orientation too for the past three semesters. I’m on the campus, so they can contact me even then or there, or if they want me they can contact me at community events too.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

As a volunteer, I feel like I’m a good leader and I’m not uncomfortable with public speaking too, so it’s a quality that I have. I can show that even if I got elected, during the meetings, I can speak up as a good voice for the students.

What would you like to change about the Kwantlen Student Association?

The concerns that are not being heard by council, they should be heard at council while the meetings are going on. I don’t feel like some of the concerns are even getting to them. Students who are concerned they’re not getting the courses—I know this is not in the hands of council, but they can at least discuss some of these things with KPU for the students.

And events should be for all the students, not just for one community. The events taking place in the university should be for each and every student. They should feel like they’re getting involved in their college too.

Howie Qu

Why are you running for this position?

The reason why I am running for this position is because I’ve been a Kwantlen student for one year and I really like the community. I feel like Kwantlen is very diverse with so many different backgrounds of people and I just really want to help the community and make sure that every student is happy.

Why should students vote for you?

Basically, their problems are my main priority. If a problem arises, they just tell me and I’ll fix their problem right away, because I want to be the voice of all of the students at Kwantlen. If they vote for me I will always try my best to always help them, and then I just want to make sure that they are very happy at the campus. That’s what I want to do. I also want to make sure that they can find a job … because that’s a main goal for every student, is to find jobs in their area of interest.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

Right now, currently I am a City of Surrey volunteer. In that position I have presentations for different diverse groups of the community—basically children, elementary school students and adults—and I explain about the services provided by the City of Surrey. Also for children, I teach them about the government.

Basically I can also connect to the community of Kwantlen students because I connect to the community of Surrey. Both communities are very diverse, so I can usually connect to them.

What would you like to change about the Kwantlen Student Association?

I feel like the KSA is a good platform for students. It gives the students a community and makes students feel like we’re all united together, so that’s the positive side of KSA. But then everything is really positive about the KSA, because they fund the healthcare insurance for students, and also the compass cards and compass cards—it’s all very useful. But it’s really hard for students to opt out of the U-Pass, and get their money back for the U-Pass because they don’t need it. If elected, I will work on that problem too, I will advocate that problem too.

HEALTH REPRESENTATIVE (One Position Available)

Duaa Ismail

Why are you running for this position?

I’ve been trying to run for this position for a while, but I just didn’t have enough time with work, and I’m also the president of the Muslim Student Association. But the KSA, I’ve always wanted to join and see how things are working in our student council.

Also [I’m running] because I think there is a lack of engagement within the health science students. They come to school and they take the courses and just go home, so I feel like this engagement and student life is not there as much in the health, science and horticulture departments. I also feel like we need to talk more about depression and anxiety that we feel as students, especially because our program is very in-depth and hard on us and we need to talk about that more. There’s a lack of courses that we suffer from, because we’re only offered a few courses throughout the year and the summer is totally vacant.

Why should students vote for you?

Firstly, I am in the health science program, so I know and I’ve actually felt it and done it, and I feel like the next generation that’s coming along, so I can bring something different for them, hopefully they don’t have to go through all of that, that I’ve been through. I’m already really engaged in student life, I volunteered with the START volunteer team. I know what they’re going through, I know they want more engagement, it’s just not there yet.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

I’m a health science student in my fourth year, I started my volunteer experience in the KSA through the START volunteer team. I joined the Muslim Student Association just as a member, and then I was the vice-president and then I became the president.

What would you like to change about the Kwantlen Student Association?

I feel like the problem is that they do these events in the beginning of the semester or a few here and there—there’s nothing that’s happening in the middle of the semester when you’re getting down and looking for motivation. You want to get out there and feel like student life is still there. There’s nothing there at that time. We can do a lot—we can still try our best to do more events around November [and] December, I know the weather is bad, but we can still work something out.

They have some really good events that they do every year which is great, but I feel that there is a gap they can fill with more things. It doesn’t have to be big events, but just something more there.

Matthew Yorston

Why are you running for this position?

Overall it’s something that I’ve always done in my life. When I was in highschool I was on the grad council, I was the head of leadership, I did a peer mentoring group, and I did student voice for three years. I had meetings in Richmond representing my area. I’ve kind of always done this my whole life, and I decided, it felt weird not having meetings and doing extra stuff, and so I’ve always had an interest in doing that. I’d say that’s my main reason, and I feel like I have something to offer in that way and I’d love to help.

Why should students vote for you?

I think I have experience, for one, in representing students on a broader stage, and I believe that I can do a good job. I can talk to people and work stuff out and I will work hard to represent the students and find out what their issues are. I am a health student and I understand what they’re going through and I’d love to do anything I could to help them with their issues.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

Even before this summer, I was on the University Affairs [committee] as a student member of the KSA. I was on my grad council. I was head board member in my leadership class. I represented the greater area for student voice, so we’d come out to Richmond and I would have meetings with like the superintendent and the minister of education. I think those experiences definitely gave me the ability to be confident in front of people, be able to talk and express issues. And then I was a firefighter and I carried before I came to KPU. Those skills, working in a team, caring for each other and looking out for each other, I believe that all should benefit me in working in the council.

What would you like to change about the Kwantlen Student Association?

I think some things, not specifically with the KSA, but some things that I want to see more specifically with KPU considering the health program, like with health foundations—people are getting stuck in health foundations, not being able to finish health foundations to move on to nursing. I want to see what I can do as a councillor, see if I can talk to KPU and see if we can figure out a better plan so that people are able to move forward with their lives, and not get stuck in those issues.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES REPRESENTATIVE (One Position Available)

Ishita Goyal

Why are you running for this position?

There are a lot of students with disabilities on our campuses. I saw the perception that people have towards disabled people—it’s the perception of sympathy, and I don’t want people to see the disabled people with sympathy. I feel like they should see the disabled people as the common people. So, the disability starts from the mind, and I just want to finish that thing. I wouldn’t change them for the world, but I would like to change the world for them.

Why should students vote for you?

Because of the respect I have towards disabled people. It’s just amazing. I know I can do much, much further for them than the other candidates. I feel like I’m the best candidate who can support them and stand for them whenever they need.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

Actually I’m a kind of business person, more. Definitely business person is best politics ever. I don’t actually have any political background, but the thing in my mind is, I don’t feel like I just have to win. I just have to put my perception, I just have to put my thoughts in front of the winner candidate, so they must can do something if I couldn’t.

What do you like about the KSA, and what would you like to change?

The main thing I would like to change is the thinking of people. The disabilities start from mind, not from your body, so I just want to chase disability from the people’s’ mind. People think that if we saw a disabled people, we just offer them sympathy. Why should we do that? Why don’t we consider them as other people? We should consider them as other people so that they shouldn’t feel bad.

I would go to disabled students here. I’m not sure if I could reach each and every student, but definitely I would interview with some students, like what changes they want for them. So definitely I would keep that news in front of the other council.

Jaskiran Kaur

Why are you running for this position?

I’ve always wanted to do something different, so I felt like I should do something for students with disabilities, who are suffering with disabilities.

Everybody comes from high school, so they now feel a little bit nervous and they think they may be discriminated [against] by the other students, so that’s why I want to run for this position. Also, I think they should get all of the facilities and accommodations. The instructors should do a survey. Some students who suffer from disabilities, they don’t show it to their instructors sometimes, so I think instructors should conduct a survey in a class, in the beginning, so they can tell through the survey that they are suffering from disabilities so that instructors can do something for them. Also, I want to help them. I want to discuss their views and concerns so that they can share with me. I want to make the best of this position so I can help in any way I can.

Why should students vote for you?

I always do volunteer work here at KPU so I want them to vote for me because I can do my best for them. I can also discuss their problems with the KSA board of directors.

What experience will you be bringing to this position if you’re elected?

I also work in assessment and testing services, so first I was in the position and working with students with disabilities services, so I met so many students here proctoring. That’s why it gave me an idea to do something for them.

Also I was in the Miss British Columbia contest, so I was the top finalist in that. I always wanted to do something in my life, so that’s the only reason why I took this one, to be elected to the students with disabilities representative.

What would you like to change about the Kwantlen Student Association?

I would organize more events for them. There are so many events at KPU, so I also want to do something for students who are disabled. I can organize special events for them. This only I can do for them. Also I can listen to their views and concerns, which problems they have, so I can do something better for them in the future.