Election Information

Elections for the following WIT Students’ Union positions take place on Wednesday the 14^th of April 2010.

Full-time:

President

Deputy President for Education

Deputy President for Welfare

Part-time:

Communications Officer

Entertainments Officer

Job Description

• President

The Role of the WIT Students’ Union President is to represent the students and their interests on various boards and committees. The President requires good communication and team leadership skills as they must work with the other Union officers and the college authorities in order to secure the best possible outcome for students in the college.

In accordance with section 9.6 of the constitution, the President shall be the chief representative of the students of the college and shall have 6 areas or responsibility;

1. Representation
2. Finance
3. Organisation
4. Supervision and guidance of policy
5. Chief interpreter of the constitution subject to appeals from the board of appeals
6. To chair Executive meetings, General meetings and Council meetings

§ Deputy President for Welfare

The Welfare officer is responsible for the following areas;

1. Welfare and Equality
2. Student Safety
3. Accommodation
4. Security and Health

The Deputy President for Welfare shall deputise for the President in their absence where deemed appropriate by the President. The Welfare Officer is required to be skilled in dealing with delicate situations and needs to be available to all members of the student body to deal quickly and efficiently with welfare issues that arise throughout the year. The Welfare Officer needs to be approachable and deal with student issues in a friendly and confidential manner. The Welfare Officer is required to run and manage various campaigns throughout the year, such as mental health week, sexual health and guidance week etc.

• Deputy President for Education

The Education officer is responsible for the following areas;

1. Education
2. Employment
3. Union Representatives

The Deputy President of Education shall deputise for the President in their absence. The Education Officer needs to have huge knowledge of policies within the college and be capable of fighting for the rights of students. The Education Officer is also responsible for Class Rep system and training, exam support and advice and education policy and support. It is important the Education Officer is capable of managing a large case load, particularly around exam time, and is aware of college procedures pertaining to their post and can advise students around all educational matters.

• Communications Officer

The Communications Officer shall act as secretary for the following meetings;

1. Executive
2. General Meetings
3. Union Council

The Communications Officer is also responsible for advertising and awareness of the above Union bodies.

The Communication Officer is required to make the student body aware of Union activities. They need to be extremely organised and work in the best interest of the students.

• Entertainments Officer

The Entertainments officer shall be responsible for the running of the non-commercial services of the Union in the entertainments field. The Entertainments Officer will also assist Class Reps in their activities and will also aid in the co-ordination and running of fundraisers. Creativity is essential in this role in order to bring the ideas of the student body to life in various Union events and activities throughout the year.

Who can vote?

All those who are members of the Waterford IT Students Union have the right to vote in the elections. Article 3.1 states;

All of the following shall be full members of the Union:

1. All full time students of the college
2. Part time students who pay the current membership fee to the Union.

How Can I Vote

On Wednesday 14^th of April from 9:15am to 5:15pm, call to the polling station relating to the school you study in, outlined below;

Polling Stations

 

School	Campus	Venue	Polling Station
School of Humanities	College Street	Main area in front of the Library entrance	1
School of Engineering	Cork Road	Main Atrium	2
School of Business	Cork Road	The Well Area in the Business block	3
School of Health Science	Cork Road	Main Atrium	4
School of Science	Cork Road	Main Atrium	5
School of Humanities	Cork Road	Main Atrium	6

 

When at the correct polling station you present your WIT card to the election officials who will then give you your ballot forms. You will then be given the opportunity to complete your ballot form, in private and under no pressure or disturbance from others.

NB: It is vital you are able to present your WIT card at the polling station.

Voting Procedure

There are five positions which you are being asked to vote for. Positions for which there is a single candidate running you will be required to tick Yes or No. This candidate will be deemed elected when they reach a majority.

Positions which have more than one candidate running require you to allocate your preferences; 1,2,3 etc. You can complete as many preferences as you wish or simply your first preference. This is done by placing the number 1 beside the photograph of your first preference and number 2 beside your second preference and so on. It is important to remember that by completing votes below your first preference you are indicating that your vote is to be transferred if your first preference is eliminated. This will continue along your ballot paper until a candidate is elected, this is known as single transferable voting. All elections are run by secret ballot and by means of proportional representation by single transferable vote.

The ballots will be colour coded in relation to the positions that are being decided. Therefore the ballot paper for Students’ Union President, Welfare Officer, Education Officer, Entertainment Officer and Communications Officer will be different. This is to enable both the counters and those running for election to easily distinguish between the offices. On the day of voting you will receive five different coloured ballot papers to cast your vote on for the five positions being contested.

If your ballot paper does not indicate a clear choice, for example, if you have indicated two No.1's on the paper, or if anything is written on the ballot paper by which the voter can be identified the vote is spoiled.

Hustings

Hustings are a public forum that allows all candidates who are running for election an opportunity to promote their policy ideas, strengths and objectives for the year to students who don’t know them. It is when the student body listens to the candidates’ ideas and goals and begin to decide who their vote will go to.

The speakers will run in the following order;

· Entertainments (part-time)

· Communications (part-time)

· Welfare (full-time)

· Education (full-time)

· President (full-time)

Each candidate will have a chance to make a short speech and then to answer questions from the audience which are directed to the position, NOT to any individual.

Why it is important to vote

These elections take place in order for the student body to have representation on various college committees, and to stand for what the students believe in.

It is important for a large majority of students to place their vote as this will ensure an accurate representation of the student population. Each elected officer to the Union will play a very important role in the college for the coming year, therefore it is vital that a large number of students get out and vote.

These elected representatives will be your voice in the college, and will be elected by the majority of the electorate and therefore, what they bring to the heads of the college will be deemed to be the views of the student body. It is important that you vote for the candidate that you believe most reflects your wishes and views for the college and who you want to represent you.

Without casting your vote on April 14th you are relinquishing your voice to others in the college to decide the election outcome. This is your opportunity to make a difference and vote for the candidate you want to see in the Students’ Union.

Make your voice heard and have your say on April 14^th and come out and vote!

Returning Officer

The Returning Officer for the WIT Students’ Union election is Neil O’Sullivan. Neil O’Sullivan has a vast amount of experience with the election procedure as he has previously served as assistant Returning Officer for the Academic Council elections. It is the role of the Returning Officer to ensure the elections run as smoothly as possible. He/She is there to be independent, impartial and deal with queries and complaints that may arise from the election process. The Returning Officer has responsibility for the actual counting of the votes and the declaration of results.