November 2014 update
06 November, 2014
Union Council – Your Class Reps
First and foremost we would like to thank you all for electing the new team of Class Reps for the current academic year. We were very busy hosting the elections in the first few weeks of term. The time taken to do this has certainly paid off because we now have a very involved and enthusiastic Union Council. As we have stated many times, the Union Council is the backbone of what we do. They also act as a central point of contact for each of you in communicating with us and with your lecturers, class co-ordinators and heads of departments. Class Reps also have the important job of communicating everything that is passed on by us at Union Council level, so that you are all fully informed of the work that the Students’ Union is doing in our representation of the students of CIT. We would ask that all Class Representatives who have been duly elected by their class to register on our online system www.citsu.ie/union/classreps should you not have done so already.
General Meetings & AGM
On Wednesday the 22nd of October, we had our first Union General Meeting of the year. These meetings generally follow the same format as a Union Council Meeting, but it is important to note that these meetings are available for all students to attend and not just Class Reps. All students are invited and encouraged to attend these meetings. Our Annual AGM will take place on Thursday the 20th of November @ 1pm in B243; all students are invited and welcome to attend this. Here, the Students’ Union executive along with the Students’ Union General Manger will be presenting our audited annual accounts.
EY University Prize Tagging
Many of you may have noticed that we put a huge push on the Ernst and Young ‘University Prize Tagging’ competition last month. We were out in the corridors making noise, dragging you guys over to play the game and even using the DJ society and free sweets to draw you over to sign your life away (seriously did you guys not read the terms and conditions?). We did this for a very good reason. Last year we won this competition and bagged a massive €5,000! We are delighted to announce that we were successful in our bid to win to this much coveted prize once again! CIT Abú! We couldn’t have done this without each and every one of you getting involved, for this we extend a huge thanks to all students. We want to say a huge thank you also to staff and to our very own Ernst & Young ambassadors that supported this initiative. Whether it was by accommodating us, sharing our message or being in the hall with us, we were so grateful that you all got behind the cause and did everything you could to help us in our bid to raise this money for such a worthy cause. Winning this competition is a credit to all the many who were involved in one way or another. This year, we have decided that the money will be donated in its entirety to the ‘Fight Back for Sophie’ fund, to help a CIT student Sophie Moore receive urgent treatment for Lyme disease. This is a rare and cruel condition, which will require Sophie to travel abroad to get treatment.
National Day of Action
On Wednesday the 8th of October, 100 CIT Students took to the streets of Dublin for USI’s ‘Education Is’ – Rally for Education. We were delighted with the turn-out, given the horrendous weather conditions we were faced with, both on the night before and on the actual day of the rally. Our message was heard loud and clear, which saw the achievement of a number of key goals:
- No further increases were introduced to the Student Contribution Fee
- The Maintenance Grant was protected.
- €25 million was returned to Higher Education funding after being withheld in 2013 and 2014. This goal in particular was seen by many as being very optimistic, yet we achieved it.
We would like to say a big thank you to the students who marched with us on the day through the adverse weather conditions.
Positive Mind & Body Week
We hope you all enjoyed S.H.A.G. Week, which was held a few weeks ago. It was a very successful campaign with huge student participation. The aim of the week was to provide students with information and create awareness around sexual health, STIs, contraception and unplanned pregnancies. We would like to thank all those students who got involved in the various events and treasure hunt and a huge thank you to all the Welfare Crew who helped out during the campaign. Our next campaign is Positive Mind And Body Week, 10th – 13th of November. The aim of this campaign is to promote positive mental health and healthy body, and to demonstrate the links between the two. There is going to be a lot happening during the week so we would urge all students to get involved in the workshops, talks and events and plenty of competitions. Also don’t forget to pick up some freebies during the week. Please see our timetable on our page for all the happenings throughout the week.
Keep up to date with what will be happening everyday through our Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat pages. Just like and follow each page. We hope you all enjoy the week so get involved and attend the great events and activities that are on. Stay healthy CIT.
Getting the Balance Right
It’s that time of the college year again where the hard work really begins. Sometimes the volume of assignments, continuous assessments etc. can be somewhat over-whelming. The trick is to strive to get the balance right, and not to leave everything until the last minute. A busy few weeks it may be, but the rewards of putting in the work truly pays off. We wish all students well over the course of the rest of the semester. We hope that the rest of the year is a happy, enjoyable and productive one for all CIT students.
Residents Coffee Morning
The Students’ Union hosted our annual Residents Coffee Morning in the Tourism and Hospitality Building Dining Room on Tuesday 28th October from 10.30-12pm. We were delighted with the turn-out from local residents, staff and students alike. The event was immensely enjoyed by all who attended.
Michael, Shane, Ciara, Avril, Rej, Mikey
