Leanna Byrne
For the past week I have been trying to hammer home the simple fact that I am the best candidate for the job. My policies come from three and a half years worth of experience. These policies may not be flashy and extravagant, but they are the policies that will truly work with the students of Trinity College to combat the disconnect between them and the Students’ Union.
After three and a half years working for The University Times and closely with the Communications Office I know what works and what doesn’t work. I started off in UT the week after Freshers’ Week. My interview with Senator David Norris made it to the front page and I never looked back. The next year I was made Senior Staff Writer of the News Team and I was appointed News Editor the year after that. Now I am second in command as Deputy Editor. I have worked extremely hard and put in long hours for UT to be where I am today. Not only does this mean that I know the organisation inside-out and backwards, it also means that I have a comprehensive understanding of the direction it is going and how we need to get there.
That said, it is important not to forget that the job of the Communications Officer is a duel role. Not only are you the Editor of The University Times, you are a mandated Officer of the Students’ Union. This can be a tricky role to balance because on one hand you are a leader of the Union and its watchdog on the other. From my experience working as a class rep for two years, a member of the Communications Committee and with The University Times I have already learned how to balance the two areas of college accordingly. In times where there may have been a conflict of interest between UT and the SU, I will be as professional, balanced and fair as the previous Communications Officers I have worked with.
My five point plan, or ‘Connect Five’ as I like to call it, deals with the disconnect students feel with the union in smart, feasible and cost efficient ways.
The UT App is the next step for The University Times. Communication now revolves around our smartphones and we want access to information quicker and faster than ever. At the moment UT is a pain to read on a smartphone, but introducing an app that is free to download for students would increase the readership and the student involvement. However, the best thing about the app is that I already have a working plan to bring it in. After months of research I have a prototype, an implementation strategy and a team who are willing to work on the project over the summer. The aim is to have the app ready for download around August/September.
The TCD Student Hub Website would be a fantastic initiative for students to engage with the Students’ Union at the touch of a button. The discussion boards would harness the sense of community within Trinity to create discourse about the things that matter to students. This puts the power in the students’ hands to find out exactly what they need to know. It also deals with the issues surrounding low turnouts in Town Hall Meetings or Weekly Clinics that have been introduced by other Communications Officers. The interactive calendar will also connect students with clubs, societies and other areas of college.
My next two policies are designed to include more areas of college with the Communications Office.
Firstly, from speaking to many students, what they would like to see from the SU is information that is relevant to them. My promise to introduce student relevant supplements for LGBT, student financing, mental health, etc. will make sure that the Communications Office is producing content that students want to read. Since The University Times is funded by the students themselves, we have more of an obligation than any other Trinity publication to produce student centred content. Secondly, the only way that we can ensure college wide inclusion is through proper distribution of UT. Out in Halls, St James’, Tallaght and D’Olier St they are neglected and by introducing a distribution manager who answers to the Communications Officer I would ensure that UTs are going where they need to go.
Lastly, bringing in local advertising on the UT webpage would not only introduce more student deals, but it would also be beneficial to student services. By generating revenue on a site that gets a lot of hits from students across the country we could tap this unused resource to fund the supplements and other areas of the Communications Office that are in desperate need of funding.
I have the experience that is perfectly catered to the role of Communications Officer. I have worked very hard for this office for a number of years and now I feel that I have what it takes to take it to the next level. My great knowledge of UT and the SU would serve me well as Communications Officer and if you vote for me the students of Trinity will be using the Students’ Union like they never have before.
As a final note I just want to ask students to think about who they are voting for and what they are voting for. At the end of the day that is all that matters next year.
