Ananya Krishna.

Candidate for President

Hey! My name is Ananya, and I’d love to be your next SU President! The SU has been an integral part of my life and led to my becoming the Humanities School Representative and sitting on 7 different committees, one of which I helped revive. Last year when I went for School Rep, I was optimistic and had a full list of initiatives to set in place. Since then, I’ve realised that I don’t want to make big promises I cannot keep or do so without knowing what students want to see; something I aim to remember if you elect me.

1. Improving the relationship between students and the SU: I know this won’t happen overnight, but I’d like to get the ball rolling. Some ideas I have include adding to the SU welcome book and making it a more accessible online guide, and advertising opportunities and resources such as the Student Voice team and the SU advice centre.

2. More transparency: I’ve heard a lot of criticism of sabbatical officers during my time at Holloway, with most people asking, “well, what do they do?” In response, I aim to hold bi-weekly social media updates on what I’ve accomplished/done in last two weeks. I want people to know what I’m doing, not just through meeting minutes or hearsay, but directly from me.

3. International students support: This is perhaps my most personal point for, as an international student, I see where the SU and college can improve. These include creating more events for international students during welcome week to holding talks on the requirements of Tier 4 visa holders to dealing with cultural shocks. Additionally, I want to create more support about living away from home, the transition from previous education to Holloway, and creating a new support network that’s open to all students.

4. Campaigns: My time as School Rep has inspired me to run campaigns on both consent (carrying on from Henn’s work on student safety) and careers (similar to Kate Robert’s housing week). Both relate to two major concerns from students about general safety and life after university. This includes a consent quiz on Moodle to teach students about what it really means from an educational perspective to running workshops to guide students on their life after graduating.

If you have any questions, I’m more than happy to answer! All you have to do is ask. #AskAnanya