Meet the Candidates for President!
The Presidential Debate will be taking place on Thursday, March 24th at 6:00PM and streamed live on the Engineering and Computer Science Discord Server and Zoom.
Zoom link:
https://uvic.zoom.us/j/83495749520
Meeting ID: 834 9574 9520
(There will also be free pizza!)
Voting will start at 10:00 AM on March 25th and run until 10:00 AM on March 27th. You can access the voting at webvote.engr.uvic.ca.
Abdul Abuelezam
Personal Description:
From holding half a dozen different positions within the society, contributing to every portfolio, and putting a lot of work into making the ESS what it is today; I have done a lot over the past three years. I’ve even led a small revolution. My goal this coming year is to take all the experience that I have accumulated and use it to build the ESS into the organization that it has the potential to be. And I’ll achieve that in the way I have achieved everything else, tons of student consultation and feedback with a focus on community building.
Platform:
Recently, we have tackled problems with student engagement, reconnected with first years, and established ourselves as an organization that fights for students. However, we have missed the mark on providing students with fun and consistent events. I will return the ESS to having an event calendar planned out within the first two weeks of each semester, recurring smaller events (like movie nights, game nights, or paint nights), and generally providing the VP Events with the tools, information, and volunteers they need to succeed.
My next focus will be on fixing barriers of entry into volunteering with the ESS. As far as I could remember, the ESS volunteers were divided into three groups of people: the Directors at Large who assisted everyone else when they could; the ESS Executive, the semesterly elected positions who worked on events and services; and, the ESS Council, who made high-level decisions that affected the entirety of the ESS and provided knowledge and support to the executive. However, as of recently, the ESS has had problems with tasks being delegated properly, leading to burnout within the council and a lack of direction and support for everyone else. I will fix that by properly orienting volunteers, insisting that all council members work with DaLs and the Executive on all projects, and providing opportunities for DaLs to jump in on smaller projects and leaving the council to handle planning for the future.
Jessica Hubbs
Personal Description:
My name is Jessica Hubbs and I am excited to be re-running for ESS President. I am a third-year civil engineering student and I am on the Vikes Women’s Rowing team. I have been on the ESS council for three years, as First Year Representative, VP Internal, and this past year as President. As President, my focus was to create a smooth transition back to in-person events and rebuild Engineering and Computer Science (ECS) community involvement from the bottom up (starting with first-years, by reinstating ESS ideas into orientation). I have helped support the ESS council as we look to include CSC students into our society, and was successful with the majority of my goals from my previous platform.
Platform:
During my time at UVic, the ESS has created opportunities for students to get involved in their engineering and computer science community. In the past year, we have seen an incredible amount of new involvement from upper-years and first-years — a goal of mine from my previous platform — as we slowly come out of Covid. If re-elected, I will build upon the momentum of this year’s ESS council and continue working to create the UVic ECS culture. Some of my more specific goals include:
- Supporting a new generation of ESS members: helping new council, directors, and volunteers build confidence and knowledge, with the intent to continue growing the ESS and ECS community overall, as past leaders graduate, and we merge with CSC students.
- Collaborating with faculty for student space and resources: working with faculty in planning the new buildings in order to develop our own ECS student space on campus, and implement more academic and peer support resources for first- and upper-years.
- Building excitement through community opportunities: spreading knowledge about event planning and execution to unite the ECS, making ECS jackets more accessible, and making the ESS space nicer, more inclusive and more welcoming.
Kye Gillespie
Personal Description:
I am a 5th year Civil Engineering student, pursuing a career in construction and project management. Through a combined history of Theatre and Engineering, I am comfortable being in the public image and I’m working hard to develop greater leadership skills to help fellow students. My university experience has been dominated by help and collaboration of fellow students, and it’s that exact sense of community I’m hoping to continue developing in the ESS.
Platform:
With the help of my council, as president I am aiming to achieve three goals on top of running the ESS in a transparent, efficient, and welcoming manner. My main goal is to work hard to complete the integration of the Computer Science students into the Engineering Student Society begun by the previous president and council to produce a unified student society for the Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering.
My second goal is to increase outreach and awareness, as for the majority of my degree I was unaware of the ESS and all it provided. I hope to mitigate this issue for future students by reaching more students and providing even more opportunities for participation. Lastly I hope to continue the positive, friendly atmosphere and community of the ESS, while bringing in some fresher ideas as a newer executive member.