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COLLECTIVE REPORTS
Kate Alway - Postgraduate Officer Hi, I’m the new Postgraduate Officer. UTS hasn’t had active postgraduate representation for a while so I’m keen to make 2014 an exciting year. Establishing a Postgrad Department this year is one of our primary goals, and we’re off to a great start, having already affiliated to the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations before the year even began! We’ve also supported the postgrads at Macquarie Uni, whose organisation has just been shut down. Most importantly, I’m looking forward to meeting as many postgrads as possible this year, seeing what you need and want out of your representative organisation and working to make things happen. To say hello, find out more or get onto our email list, contact me at utssa.pg@gmail.com or find our Facebook page.
Welfare Officer – Jess Xu Welcome to a new year of learning, avidly defending the aesthetic value of our tower, and a crippling student debt! How fun does that last bit sound? No? Chances are, with two thirds of students living in poverty, you probably aren’t too keen on this. So that’s where we come in. We are here for you - to do the best we can for your wellbeing. Welfare isn’t a hand out that a generous bureaucratic body gives to lazy, undeserving people. Welfare is the health, happiness, and fortunes of a person or group. That’s what we’re working for, and you can too, by getting in touch via email: utssa.welfare.2014@gmail.com.
Indigenous Officer - Jake Witchard My name is Jake and I’m your Indigenous Officer for 2014. It is my role to represent fellow Indigenous students on the university’s Student Representative Council. This year we face many concerns regarding Indigenous education. The Liberal government’s cuts to higher education are already threatening Indigenous university enrolments. Startup scholarships are being replaced with loan systems – loans our Indigenous university students simply cannot afford. 2014
will be a tough year for us ATSI kids, and it will be through the Indigenous Student Collective (ISC) that our concerns will be raised and our voices be heard. If you would like to find out more about ISC or get involved you can send me an email at: indig.at.uts@gmail.com
Freya Newman – Wom*n’s Officer The UTS Wom*n’s Collective is a student-run group affiliated with the UTSSA, open to all wom*n –identifying and genderminority (intersex, sex and/or gender diverse) persons. We organise, debate and discuss issues and ideas around gender discrimination at university and in the wider community. We meet weekly in the Wom*n’s Room, tucked away behind some musky lockers near the Concourse Café. We also chat and organise events online at facebook.com/groups/utswom.nscollective/. Both the Wom*n’s Room and the online group are autonomous; if you identify as a wom*n or gender-minority person, you are welcome to come along and/or make a request to join online. We also hope to publish a Wom*n’s edition of the UTS magazine Vertigo – you can take a look at the Wom*n’s Vertigo (‘Her/ZirTigo’) of 2013 at issuu.com/feministcollective/docs/ womyns_vertigo. If you have any questions, would just like to introduce yourself, or find out about events, feel free to email utswomenscollective@gmail.com.
Ethno Cultural Officer – Jennifer Pham Howdy! My name is Jennifer Pham and I am the 2014 Ethnocultural Officer. The Ethno-cultural Collective brings together students who have experienced racism and discrimination based on their cultural identity, whether they identify as a person of colour (POC) or are part of a marginalised culture. Our space is autonomous, supportive and full of discussion. If you want to know more, have suggestions, need some support or want to join in on our Collective fun, send an email to ethnoculturaluts@ gmail.com.
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