Student - May 26, 2010

More than thirty candidates for the Student Council

It is sexy again to be in the Student Council. Students have 34 candidates to choose from. They have until 1 June to cast their votes.

In recent years, so few students have wanted to be in the Student Council that no elections have been needed. But the consultative body is suddenly sexy again. VeSte, one of the two student parties in the Student Council, has managed to find 28 candidates. 'Eighteen of them are at the bottom of the list and not seriously interested in office. They are all people who have supported us over the past year and are helping us work out our policies', explains Kees van der Ark, who currently represents VeSte in the Student Council. The remaining ten candidates, including one Chinese student, do want to join the Council.
VeSte has made quite some headway over the past year. The party insisted on the expansion of the Bongerd sports centre and looked for solutions to the accommodation shortage. They joined forces with the Wageningen Student Union (WSO) and the Progressive Student Party (PSF), the other party in the Student Council, to campaign against the short Christmas break.
VeSte has seven of the twelve seats in the Council at the moment. Two of PSF's Council members decided to become independent members. 'They took a different view on collaboration', explains PSF's Suzanna van der Meer. Her party now has six candidates: two Dutch students and four Chinese students.
Both the PSF and VeSte think student accommodation and the quality of education are important. VeSte is also focusing on eating facilities for students and the teaching buildings. Internationalization is high on the agenda for the PSF and it also wants a separate, independent newspaper for the university's students and staff. ® AB

Students have until 1 June to vote, via http://csa.wur.nl

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