B-Soc Election Candidates

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Presidential Candidates

Matthew Casale

Hello! My name is Matthew Casale I am a 3A environmental engineering student. For the past 16 months I have been your Vice president academic. I have done my best to advocate for you and provide a positive learning environment. 

I Have decided to run for the position of engineering society president. I am doing this to for 3 reasons. 

  1. I want to continue advocating for you and to ensure that even in a time like this we can strive for being the best that we can be. I want to do my best to continue creating a positive, safe, and effective learning environment for every student that I can. This means improving our wellness services, having more lines of communication, and providing a larger net of resources.
  2. I want to make sure everything still runs, with two online terms back to back the engineering society will be taking a hit. Whether that’s engagement or simply funds I want to ensure that we will still be here with the same level of engagement and fun that we have had in the past. What we will be doing is creating an example of what the new normal is while ensuring that we still have some pretty awesome events.
  3. Lastly, I want to have fun with all of you and all the incoming years. I want everyone to be able to see the engineering society as I have seen it as a positive, and friendly space to be in. 

So, I hope that you will vote for me for the engineering society president on June 5th. I will do my best to make all of that happen. If you have any questions or comments please come out to the council meeting on June 3rd or feel free to message me on what ever form of communication, you have. (I will be replying to letters if they manage to get to me in time).

Vice President Academic Candidates

Ariel Gans

Hey there! I’m Ariel Gans and I’m running to be your next EngSoc VP Academic. I’m a 2B Tron who wants to see our school give its students the best education we can squeeze out of them! 

I’d like to improve and expand the educational and co-op resources on the EngSoc website. This includes adding resources such as understandable information about the waterloo works hiring cycle, and also includes advertising the EngSoc resources page to make students more aware of it. I’d also like to encourage departments to have clearer and more consistent information about Work Term Reports. 

Another advocacy priority for me is student mental health. I want to encourage the faculty and departments to enforce stricter policies regarding the timing of online assessments and lectures. I will also push for another student poll regarding class rankings. Student polls should be clear and understandable so that change can confidently be made. 

My main focus is accountability for faculty. Faculty and department policy should be clear and enforced. Students should know what their professors are and are not supposed to be doing, and academic reps should know what they can do when their classes have serious problems. I will make sure to meet with all academic reps and work to build resources for them. 

All this is in the interest of improving your student life and making sure you get the most out of your tuition, both online and in person. 

Vice President Communications Candidates

Elle Nichols

Hi! My name is Elle Nichols, and I am in 3A Mechanical Engineering here at the University of Waterloo. I am running to be EngSoc VP Communications because I have a passion for the Engineering Society and the desire to make positive change happen. I have been very involved throughout my time at UWaterloo and want to do more for the society I am passionate about. In the VP Communications role, I will make communication from the Society clearer, effectively advocate on behalf of all engineering students at UW, and implement fun initiatives to help foster a sense of community.

To improve clarity and accessibility in all Society communication, and to make it easy for you to find the information you need, when you need it, I will:

  • Overhaul EngSoc poster boards to clearly show announcements, this week’s events and future events
  • Revamp LCD screens to ensure information you need is easily accessible and up to date
  • Ensure EngSoc’s website is updated to include the latest information available

To effectively advocate on behalf of all engineering students at UW, I will:

  • ​​Promote diversity in engineering to ESSCO and CFES
  • Highlight the lack of student mental health resources to ESSCO and CFES to ensure this issue becomes a priority in government education policy
  • Listen to your concerns and ensure they are accurately represented

To foster a sense of belonging, camaraderie and confidence in the student community, I will implement fun initiatives like:

  • The Spirit Squad team that pays surprise visits to study spaces around campus to share info about upcoming events and hand out treats
  • The Inter-Class Challenge that pits classes against each other to rack up challenge completion points for a cash prize to be shared by the winning team

Thanks for reading about my platform! To learn more, visit bit.ly/elle4vpcomm

Vice President Student Life Candidates

Rachel Ruffo

Student Body

One of my goals is to plan events that Waterloo students will enjoy! School is hard so let’s do fun things! I will ensure that there is a diverse and fun assortment of activities and events that will appeal to different interests.

Community

Another goal is to have a positive impact on the Waterloo/Kitchener community through various outreaches and fundraising events. Fostering a positive relationship with our community is a great way to give back and have a lasting impact.

Management

My final goal is to ensure that the directors of EngSoc social events are supported and that the termly calendar is managed without conflicts. This will ensure a smooth and fun year for all.

Vice President Finance Candidates

Nicole Sos

Hey friends, I’m Nicole Sos and I’d like to be your next VP Finance! As VP Fin I will:

  1. Introduce eco-friendly options to the CnD 
    1. By replacing single use materials with recyclable and compostable options EngSoc can work towards becoming a more sustainable society  
  2. Expand the Novelties and Rigidware selection 
    1. Listen to the masses and add more swag! 
  3. Work to ensure that POETS is welcoming and accessible to everyone
    1. Work with POETS managers to create initiatives aimed at first years 

I’m sure you’re all wondering, who is she? Well allow me to introduce myself, I am a 3A geological engineering student, I am passionate about the outdoors and enjoy, hiking, biking, climbing, and I will lick any rock (No Exceptions)! In the past I have been involved in the Engineering Society as the WEC Commissioner, Environment Director, Women in Engineering Director, Inclusivity Director. As well, I am an executive of the UW Outers Club, and the Sustainability Commissioner for ESSCO.  Needless to say, I have a fairly good understanding of how EngSoc functions! 

Finally, what are my qualifications? A large part of the VPF role is creating a termly budget and issuing reimbursements, both of which are tasks I have experience in. I have been involved in creating fiscal budgets and doing invoice reviews for multi-million-dollar mining projects, and on a smaller scale I create the budget for WEC. 

Thank you for reading and I hope you consider voting for me as the next VP Finance! 

Vanessa Hu

Hi everyone! My name is Vanessa Hu, I’m in environmental engineering, and I’m running for EngSoc VP of finance.

My experience with finance is extensive. I’ve been in charge of the budget for two basketball tournaments and three volleyball tournaments. I’ve also organized numerous fundraisers supporting causes ranging from solar panels, to refugees, to sports equipment for isolated Arctic communities. In addition, my entire role at my first job was to choose which projects my company would take on according to their five-year fiscal plan. I have a ton of experience with budgeting and accounting, and I think I’d be well-prepared for the VP finance roll.

My platform for if I were to be elected is simple and straightforward. Firstly, I want to support as many projects that the students want as possible. I want to survey as many students as possible, and then whatever activities, or initiatives you guys are interested in— let me know and I’ll try to fund as many of them I can! Secondly, I want to make EngSoc more fiscally transparent. I want to report all of the projects and events we’re supporting, so the students can be sure that your money is being used responsibly and intentionally.

I’m really excited to be running and I’d love to represent you all on EngSoc. I hope you guys are doing well this semester, and I can’t wait to see everyone in person again!

WEEF Director Candidates

Kasturi Ghosh

Cheers to the Spring Term! I hope everyone is having a great online term. It is a weird time for everyone but the best we can do is stay positive and keep pushing forward. 

 My name is Kasturi Ghosh and I am excited to run for the position of WEEF Director in the upcoming EngSoc elections. I am a first year Environmental Engineering student, with a passion for sustainability and a love for succulents. During my Co-Op and my first semester at UWaterloo, I had the chance to learn about the workings of the WEEF (Waterloo Engineering Endowment Foundation) which inclined me to run for this position and I believe I can truly make an impact! 

I have a set of goals I wish to achieve if given the opportunity to work with WEEF as the B-Soc Director. My priority is to improve the educational environment for undergraduate engineering students and resources available to all students. I would do this by engaging more students and conducting effective surveys to understand their needs which will assist in the decision-making process when it comes to approval of funds. I really want to promote new sustainable initiatives on campus to help reach University of Waterloo’s goal to become a zero-waste campus by 2035. Encouraging new ideas for student design teams is also part of my agenda. Lastly, I would like to improve communication between WEEF and EngSoc and make more students more aware about WEEF’s work on campus. I also wish to establish a rapport with the Funding Council to get a better understanding of their working.

I am a suitable candidate for this position because of my experience as Academic Representative for the last two semesters, which has greatly helped me understand the feedback mechanism and how to effectively communicate it to the authorities to obtain positive results. I’m currently Secretary of B-Soc and also involved with A-Soc and B-Soc through directorship positions. I am very enthusiastic about working with WEEF and will always put in my 100%.

Don’t forget to vote during the EngSoc Council voting period: 5th to 8th June at vote.wusa.ca and if you like my ideas, please vote for me as your next WEEF Director!

Have a great term!

Do you have more questions for the candidates? Ask your questions in the Q&A doc here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-b6-AOiCmvOYWu32-uRqirPnKOWTUy0FqsSd6PAK2fI/edit

VOTE JUNE 5-8 AT VOTE.WUSA.CA