Another year, another student council. The first student council of the year has kicked off! You can’t exactly say it was a full house but it still was a very busy first session, with a hefty amount of policies to get through.
Before we begin…
Kevin St. College officier and postgrad officier get sworn in, who if you did not know, got elected last week! Congratulations to Barry and Daniel!
USI’s Dublin Regional officer came along to our meeting and kicked things off with some updates as to what USI has been up to as of late. Some of the current campaigns they are 
working on are the Education Is… campaign, which seeks to reduce the cost of college. The other is the housing campaign, which the Raise the Roof protest at the beginnng of the month was part. There was a turn out of around 12,000 people, many of these from DITSU which, he said, was great to see. They are also working on rebranding their current mental health campaign, that will also include an app this time. Although this is all that we know about it so far. He also told us about the app; VideoDoc. If you don’t know about VideoDoc, it is a doctor apoointment app, which is actually a very useful tool. If you need a perscription, or a quick question for a doctor, you can use this app to ask rather than have to wait and book for an appointment in person. Of course, this is not meant to be used as a complete replacement of attending your regular GP. However this is a free service for all members of USI, which includes all students of DIT.
As the current Luas and Dublin Bus costs are set to rise yet again, a councillor asked if there was something that could possibly be done about this, given that each year this also effectively raises the cost of living in Dublin. He reported that he would look into the possibility of this and report back next time!
The next big talking point- TU Dublin- hurrah! The official merging is set to take place on
the 1st of January, with a proper blow out planned for February. Essentially this would be one big celebration for the merging of DIT, ITT and ITB. The logo and branding for TU Dublin is set to be released in December. This raised a question from a councillor, asking whether or not there was any input to the branding? DITSU President Pierre Yimbog said that over the summer, workshops were done where students were invited in, and their ideas on input for branding were noted and taken into consideration.
At this time, nothing else significant will change, except for the higher ups. DITSU will not be affected yet from January onwards. However there is due to be a meeting in November where students can attend, and ask any TU Dublin questions that they might have. Sounds like it would certainly be worth attending! There will be a new president for TU, and Pierre is on the panel that will interview the potential new TU presidents. The successful candidate is due to come into office on the 2nd of April!
Next, we were given an update on the microwaves situation by VP of Education, as the VP of Welfare was not able to attend council.
As you have probably noticed, all of the microwaves on all campus have been removed. This was done due to health and safety issues. DITSU is aware that there is a very high demand for the microwaves however, as they were provided by DITSU, it was their job (and ours as students) to keep the microwaves clean. This was important not just because who wants to use a dirty microwave? But also to avoid cross contamination with any foods that might be left behind and someone else might be allergic to. Overall the upkeep was too much and not being met. Therefore now VP of Welfare is lobbying DIT to provide, clean and maintain them themselves. DITSU feels that this is something DIT should be providing in the first place, and not the students.
Finally, a big talking point- the question of whether or not to livestream student council meetings. If we did, how would it be done? Live video to Facebook? A video recorded during the meetings and then edited as needed and uploaded later? Or would podcasting be the way to go, as lots of people don’t feel comfortable speaking when there’s a camera on them? DITSU is hoping to begin using new technology to try to involve the students as best as possible. What do you think; if the student council meetings were livestreamed, would you watch them? So that you could also be in the loop with what’s going on and what your councillors are discussing on your behalf? Let us know!
As always, do keep in mind that student council meetings are open to everyone so even if you’re not a member of council, you can still come along to the meetings. You won’t be allowed to vote on any motions, but it is a great way to stay informed and up to date with what’s going on.
Until next time!
Interested in becoming a Student Councillor? Find out how here.
Visual Artist, student at DIT, and writer for DITSU.tv
I've been writing for DITSU.tv for 2+ years now, still ongoing
I mainly cover events but also like to write a few helpful, lifestyle pieces and here and there
