Today, we say farewell to Helen - Your Students Union President 2020-21. For 3 years, Helen has represented Students at 3 different levels: Being the Vice President of Welfare 2018-19, then standing in her first election as Student Governor 2019-20 and finally the elected Students' Union President role - it's safe to say she's a part of the furniture!
Helen has a long history with Dudley College, but her journey with Dudley SU began in October 2018, when she joined the Love Our Colleges Rally - a gathering that highlighted the need for funding in Further Education institutions. Helen studied Motor Vehicle Maintenance at the Wolverhampton Street Campus, developing close relationships with her fellow students and tutors. Being a Mature and Disabled student, Helen wanted to ensure students like her have a voice, so she became Vice President of Welfare in 2019.
During this time, she co-founded the Disability Committee, a representational body comprised of students with visible and invisible disabilities. The committee is still going strong in 2021 - if you wish to join, click here!
Furthermore, she was elected Student Governor in the 2019 Student Elections and took part in meetings with the Dudley College Corporation Committee - representing herself alongside Aldrich Gonsalves, SU President 2018-20.
In 2020, she ran for presidency during the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic and was elected into the role in the first virtual-only Student Elections. She focused on a number of issues that developed over the course of the pandemic such as:
Highlighting the difficulty students may face when accessing remote learning
Made sure COVID-19 information was more accessible and understandable to students
Secured free masks for students during the pandemic (college were charging £1 per mask)
Protested for Free meals as part of the national campaign by Marcus Rashford
Operation Santa and Food Bank collection - raised 237 meals for local families
Helen, Dudley Students Union would like to thank you for all your hard work over the last 3 years you have been with us! We wish you all the best for the future and hope we can continue to make great memories together!