Cóilín Garvey | University Observer

By University Observer | Mar 6 2017

Cóilín Garvey is running for C&C, with his goals for the next year including a pop-up SU stand and more diverse UCD Ents events.[br]CÓILÍN Garvey wants to create a union that is accessible and increase student engagement with the Students’ Union. His four main campaign promises are increased online engagement, bringing the SU to students in the form of a pop-up stand, to diversify ents and campaign on fees.Second year German and Politics Student, Garvey is currently the public relations officer for UCD German Society and Student Brand Manager for Red Bull Ireland. Garvey says he wasn’t involved much with the union in first year and only became involved in second year due to his job with Red Bull. “That’s when I got to know Luke a lot better through teaming up to launch things or organise events on campus.” Garvey says he realised that the C&C position could be a great way of setting up relationships between the union and students throughout their degree.“I don’t think you could really have a college without a union to support them” said Garvey. “Students can’t go through three or four years of a degree without a core group of people working for their interests. I think that the students’ union needs to be there, always working for the betterment of their students and on their behalf.”

I think we need to have smaller regular events on campus.

One of Garvey’s main goals for next year is increased use of SU’s various media outlets, mainly Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter. “I think all of the media outlets that the SU has need to be used as best as possible but I think that there needs to be a lot more of consolidation… I think that the start of every week or every two weeks there needs to be a schedule of what’s about to happen outlining everything that’s about to happen in college and all the ways the students can get involved.”Garvey also wants to increase SU production of vlogs, saying he would like to use them to introduce students to the union and provide SU council updates through them. Although he has no experience making vlogs, he does have some experience in video production. Garvey believes they could be a good way to give students information about the SU in a passive way as well as encourage students’ participation in future events.“I think that the whole point of the vlogs would be a structured post as in people who would see a vlog, attend the event and then see a vlog that’s happening last month last two weeks and they go ‘oh cool I was there’… Maybe tag their friends, share it around in that way.”Garvey also wants to introduce a pop-up SU stand. This would allow Garvey to move around to different building on the SU campus to bring the SU to students rather than the other way around. He plans to post where he will be on a given day, set up his stand with free refreshments and leaflets about the union and invite passing students to have a chat with him about his campaigns or the SU in general.Garvey plans to keep as many union events as possible on campus including the Freshers’ Ball if UCD will permit it.“I think we need to have smaller regular events on campus in company with [the] Freshers’ Ball to keep people’s interests on campus” he said. Garvey wants to diversify the events held by the SU so that some have nothing to do with drinking or a party. He also wants to make SU events more regular. “We don’t need a burst of one week events” he said. Feeling that SU currently do events in bursts of week events such as Freshers’ week or RAG week. “I don’t think we need to box events up to a week on campus.”

I think all of the media outlets that the SU has need to be used as best as possible.

Although fees are one of his four main campaign points, Garvey will wait until the students vote on fees before he will take a stance on them himself. “I think that the incoming students union needs to be prepared to address those problems [of student housing and prices]… we need to be ready to campaign on behalf of the students to regulate or at least keep the on campus accommodation fees as low as possible” he said.Garvey is reluctant to take a stance on issues relating to students saying that he will wait for students to come to him and will work with them on whatever issues are brought to him. On the issues of student fees, a united Ireland, SUSI and sexual consent he said he did not have a stance on them. He does however “fully support” the repeal the 8^th campaign.When asked how he will find out what students want him to campaign on, he said he would use his pop-up stand, push features on the website where students could give him feedback and that his door will be open for students throughout the year.