Did you vote in the FUSA Elections? The results are in! A huge thanks to all students who voted and the candidates who ran for a position in 2021! We are delighted to announce the winning candidates:
Student Council
STUDENT PRESIDENT
Sean Henschke
GENERAL SECRETARY
Molly Turnbull
EDUCATION OFFICER
Benika Bhoola
WOMEN’S OFFICER
Luca Sardelis
WELFARE OFFICER
Jesy Murphy
POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS OFFICER
Emily Williams
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS OFFICER
Rubayat Sarwar
QUEER OFFICER
Shanii Sparrow
INDIGENOUS STUDENTS OFFICER
Keenan Smith
ENVIRONMENT OFFICER
Amy Tschirn
DISABILITIES OFFICER
Anu Francis
Student Council
SOCIAL ACTIVITIES OFFICER
Ange Nishimwe
MATURE AGE STUDENTS OFFICER
Ethan Zimmermann
GENERAL COUNCIL MEMBERS (SIX POSITIONS)
Rachel Hemer
Rafael Aquino
Hieu Hoang
Kaylen Scurrah
Darlyn Tan-Sik
Callan Alexander
EMPIRE TIMES EDITOR TEAM
Artemis Perry, Brie Dark and Nathan Cheetham
NUS CONFERENCE DELEGATES
Benika Bhoola
Artin Arjomandi
Sean Henschke
Caitlin Allman
Josh Rayner
Lachlan White
Get to know who is running and how they plan to represent you.
Click below to check out all the candidate statements*
*Candidate statements were temporarily removed so that they could be reviewed by the Returning Officer. This review established that a number of candidate statements were, or were likely to be, misleading or deceptive and were therefore in breach of the election regulations. Amendments to those statements have now been made at the request of the Returning Officer.
Download your 2020 elections guide below.
It’s easy to read PDF with everything you need to know in one place!
Catch up on the Presidential Debate here.
Positions Open
International Students Officer
General Council Member (Six Positions)
National Union of Students Conference Delegate Positions (Six Positions)
2020 Election Timeline
Nominations Open 9:00am Mon Sept 7
Nominations Close 4:00pm Mon Sept 21
Election Begins 9:30am Tues Oct 6
Election Finishes 2:00pm Thurs Oct 8
Returning Officer: Dr Mary Heath
Assistant Returning Officer: TBC
Election Tribunal:
Professor Christopher Kee
Dr Luis Da Vinha
Ms Jody St Clair
The Details:
Student Council is the governing body of the Flinders University Student Association (FUSA). Not only do Student Council guide and direct the decision making of FUSA, they also play a vital role in representing students in conversations with the University about matters that affect you!
All positions on the Student Council are democratically elected by the student body.
The functions and purpose of FUSA are to:
For all the formal details and rules regarding FUSA and Student Council you can check out the FUSA Constitution here
Eligibility
1. For the purposes of this election, the candidate and seconder must be a student as defined by the FUSA Election Regulations in the following way:
‘Student’ means any currently enrolled student of the University, who is enrolled as a full-time, part-time or external student as defined by the University. “As defined by the University” is a composite of the University Council definitions of: ‘Postgraduate Student’, ‘Undergraduate Student’ and ‘current enrolment’.
Non-award students are not included within this definition. A student has a ‘current enrolment’ if they are enrolled for a topic which is identified as to be counted toward the requirements of a course as defined by the University. Members of Student Council must remain students for the duration of their term on Student Council.
2. Several Student Council positions have specific eligibility requirements. These are set out in the table below.
Name of position | Eligibility of candidate |
Postgraduate Students Officer | Only students who are enrolled as a Postgraduate student |
Indigenous Students Officer | Only students who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander |
International Student Officer | Only International Students. |
Queer Officer | Only students who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex or Asexual. |
Women’s Officer | Only students who identify as women. |
Disabilities Officer | Only students identifying as having a visible and/or invisible disability. |
Mature Age Students Officer | Only students 25 year or older as of 1 December 2020. |
3. As per the Flinders University Student Association Constitution, it is also required that all Student Council members must be a member of the Student Association.
If you’re not already a member of FUSA you can join here
Student Council Induction
As per section 20 of the FUSA Election Regulations, it is compulsory for a person elected to Student Council at the Annual Election to attend an Induction. The dates for Induction in 2020 are not yet set but will be run over two days during the last two weeks of November
Hours per week: 30 Hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $28,500 pa
The Student President shall:
The Student President is in high demand throughout the year as University staff are keen to engage and receive input from the Student President on important matters relating to all students. Consequently, it is expected that the Student President be available to attend regular meetings and join University committees to ensure that the student voice is included in decision making across the many facets of the University.
Given the large time commitment involved in the role of Student President, it is usual that the Student President will reduce their study load to one or two topics each semester.
Hours per week: 10 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $10,000 pa
The General Secretary shall:
Hours per week: 10 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $10,000 pa
The Education Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Women’s Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Welfare Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Queer Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Post Graduates Students Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The International Students Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Indigenous Students Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Environment Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Social Activities Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
The Disabilities Officer shall:
Hours per week: 3 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $3,000 pa
Mature Age Students Officer shall:
Hours per week: 2 hours (approximate)
Honorarium: $2,000 pa
General Council Members shall:
Empire Times Editorial Team (Three Student Editors)
Hours per week: 20-30 hours across the team (approximate)
Honorarium: $10,000 pa per editor (based on meeting publication deadlines)
Background
Empire Times (Or ET) is the student publication of Flinders University. It includes campus news, student-centric articles and information, and is a platform for emerging talent at Flinders. Empire Times is currently in its 51st year of publication.
A team of three student editors make up the Empire Times Editorial Team. The team is responsible for the creation, design and publication of regular editions of the student publication Empire Times as well as online content. Empire Times editors are also responsible for any additional content or activities required for the further promotion of Empire Times. 20-30 hours of work is expected per week from the team.
If you’re an aspiring journalist, graphic designer, wordsmith or media creative with the desire and knowhow to lead a publication, this could be for you! Students will have the opportunity to work with Adobe Creative Cloud and develop their communication skills
As an Empire Times Editor you are required to:
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING EMPIRE TIMES NOMINATIONS
Candidates shall run in teams of three. Candidates can only nominate for one team as opposed to simultaneously nominate in multiple teams.
Please contact fusa@flinders.edu.au if you would like assistance in forming an editorial team
National Union of Students Conference Delegate Positions (Six Positions)
The National Union of Students (NUS) is the peak representative body for undergraduate students in Australia.
NUS works to protect the rights of students across Australia, organises national campaigns on issues affecting students in a range of different areas, and ensures that the student voice is heard by government, the media, and the public.
Nominations are now invited from all currently enrolled Flinders students as a Delegate (6 positions) to the NUS National Conference in 2020. The National Conference sets the policy for NUS, determines its structure, and elects the National Office-Bearers and the National Executive. The conference is held in early December 2020 in Melbourne and will run for a minimum of five days. Due to current COVID-19 associated restrictions, alternative arrangements will be put in place for delegates unable to travel to Melbourne this year.
Student Council and Empire Times positions are undertaken on a volunteer basis and are expected to fulfil the duties and responsibilities set out in the FUSA Student Council Members Roles and Duties Regulations and the Empire Times Regulations. In recognition of the work involved in contributing to the Student Council and Empire Times, Flinders University will make an honorarium payment.