Candidate Profiles: 2022-23 SMUSA Presidential Election
Compiled by Claire Keenan on behalf of The SMU Journal
Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the candidates and may not necessarily reflect those of The SMU Journal.
This article is intended to serve as a stable source of information regarding the 2022 SMUSA Presidential Candidates. This year, there are two candidates: Aljero Knowles and Isobel Tyler. Both candidates participated in the Presidential Debate last week, on February 10th. The debate was covered by The SMU Journal here, and the live stream is available to watch here. Read on for a brief overview of the candidates’ platforms.
Photo by Aljero Knowles
Aljero Knowles (he/him)
Aljero is a third-year Commerce student at Saint Mary’s University, and is a current Resident Assistant on campus. As an International student from the Bahamas, Aljero has stressed that a main component of his campaign is to “bridge the gap between students at SMU and success both inside and outside of school”. According to Aljero’s campaign instagram, there are three main pillars to his campaign: promoting mental health outreach for students; advocating for flexible learning models for students; and encouraging more student involvement and participation on and off campus.
As established in the Presidential Debate, the first issue that Aljero would tackle should he be elected is providing more mental health resources on campus. Going into more detail on his campaign Instagram account (@aljieforpresident), there are three ways Aljero intends to promote mental health outreach for students.
Educate about Existing Resources: As an important first step, one component of Aljero’s campaign is to ensure that students are aware of and have access to the resources that are currently available to them, whether it is through the Counselling Centre or the Residence Wellness Committee.
Start a Mental Health Awareness Society: Aljero aims to establish a society that works in tandem with the Counselling Centre and Residence Wellness to support and advocate for students.
Host Frequent Mental Health Workshops and Seminars: As a final component of his mental health outreach pillar, Aljero states that, as SMUSA President, he will bring in experts from outside Saint Mary’s University to run workshops and seminars on various topics related to overall mental health.
Photo by Isobel Tyler.
Isobel Tyler (she/her)
Isobel is a fourth-year student at Saint Mary’s University, pursuing a Criminology and Social Justice & Community Studies double major with a minor in English. Isobel has been very involved on campus, having taken on roles such as Chair of the Residence Events Committee, Programming Assistant for Residence Life, Resident Assistant, and most recently, Vice President of Student Affairs with SMUSA.
As established on Isobel’s campaign website and campaign Instagram account (@isobelforpresident), there are four pillars to her campaign: advocating for a permanent hybrid learning model; food accessibility on campus; student society growth and support; and increased international student support.
Permanent Hybrid Learning Model: In the Presidential Debate, Isobel stated that establishing a permanent hybrid learning model at Saint Mary’s would be her first step as SMUSA President in order to improve accessibility for students and allow for virtual learning whenever needed.
Food Accessibility on Campus: With a goal of “changing how we respond to student hunger”, Isobel’s platform includes expanding the Community Food Room on campus and advocating for better training and attention to dietary needs, such as having gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, vegan, and Halal options always available.
Student Society Growth and Support: As Vice President of Student Affairs, Isobel oversees and supports all student societies and has orchestrated the Society Summit that takes place each semester; therefore, it is no surprise that advocating for greater society support is a pillar in Isobel’s platform. With this goal, Isobel aims to establish a permanent space on campus for societies and advocate for greater funding opportunities.
Increased International Student Support: Considering SMU has a large percentage of international students, Isobel states that as SMUSA President, she would advocate for more resources and support, including establishing an International Student Ambassador Program, to facilitate a smooth transition to Canada and Saint Mary’s itself.
Throughout the campaign, Isobel released polls on her campaign Instagram account asking students to reply to the question “What’s one thing you’d change about your SMU experience?” and to a handful of polls to measure students’ perspectives on the four pillars of her campaign.
As students, we have the unique ability to have a direct say in who leads the students’ association and is our voice when advocating for students’ needs. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the candidates’ platforms before you vote! The candidates will likely be posting more detailed information about their platforms in the coming days.
The voting period is from 9am on Wednesday, February 16th to 5pm on Thursday, February 17th, 2022 and you can vote here.