Candidate Questionnaire: Sarah Naiman

What personal skills and experiences could you bring to the portfolio?

I have done the position before! With a new General Manager and the upcoming SUB Renewal Referendum, it is essential to have at least one of the VPs return to provide the continuity. For the SUB referendum to be a success and the consultation process to continue in this transparent manner, we need a VP Administration who is aware of the history and the present situation.

Over my past year as VP Admin, I have learned a lot and I have accomplished a lot. In my first month as an Exec, I ran the YouBC Video Contest. After that, I started the annual All Presidents’ Dinner which was a first of its kind event that brought together student executives from all areas of the university, not just the AMS. I also sat on the Aquatic Center Management Committee (ACMC) to present and advocate for the student petition against closing the free gym then, recently, I used that committee to get AMS clubs who consistently use the Aquatic Center a discount equal to the Athletic Teams which saved those clubs thousands of dollars a year. Beside that, with the help of Brittany Tyson, I renovated the Pit and brought in AMS Link, the first step to streamlining the bureaucratic processes for clubs. Furthermore, in conjunction with the Debating Society, one of our clubs, I ran the Dean’s Debate which brought together the dean of Commerce, Arts and Pharmacy to debate the strength of their respective programs.

All in all, I feel that I have done a lot this past year and still have a lot more to do. My primary goal for next year is to continue with SUB Renewal and ensure a successful referendum where students receive a building that meets their needs for the next 40 years. As well, I will continue with University negotiations to ensure that both the University and the province contribute to this building project.

If you could change the way SAC functions, how would you do it?
I think that SAC needs to have less people who work more hours. Right now, each individual Commissioner has their own, very specialized job on SAC so if, for example, there is a question by a Club Exec about bookings, that Club Exec will be referred to the Bookings Commissioner. In my opinion, this is not good customer service. If we reduce the amount of Commissioners and pay our employees better, we can expect more from them. Until we do that, SAC is essentially a group of volunteers that we ask way too much from. I have been lucky to have a great group of Commissioners and a very strong Vice-Chair. If I didn’t have strong individuals, SAC would not be able to work the way it does. By increasing the pay and hours and reducing the people, SAC can function more productively and effectively to meet the many needs of our clubs. As well, as AMSLink continues to develop, that will continue to help reduce some of the administrative strain put on the commissioners so they can focus on more rewarding tasks such as a second Clubs Days.