Updates by Maike van de Pavoordt and Isabel Haupt Kuntze
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Updates
21:44 As the new board approaches the stage, cheers break out. Gabrielle Gailey concludes the Elections GA.
21:44 Current Committee Affairs Officers Hayden Anderson, Pia Schardt and Nimorika Sekhri announce next year’s CAOs Louise Binand, Louise Boulay, Ana Vladescu as next year’s CAOs.
21:44 Current External Relations Officer Deirdre de Leeuw den Bouter announces Isabel de Boer as the next ERO.
21:42 Current Treasurer Jonas Dornieden announces Marlene Rosa as the next Treasurer.
21:42 Current Secretary Sasha Rosier announces Aleina Gandhi as the next Secretary.
21:41 The 2025-2026 AUCSA board is now being announced. Sterre Vreeker has been elected as the new AUCSA President.
21:41 Gabrielle Gailey gives thanks to the Elections Commission for all their hard work during the election process. Gailey thanks Oliver West for hosting the elections debate and the advisory council. Additionally, she thanks the 2024-2025 AUCSA board on behalf of the AUCSA community.
21:39 The vote is now closed. Gailey introduces the next segment of the agenda, which is the open floor. She is met with silence and the open floor has closed.
21:29 Gailey corrects, however, that it could also be possible that two separate emails are sent out.
21:25 Gailey adds that, for people with proxy votes, those links for voting can be found in the same email, underneath the link for their own vote.
21:23 Gabrielle Gailey starts to explain the voting procedure. Emails will be sent out to those who registered. Only for the position of CAO, multiple candidates can be selected. After 10 minutes, voting will be closed!
21:21 The Elections Commission, consisting of Gaia Lucidi, Tom Heyning, and Liv Vieira, are invited to the stage to propose their 2025-2026 AUCSA board. The proposed board consists of Sterre Vreeker, Aleina Gandhi, Marlene Rosa, Isabel de Boer, Louise Boulay, Louise Binand, and Ana Vladescu.
21:10 There is a five-minute break until 21:15, when voting for AUCSA elections will start.
21:10 An audience member asks the candidates for Committee Affairs Officer (CAO) how they would promote and support committees and individual members. Louise Binand would focus on practical advice. Louise Boulay would support their initiative and transition them into what it’s like to be on a board. Ana Vladescu feels that there’s a fine line between the creation of new committees and staying realistic about what can be successful in the long run, but that ultimately, diversity is important and encouraging creativity is important. Willemijn Eijsink asks the candidates how they would go about encouraging more people to get involved in AUCSA. Vladescu wants to facilitate successful events, as not everyone wants to join a committee, but is enthusiastic about different activities organised. Boulay thinks it’s important to support students’ initiatives to make sure they get involved. Binand mentions how she’s noticed that not everyone is aware of how many committees there are at AUC, and putting committees more out there is a crucial aspect.
21:06 Novara Bazzi asks what the candidates for External Relations Officer (ERO) are looking to get out of this role, personal-development-wise. Twan Balk answers that he sees how AUC can be limiting and looks forward to connecting with the AUC community. Isabel de Boer emphasises that she wants to discover new opportunities: to grow into her position while giving her all. Yoon Chun wants to put herself out there and is excited to learn from other people.
Another audience member asks the candidates for their take on sponsorships. Regarding this, Chun recognises the value of sponsorships and says she wants to focus most on relations that have already been established and seek opportunities there. De Boer wants to ensure sponsorship and is willing to discover unconventional organisations to potentially partner with. Balk acknowledges how sponsorships are more than just a financial means, but also opportunities to expand the bubble by introducing the AUCSA to new things.
Willemijn Eijsink asks the candidates what they consider their most important experience that makes them best suited for this role. Yoon refers to one of the conferences she organised during high school in Malaysia, where she truly put herself out there to connect different speakers. De Boer cites her initiative to create a podcast as her most significant experience, highlighting her proactive approach. Balk mentions his experiences on the UCSRN board as the most valuable.
20:56 An audience member asks Marlene Rosa about the importance of transparency in her role as Treasurer. Rosa emphasises how she will seek genuine communication with everyone and always have an open ear.
20:55 For the Secretary, Greta asks both candidates what makes them stand out. Aleina Gandhi emphasises her different roles and her love for management and organisation as her personality traits that make her a suitable Secretary. Hannah Belshaw explains how the Secretary position is everything she loves doing, from the organisational part to connecting with people. Lara Gleim asks the candidates what they most struggle with and how they expect to address this. Belshaw responds by saying she tends to put all her energy into all her projects while dropping academics, so that is something she hopes to deal with best. Gandhi mirrors Belshaw’s response, reminiscing about her experiences with the boards she is currently on and saying that she might struggle with letting those go. Louis Charbonnel wonders how the candidates perceive the differences between the roles previously held and the role of AUCSA Treasurer. For Belshaw, the newsletter and the floating tasks are the things she is looking forward to most.
20:49 An audience member asks Sterre Vreeker what she is most excited about. Vreeker answers by saying she wants to accommodate and shape the community for the better, and is excited to get to know the future first-years.
20:47 Gabrielle Gailey thanks all the candidates for their speeches and opens the floor to election questions.
20:47 Sterre Vreeker now answers her unprepared question: “As the AUCSA President, you lead the AUCSA board. The President’s focus should be to support the AUCSA board, so is it okay for the President to be less visible to the AUCSA community? Agree or Disagree?” Vreeker disagrees, hoping to still connect with everyone just as much as somebody in the CAO role might.
20:45 Lastly, the Committee Affairs Officer (CAO) candidates take the stage to give their speeches. Louise Binand has seen what makes a committee strong through the various positions she has already held. She aims to make it easier for committees to get started, helping bring their ideas to life and solve issues. Louise Boulay emphasised how AUCSA was the perfect bridge between high school and university, and she hopes to offer other students the same welcoming and genuine experience. She wants to focus on committee transitions to give every board a strong start. Ana Vladescu, having been part of various committees, wants to bring authenticity and foster close personal connections in her role as CAO.
20:39 The External Relations Officer (ERO) candidates are invited to the stage. Twan Balk wants to find opportunities in Amsterdam for the AUC community. He believes the upcoming Lustrum year is a chance to put AUC out there and would love to capitalise on that. Isabel de Boer highlights Amsterdam’s vibrant student network and how she wants to integrate our community more into that, notably UvA and VU student associations. She aims to work closely with all the committees, their CAOs, and external parties to expand our “bubble”. Yoon Chun reiterates her main goal as ERO: for AUC to gain more visibility on the social as well as academic level in Amsterdam, but also nationally. She praises the amazing work the AUCSA has previously done and hopes to further strengthen the previously established ties while expanding the AUCSA network.
20:35 Marlene Rosa, candidate for Treasurer, takes the stage for her speech. Rosa, who already has considerable experience from her studies and her previous role as Art Treasurer, invites anyone with questions or seeking advice to come speak with her.
20:33 The candidates for Secretary, Hannah Belshaw and Aleina Gandhi, have been invited to speak. Belshaw has been involved in multiple committees at AUC, which has made her very motivated to join next year’s board. She is excited to give back to the community and have fun. Gandhi reflects on her experience since coming to AUC and highlights all the wonderful, uplifting opportunities the association has given her. As secretary, Gandhi wants to give all this back to the community and create a great environment.
20:29 The candidate for President, Sterre Vreeker, is invited to give her speech. As a board member of AUDance, Vreeker has already experienced how to manage complex situations. She would feel honoured to spread more of the love she feels in the AUC community.
20:24 Candidate Speeches have commenced. The candidates will be giving their closing statements and taking audience questions.
20:18 There is a five-minute break until 20:23 when Candidate Speeches for AUCSA elections will start.
20:17 The floor has been opened for further nominations. Current AUCSA President Gabrielle Gailey is proposed as Honorary Member. Her nomination has passed by acclamation.
20:15 Next on the agenda are the Honorary Members. Honorary Members shall be persons who, because of their special service to the Association, have been appointed as such by the General Assembly. Nimorika Sekhri introduces the first new proposed Honorary Member for 2025-2026, Lea Heitbrink. Pia Schardt introduces the second new proposed Honorary Member, Julie de Boer. Tereza Odysseos introduces the next new proposed Honorary Member, Sasha Rosier. Liv Vieira and Sasha Rosier introduce another new proposed Honorary Member, Tom Heyning. All nominations have passed by acclamation.
19:52 Gabrielle Gailey briefly explains what the Advisory Council is and thanks the 2024-2025 Advisory Council. Lea Heitbrink introduces next year’s advisory council: Hayden Andersen, Sasha Rosier, Inès Bentin, and Malou Sass.
19:42 A ten-minute break has started; we will return shortly.
19:38 The floor has been opened. Annique Quarles van Ufford has a question regarding Art. 20.7 in the PM, which states that “more than one gender shall be on the proposed board.” Current president Gabrielle Gailey answers by saying that this article reflects “the values of the association.” Tom Heyning responds by explaining that, after legal considerations, the Elections Commission has decided that this is not strictly binding in their decision-making.
19:35 There is a motion on the notary deed being discussed, regarding the amendments passed. You may find the notary deed in the agenda. There is another motion regarding the authorisation to amend statutes. This motion has also passed by acclamation.
19:32 The rest of article changes: A proposed change to Art. 7 and Art. 8 has been passed by acclamation. There is a new addition to Art.14 that has been passed by acclamation. Please refer to the Statutes for more information.
19:27 The Statute Changes proposed by the 2024-2025 board are now being addressed. There is a proposed change to Art. 5.3 regarding the Association’s financial year. The change has been passed by acclamation.
19:21 The vote will take place online on the Elections Buddy app. Emails will be sent out later tonight.
19:19 “Welcome to the 46th General Assembly of the AUCSA!” Current president Gabrielle Gailey opens the session.
19:12 The candidates, seated in the two front rows, get the last reassurance and updates from the current secretary Sasha Rosier.
19:00 Doors open and students start coming in. While those who have not yet signed up to vote can still do so, students chat among themselves as they await the opening.
It is once again time to elect who will govern AUCSA for the academic year 2025/2026! At 19:00, the Elections GA will commence its proposed agenda at Eetcafe Oerknal..
Overview of the positions and candidates:
President: Sterre Vreeker.
Secretary: Hannah Belshaw, Aleina Gandhi.
Treasurer: Marlene Rosa.
Committee Affairs Officer: Louise Binand, Louise Boulay, Ana Vladescu.
External Relations Officer: Twan Balk, Isabel de Boer, Yoon Chun.
The Herring 