Michael Kendall was Your Campus Officer at CU Scarborough for the 2022-23 academic year. During his time i office he has represented CU Scarborough students to the University at the highest level, as well as supported key SU events and campaigns. As his time in office comes to a close, in this post he reflects on his year and says his thank-yous and goodbyes. 

Becoming Campus Offficer

"When I started my university experience I made a promise to myself that I would enjoy every minute and really take everything from this experience. I can successfully say I have kept that promise.

In March 2021, I received an email about the upcoming Students' Union Elections, with a wide variety of roles available. The Scarborough Campus Officer was certainly a role that I believed I could do with the skills and knowledge I had at the time. At this point, it was just a dream, a thought, an idea, that even I wasn’t sure was achievable. However, one year later in 2022, I decided that now was my time and after a successful election campaign, my dream suddenly became a reality.

When I first started the role, there were so many challenges that lay ahead. However, as time progressed, I found my way and started an incredible term of office. Yet there were many steps to go before the achievements were made. No matter how unachievable things seemed to be, I started to believe that anything was possible.

After a few weeks, I started to find my rhythm and started to feel that the more I put into this role, the more I would achieve and the more I would enjoy it. One of the first things I had to do was create more contacts and make myself much more visible to the staff and the students. Being an introverted individual, makes it even harder to increase your presence around campus, especially as my previous roles allowed for flexibility to blend in, yet this was now not an option. Once I became more visible and pushed myself outside of my comfort boundaries, I started to reap the rewards as I became more known to students across campus. From this, I certainly gained friends for life. I built connections with various staff across the university, whom I probably wouldn’t have been in contact with if it were not for my role. Over time, I started to connect more with officers and staff across Your SU, creating some wonderful professional connections. I had finally become settled and happy within my role."

Blocks 1 & 2

"As we saw September Welcome Week come and go, I supported the Black History Month film nights with two dedicated films to celebrate this important month. This was followed by Your SU Vue which was a filmed news-like production, created by the Student Media Team. I am super proud of this achievement and seeing this all come together really gave me a feeling that you can make your ideas come to life. As we ended block one and led into block two, I started to work on my manifesto points, particularly working alongside the Welfare team who are a valuable asset to the students here. Part of this was a welfare survey that was sent out to gain opinions on the service that is provided, of which most were very positive!"

Blocks 3, 4 & 5

"As we went into the second half of the year, there were some key events happening. Block 3 started out with a wonderful January Welcome Week which included a Brew Monday event which was a wonderful time to touch base with students. I have really enjoyed these events and getting to know more students across campus. Another particularly proud moment for me was the I Love My Course competition in which all entrants from Scarborough won a prize! I really admired the dedication of these individuals, particularly one student who really went out of her comfort zone but achieved something amazing. Another highlight was being involved in the I Love My Staff event and being able to sit on a wonderful judging panel that debated on the winners of the awards. It was a great event, where the great achievements and dedication of staff was recognised."

Thank-yous and goodbyes

"All of the things I have mentioned are just highlights that have really stood out for me this year. Although this wouldn’t have all been possible without the wonderful support I have had in place from a variety of people across campus. Firstly, thank you to Lucy, the Membership Services Assistant Manager here in Scarborough. I will be forever grateful for her dedication and support she has given me. Secondly a huge thank you to all the Course Reps I have worked alongside this year. They have all been amazing people who I have got to know personally, some of whom will be lifelong friends for sure! Next, I want to say thank you to all the University staff who have supported me through the year and have worked with me and Your SU to make a change and make things possible. Finally, I must thank all the students here at CU Scarborough! It was a privilege to be elected and an honour to represent you all, and listen to all your feedback to make your university experience the best it possibly can be.

This has been an incredible chapter in my life so far and it is something I will never ever forget. It has been a year of self-worth and recognising that you can make dreams come true if you work for it. Now is a time for a new chapter, to turn the page, and continue to write this amazing story that is my university experience. Thank you all once again!"

Michael Kendall (Scarbrough Campus Officer 2022-2023)

Your Students' Union would like to thank Michael and the whole Officer team for 2022-23 for their hard work and energy this year, and wish them all the very best in their next chapters!