Monday 27-07-2020 - 15:48

I ran to help make the future better for everyone in our community

Kate McIntosh reflects on her year as SU President

One of the scariest parts of starting this job was suddenly being in much more formal, professional, high level spaces than I was used to. I had to get comfortable with often being the odd one out in these spaces, the one disagreeing, the one saying the things other people wouldn’t, and the things people didn’t want to hear. But I ran to be your SU President because I know that Durham needs radical change in order for the future to be better for everyone in our community, and I have made that argument at every turn this year.

At Council, the University’s governing body, I have called out the University for its treatment of volunteers, the choice not to pay the Living Wage, inaction on the climate crisis, and accessible and unaffordable accommodation. I have felt a huge responsibility to make University decision-makers recognise the scale of Durham’s problem with elitism and discrimination, and the way elements of the University facilitate and perpetuate these problems. As a result we have had frank conversations about institutional racism and disablism, treatment and pay of staff members, and the affordability of college accommodation for example. There’s a long way to go and these conversations are not always positive, but sometimes they are and we have to keep having them.

Elections, strikes and democracy

In Michaelmas term, our action in support of the UCU strikes helped students engage with the industrial action meaningfully, whilst our work with the Uni exec helped ensure there were mitigations in place to help you. I look back at our Register to Vote campaign ‘Prove them Wrong’ with a huge amount of pride. We got so many of you to register and use your democratic rights. Our campaign inspired others around the country and I even got to be on the TV. And now thanks to Durham SU the University automatically registers students to vote.

We tend to spend a lot of time talking about democracy in the Students’ Union but less about democracy in the University. In January our Chief Exec Gary and I were lucky enough to go to the Baltics, on a tour of Universities and SUs with Wonkhe. I learnt loads, but the thing that really stuck with me was how different (and how much better) Universities can be when students are co-creators of University values, culture and strategy. At Turku University in Finland all committees are one third students. Imagine if every time at Council that I started a conversation about institutional prejudice, or how unaffordable Durham is, there were 20 students in the room and not two. I wish I had had the chance to work more on enacting this vision.

Early in Epiphany term I heard about a secret meeting organised by a handful of student leaders to talk about passing a Vote of No Confidence in me as SU President. I saw leaked minutes from this meeting, where student leaders had chosen to insult my character behind my back, giving me no chance to reply. I distracted myself by working on the consultation I wanted the University to carry out on their proposed changes to college operations. I secured some of the most extensive consultation they have ever done, and I’m confident that asserting students' right to be part of the decision-making process made it easier for them to shelve the project than carry on. Half an hour before I was expected at a meeting to discuss he proposed changes, Durfess posted a list of ‘allegations’ against me. I’ve written a bit about my experience in those few weeks here. I don’t know at what point this year I became an idea in people’s heads and not a human being, but I am still angry about it especially because all I wanted to do was my job.

Speaking out about racism

When the candidates in the SU elections were announced, I remember a very frank conversation Sam, your Undergraduate Academic Officer, and I had about how racist narratives might affect the election. More candidates than ever before were people of colour. I really regret not understanding then just how justified and reasonable being concerned was. After the elections, I was completely blown away by the number of students of colour who started speaking publicly about their experiences of racism at Durham. Since then, I have spoken at University Council on the issue, pushed the University to commit to be actively anti-racist, and been maybe the proudest I have all year to see Sam secure agreement from UEC on the principles of the Decolonise Durham Manifesto. Of course there’s still work to do, but to some extent it is as simple as the University removing racists from campus, and I know this work will get brilliant leadership from the new team.

Standing up for students during a pandemic

Another lasting memory from this year is from the day the University decided to ‘close’ and move education online. When you run to an SU Officer wanting to campaign to combat harassment and cut fees, you never expect you’ll be coordinating the University’s response to a pandemic. I am ferociously proud of everything your Officers and your SU has done since March in response to Covid-19. The no detriment policy, stopping huge cuts to the Durham Grant, online SAC forms, easy deferrals, deadline extension, getting students out of their contracts with private halls, waiving fees for PGRs who defer, support for student groups to run online, more money going into student support and protecting students rights in the City. This list barely scratches the surface. We did this whilst our peers tried to delegitimise the organisation we lead, and whilst dealing with the impact of the pandemic on our own lives.

Thank you and good luck!

I am so grateful to Sam, David, Jess and Amelia for their work, and for how they supported me and each other through this year. As President you get a lot of attention when things don’t go well, but you also get the credit when they do. Those four have worked impossibly hard this year without full credit for it, and it’s been a pleasure to spend a year working alongside them. Importantly, I literally would not have been able to get though the year without the support and encouragement of the Durham SU staff team. Particularly Gary, who helped me be brave when I need to say important things. Durham SU is joyous place to work because of the staff team, and I am going to miss it a lot.

To next year’s Officers, good luck. There’s a lot to do! You are all exceptional leaders, and very good people, and I am confident that you’re going to do impressive things. To Seun, Durham’s new SU President, it is hard to put into words just how much confidence I have in you. I would say you’re going to change Durham for good, but you already have. You are an inspiration to us all and I feel immensely lucky to be handing over to you.