As you are aware the current VUWSA executive has endorsed a Change Proposal for public consultation. This document has been prepared and delivered by several of those executive members and will potentially effect campus clubs, orientation, Salient, and Uni Games amongst others as well as potential income derived by sponsorship. The following words are a brief response from the potentially effected VUWSA staff as the three roles of Campus Activities Officer, Clubs Development Officer, and Sponsorship and Advertising Manager are being considered for disestablishment.
We fully support the investigation of implementing best business practices at VUWSA and urge you to read the proposal and submit your thoughts. When giving consideration to the Change Proposal please be aware that it was not conducted by professionals and has very little substance as almost all of the identified inefficiencies are not justified by relevant analysis. It is quite simply the endorsed opinion of the current executive. It would be assumed that a competent proposal would consist of a comprehensive analysis of current practice to give an insight as to what inefficiencies exist. With this foundation set, possible plans of action can be identified and thus consultation sort. Unfortunately the current VUWSA Executive do not need such information as their eight months of experience in their current roles supposedly justifies their proposal.
The Change Proposal has the aim of reducing financial risk at VUWSA and again we agree that this is important as VUWSA has a responsibility to you to be financially accountable. Unfortunately this proposal lacks any financial research comparing the cost of the current structure to the proposed model. In addition there is no indication of potential savings or where these savings will be redistributed. Consequently if there is a saving there is uncertainty as to where a proportion of your levy will go in 2009. Can VUWSA justify charging the current levy with a significant reduction in services?
The only fact in the proposal is the overspending of Orientation. The Exec’s solution to this is to cut Clubs and Activities services from VUWSA and deliver them to VUW Management. Instead of managing these vital student services under student governance they would rather gift them to the university. What happened to student control of student money? A further risk to clubs and activities is that once they drop off the University’s list of priorities they are likely to face the same concerns facing Gender, Biology, Education, Film and Theatre studies.
The real problems are closer to home for the Executive but are not insurmountable. Budget blowouts exist because over the decades VUWSA has not developed the processes for accountability. The Executive have been ignoring staff calls for more assessment of policy and procedures at VUWSA. A prime example is the denied request earlier this year for a professional review of clubs and activities as ‘Team Vic’. Let’s fix the problems before relinquishing student control. Let the 2008 student executive be remembered as those that initiated the processes to fix these problems professionally and correctly; NOT be remembered as those that ceded control of the student bar, the recreation centre, the Student Union Building and Radio Active as others in the past.