NUI Galway Students' Union

The NUI Galway Students' Union / Comhaltas na Mac Léinn, OÉ, Gaillimh is the representative body of students at NUI Galway in Ireland. Among its former leaders is Michael D. Higgins, the ninth President of Ireland.

Union

NUI Galway Students' Union is representative student body. Every student who registers at NUI Galway automatically becomes a member of the Students' Union on payment of the Student Levy – a total of over 16,000 members. Members are entitled to representation by the Students' Union officers, membership of the Students' Union Club (College Bar) and access to certain commercial services. The Union also part funds Sin Newspaper and Flirt FM. The Union is separated into two entities - the Students' Union Representative side and the Students' Union Commercial Services Ltd.^[1]

Functions and objectives

As outlined in the Students' Union Constitution, the function of the Union is to "represent its members and promote, defend and vindicate the rights of its members at all levels of society".^[2] The Students' Union sits on several University committees, including the University Governing Authority.^[3] The Union's objectives include providing social, recreational and commercial services for members through the College Bar, entertainment events, the SU Shop and other commercial services. In order to promote the unity of the organisation, the Union also assists on-campus student groups such as clubs and societies of NUI Galway.

On a national level, the Union pursues "fair and equal access to education for all sectors of the Irish people", and liaises with the Union of Students in Ireland in this goal.^[4] Work of the Union has included the organising of a Grant Information Evening to help students apply for local authority grants.^[5]

Executive Committee

While the President, along with the staff, is mainly responsible for the day-to-day running of the Union, the Students' Union Executive is the committee that runs the Union on an ongoing basis. It consists of fifteen elected members, whose responsibilities cover different student concerns - from educational issues to accommodation and discrimination. Of the fifteen members of the Executive, three are paid sabbatical (full-time) Officers, i.e. the President and two Vice-Presidents, while the other twelve Officers work on a part-time, unpaid basis.

The Executive meets on a weekly basis during term and is also responsible for matters concerning the functioning of the Union. The Executive Committee is answerable to the Class Representatives Council (CRC), and, therefore, to the members of the Union. All fifteen Officers must present a report of work done to the CRC on a monthly basis.

Students elect their Students' Union Officers. The term of office is from 1 July to 30 June of the following year. To be eligible to run for election, candidates must be a full member of the Students' Union, i.e. a registered student or current Executive Officer, and receive 20 nominations. Candidates require three nominators who must be full members of the Union and Club Captains (where the position sought is Clubs' Captain) or Society Auditors (where the position is Societies' Chairperson.)^[6]

History

In common with the other Queen's Colleges, Queens College Galway had a representative body for students. Although claims have been made that the Union grew out of the Lit & Deb, it is more accurate to say that the small student population meant that Student Representative Council (SRC) activities shared events and members with the Lit and Deb, which unlike the SRC had non-student members.

Notwithstanding the separate existence of the two bodies, The Literary and Debating Society played a role in defending the functional existence and independence of the Union. The public forum of the Lit and Deb allowed students to raise issues free of College interference.

An alternative view of the foundation of the Union is that the society served as the sole representative forum for students of the college until the establishment of a Students' Representative Council as an offshoot of the Society in 1911, under the direction of Bryan Cusack. This council was short-lived, but the re-establishment of the body was proposed by Conor O'Malley, auditor of the 1913-1914 session, in his inaugural address in November 1913. The council was firmly established by the mid-1920s, and in the 1960s was formally developed into the university's Students' Union, then known as Comhairle Teachta na Mac Léinn. The non-existence of Society records from that period makes this contention impossible to prove.

Restructured in 1964 in the Students' Union (although retaining the Irish "Comhairle Teacha na Mac Léinn until later years), the function of the Union as per the Constitution shall be "to represent its members and promote, defend and vindicate the rights of its members at all levels of society". Below are some highlights from the Unions past.^[7]

• 1964 • Led by Michael D. Higgins 600 students marched to protest about "poor relations generally between the University and the local community" as many hotels refused to take visiting students, landladies discriminated against students in summer etc.
• 1969 • College Week (RAG Week) run for the first time after being banned by the Bishop in the 1950s.
• 1980 • The Union supports the call for political status by the prisoners of H-Block and Armagh Jail. Several UCG students involved in the H-Block campaign claim they are being harassed by the Gardaí.
• 1982 • During College Week Gerry Ryan DJ'd the disco at Leisureland and the Manager of Leisureland's car was set on fire by students.
• 1987• The Union organises a boycott of tea and coffee served in the restaurant due to the increase in price of same (tea 33p and coffee 35p). The union serves approximately 2,000 cups of tea a day during boycott at 25p a cup.
• 1997 • USI Pink Training, a campaigning and training event for LGBT students and activists is held at UCG.
• 2008 • Fees campaign begins with thousands marching to Eyre Square^[8]
• 2009 • The Union organised and attended several fees-related protests^[9] and ran a campaign encouraging students to "Adopt a TD"^[10]
• 2013 • Members of the Union mandate it to advocate a pro-choice position in relation to abortion.
• 2014 • The Union joins the international Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions policy against the State of Israel after a referendum of members tabled by the NUI Galway Palestine Solidarity Society. Members also vote to retain the Union's pro-choice position on abortion after an attempt to repeal the previous year's vote was tabled to students by the NUI Galway Life Society.^[11] In addition, a vote on the Union endorsing marriage equality in relation to LGBT couples passes by 95%.
• 2015 • The Union is mandated to support 'the legalisation and regulation of the cultivation, sale and possession of cannabis for students aged 18 and over' in a 68% vote, after a motion to do so was tabled by the NUI Galway Students for Sensible Drug Policy Society.

References

External links

• NUI Galway Students' Union Site
• NUI Galway Site