Present: JC (PG & M Chair), EM (VP), JW (PG Academic Rep), ZM (PG Social Rep), SB (Mature student’s rep), EE (PG International Rep), AK (President)
Absent: n/a
Apologies: n/a
Setting: the shed in House 12 garden.
Agenda:
Inter-MCR formal
Social Events
Research For a
Mature students
Day trip
Election methods
SU comm
AOB
Meeting:
Inter-MCR formal
JC: The date is either 20th or 30th march. We are going to do a murder mystery again. We need to work out how to arrange the murder mystery.
ZM: I have a script that I used for my Freshers’ week. It has college specific things in it.
Everyone is happy with using that.
JC: I have old ones from long enough ago that people won’t remember.
ZM: JC’ option is already James specific.
JC: But yours is new. It will mainly fall on me and ZM to sort.
JW: Happy to help.
JC: Another meeting mid-term with only people who are interested to discuss in more detail.
JW: I was in it last year and we didn’t know who the killer was.
All happy.
Social Events
JC: Last term we had bar crawl, the second bar crawl (underattended), pizza Christmas quiz which was successful. I think we should have another chill night in brooks with chill and games and food.
SB: Valentines is coming up.
AK: The only thing near then for college is half way formals.
JC: I want an edgy singles valentines’ things.
SB: Anti-valentines.
JC: I think the quiz worked well. PGs like them and I do.
ZM: Can we do something with another MCR? Like Chads???? 😉 These should be two separate events.
JC: I can contact the Chads MCR president, but then I also know the John’s MCR pres. And they are minted.
JW: Valentines is like 3 weeks away. We need a shuffle on.
JC: Valentines is on a Thursday.
JW: We should do Friday the 15th.
Yes.
ACTION POINT: ZM to make an event.
JW: There should be a poll on event to see what food people want so having pizza is democratic.
JC: Do we want a meal out? Not many people interested but it’s a different demographics. It appeals more to mature students or the real adults. On the one hand it’s nice to appeal to them, but there is also no point if people didn’t turn up.
JW: 5 or 6 came that hadn’t come to anything else.
JC: Okay, we should do a meal out between now and valentines.
ZM: Something about an O2 deal. 50% off for 8 people in a restaurant.
JW: if you put a small subsidy on it might appeal more.
SB: Zizzi’s does vegan pizza.
JC: The JCR could pay £3 for everyone’s meal- and then we won’t get loads of people anyway. Week day or weekend?
ZM: Weekday, 6.30.
JC: Thursdays are always freest for me?
ZM: Wednesday? Unless there is a formal?
AK: there isn’t a formal on the 6th.
JC: we could do the 30th and It probably won’t class too much. We did an unsuccessful bar crawl in the past but it was unsuccessful- want to do another?
JW: There was reason people couldn’t come- formatives or something.
JC: We will try one later on in term after the other events. Maybe a weekend as getting drunk in the week puts on some people. 1-2-3rd March ish? I think it’s better to go to local pubs for this, but I also thing that maybe PGs don’t get to college bars and would like to?
JW: Another poll?
JC: We could start at Brooks and then go to Grey and do a Hill bar crawl.
Research Fora
JW: There is ongoing conflict between us and college about how it works. We PGs on the stage because it makes their fiends want to go. There are 3 SCR members want to speak at the moment.
EE: What date?
JW: Not sure yet. Don’t know because we don’t know when the SCR is being used and it’s being redone up.
JC: The reading group. Elizabeth is keen for us to have a reading group. No one wants to run this.
JW: I think it would more interesting to have a group where people read what they want to rather than what EA wants us to. I will make a post on the fb page to gauge interest.
ZM: How could we integrate the academic and social sides of the MCR. How could we make the academic stuff as popular as the social stuff.
JC: If the wine was kept in the same room as the people as it would be much easier to have fun.
JW: A night out often happens organically after them. Breaks are nice.
ACTION POINT: James to get people to the bar.
Mature students
JC: now we have SB! But we aren’t good at doing things for mature students
SB: I’d like to find out how many there are in Cuth’s so I know what is feasible. Something low key could be a weekly or fortnightly drop in session – for chats or revision so people feel like there is a community for them. In terms of socials, I think it’s better for us to piggy back onto your events because you have more experience and you can learn from out wisdom. You talked about tea thing on Sunday last year which we could expand on.
AK: What classes as matures students?
SB: When you start your first degree who are over 21. I don’t want to discourage anyone.
EE: I have someone in my flat who is 25 and someone on Bailey who is 26 and I’m going to be 21. It would be good to have some sort of chill environment if they don’t want to hang out with the fresh
SB: No schism.
ACTION POINT: AK to try and find out how many matures students there are and maybe a mailing list for mature students.
SB: I don’t know how many people read the newsletter, and fb.
JC: People who live out don’t come into college that much because they don’t feel there is stuff for them, and we need to work out how to reach them.
EE: Is there no chance that people can email them for us? Most of my friends like pool- we could do something with them?
SB: I like pool. James likes pool. We all like pool.
JC: These meetings could take place in Brooks JCR- people could sit, they could have pints, they could play pool if they wanted.
SB: I was hoping for more of a revision space so there is something for all tastes- maybe one or the other on alternative weeks.
ACTION POINT: SB to sort this when he has info from AK
JC: Mature students’ brunch when we have energy.
Your role is different because yours is method 2, and all the others are method 1. Are you okay with this?
SB: Happy with this as is, no problems.
Day trip
JC: We want to go to county Durham over the holidays because PGs are here and lonely. Beamish Museum? Very famous. It also seems to be where everyone always takes their day trips. But we could try something else.
ZM: Your choice, your problem.
JC: I haven’t been.
AK: Go. Tick that box.
SB: “it’s wicked awesome”. It’s a living museum with all sorts of cool things.
JC: I suggest the first week of April because I’m free then.
Election methods
JC: there have been suggestions that PG should be only application based. The way we changed it recently is that they are open for election, but if no one runs for 3 meetings then it goes to applications. Would you have preferred it to be application.
ZM: neither JW or I attended the meeting. We essentially did an application. Making it application makes it more credible.
EE: Does this stop people going to meetings? There are a lots of freshers and UGs and commotion. If there is more engagement in the start of the term for PGs so it’s more engaging.
EM: In Outreach we always got way more applications than were needed for the number of roles.
AK: 34 welfare applications for 9 welfare positions this year.
EM: It’s better to do it earlier in the year as people don’t have other commitments.
General view that it should be application and it should always be applications.
ZM: We should take away all the barriers to them being part of something.
AK: Positions will more likely be filled, then those positions will have to go to meetings.
JC: JW and ZM’s roles should be application. mature students’ rep should stay elections, as should PG rep, as they are representative.
SB: Is there a political element there? Do I escalate people’s complaints?
JC: Yes, and there would be a similar idea with the PG rep, but it’s not quite the same. That one is just to ensure there is a PG on the committee. We also have PG international rep, but gets such small engagement…
EE: I think that should also be election because it’s representational.
AK: 80% of PGs are international.
JC: Means it’s important to have someone soon as possible so it should be application.
EE: Changed my mind. Make it application.
JC: Are we okay with this morally?
Everyone: Yes.
JC: VP and treasurer are now going to be run at the end of this year, so they are in place over summer for the next year. I think it would be nice election in 3.1.
ZB: James you need to make everyone aware of this.
JC: there should also be a new PG chair by then who will have a vested interest in that.
SU comm
JC; to ensure we are representative, we have a seat on SU committee. This committee advises the communications officer on how to vote in assembly. We need to nominate someone to sit there.
EM: It’s not that much commitment and they are good at having dates people can do.
No opposition to ZM representing us.
AOB
EE: I still want to know if I have to go to international committee meetings.
JC: yes. I think there must not have been a meeting yet.