Lily PolenchukThe University of Alberta Students’ Union (SU) 2025 election season is here, and the two candidates for Board of Governors (BoG) representative introduced their platforms at the Augustana forum on February 25. Both candidates, Angelina Raina and Karina Banerji, mentioned the importance of bridging gaps between Augustana Campus and North Campus. Bridging the gap between the two campuses could allow for the best aspects of both to be shared across the U of A as a whole.
Raina, a current SU arts councillor, presented her platform with an air of confidence. As a snapshot, she focused on how she will advocate for increased government funding to Augustana. This funding will be targeted toward increasing the wages of students employed on campus — such as residence assistants (RAs) — and working to get Augustana students into adequate housing. Raina addressed the underrepresentation of Augustana by speaking of the integral role that it plays in the broader university community. The smaller Augustana Campus is arguably a necessary alternative to the more populated, and potentially overwhelming, North Campus.
During question period, Raina made note of the collaborative culture of Augustana. She noted that collaboration and community-based learning is a key aspect of what it means to study at Augustana. With that spirit, she promised Augustana students collaboration in bringing career fairs and job opportunities to their campus. This is a good step towards ensuring Augustana students have equal opportunities at their home campus.
Banerji introduced her platform with an equal measure of confidence. While the overarching theme of advocating for Augustana remained, Banerji took it in a slightly different direction. The emphasis of Banerji’s platform is on “affordability, accessibility and advocacy.” She emphasized that for Augustana, this means advocating for economic transparency and creating more accessible ways to reach North Campus. She made it clear that community interaction between the BoG representative and student is important for student life. And not just through online meetings either — she emphasized in-person interactions. Increasing in-person interactions, such as office hours, would allow for students at Augustana to engage more directly with their BoG representative and create more personable relationships.
Banerji promised to give Augustana unique consideration if she wins. She said she would advocate for Alberta government funding opportunities. More specifically, she seeks to increase transportation between campuses, and improve online resources for students at Augustana. These specific promises are designed to create equitable access to student resources. Easier mobility could address the limited job opportunities that Raina wants to solve.
Raina and Banerji both used this forum to address the importance of bridging the gaps in funding and accessibility between North Campus and Augustana. The difference was in how to approach this major problem. Raina wants to bring more resources to the Augustana Campus itself, whereas Banerji is seeking physical and digital equity between the two campuses.
The ultimate question is which approach the students at Augustana will favour. As a student at the North Campus, I would be happy to see more collaboration between our campuses. However, that might not be what the students at Augustana are looking for in their BoG representative. While this is only the beginning of SU elections, students will be waiting to see what else these two candidates can bring to the table.
