Dan Nicholson is settling right into his new position as president of the AV俱乐部 Student Union.
Although the new DSU executive has held office for only a few weeks now, Nicholson says there are already so many things on the go 鈥� first and foremost the upcoming Student Union Building renovations.
鈥淭he energy around this project has been absolutely incredible,鈥� says Nicholson, a Neuroscience student at Dal.
Nicholson says one of his key priorities as DSU president is connecting students more closely with the union, and the SUB renovations will be a key part of achieving that goal.
鈥淭his will bring students into their union building,鈥� he explains. 鈥淎nd once they are here, we will have various outlets that students can interact with in order to get involved.鈥�
As a sign, perhaps, of growing student engagement on campus, March鈥檚 DSU elections had the highest voter turnout in four years, at 18 per cent. Nicholson credits the hard work of the DSU elections committee. 鈥淭he advertising was fantastic,鈥� he says, 鈥渁nd there have been some suggestions as to how we can improve so we can build on this year鈥檚 success.鈥�
Learning and leadership
Nicholson, entering his fifth year of studies at Dal, is working towards his Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in Neuroscience with a minor in Law and Society. 鈥淚 had planned to attend the School of Pharmacy here at Dal,鈥� he says, 鈥渂ut I fell in love with Neuroscience after volunteering in a lab during my first year.鈥�
Nicholson is a relative newcomer to the DSU, having not served in an official capacity with the union prior to being elected president. 鈥淚鈥檝e learned in a short period of time that this job is about empowering others to accomplish their goals and lending support wherever and whenever possible,鈥� he says.
He says that lesson carries over from his time as president of the AV俱乐部 Undergraduate Neuroscience Society, which gave him a taste of the role student leadership plays within the university.
鈥淭he Undergraduate Neuroscience Society members looked to me for leadership and decisiveness,鈥� he explains. 鈥淭his meant that I had to be well versed in the issues that the society and the members were facing."
After Nicholson completes his studies at Dal, he's interested in exploring his interest in foreign policy and international relations. 鈥淚鈥檓 hoping to gain a more robust understanding of the interactions that Canada has with other states.鈥�
Focused on students
In the meantime, Dan has big plans for the DSU. One project he鈥檚 focused on for the upcoming year is working with the university to improve wait times for counselling services. Last month Nicholson and others on the DSU executive attended the Association of Atlantic Universities Mental Health Summit to learn more about the issue. 鈥淚t was an excellent opportunity to get a sense of the different counselling service models that are out there,鈥� he says.
In another more long-term goal, he hopes to look closely at food offerings through the union and beyond.
鈥淭he students have been very vocal about what they want and my goal is to do the best I can to get us there,鈥� he says.