President
Kirk Settle
Hi everyone! If we have somehow not met yet, my name is Kirk and I am running for the position of
President for the Nursing Undergraduate Society.
As some of you may already know, I have spent the last four years of my education here at UBC in the Life
Sciences program, wondering in the meantime how I could use this education to enter Health Care. During
that four-year span, you could not have pushed me into the Science Undergraduate Society’s yearly
election cycle; my program was as cold as it was competitive, and after graduating with enough friends
from the Sciences to count on the fingers of two hands, I wonder in hindsight how difficult it would be to
represent a cohort I was so unfamiliar with. Needless to say, times have changed since entering the UBC
School of Nursing.
Cheesy as it may be, I would be very proud to represent a group that has provided more friends and
colleagues within weeks than during an entire four-year span on the same campus. Asides from a
supportive cohort, I am confident I have the leadership, logistic, and interpersonal skills necessary to
handle this position’s demands effectively. I gained a unique leadership style through my background in
Hockey Instructing and Retail Management, learning to implement a more positive and easy-going
approach to communication than the norm that has yet to fail me. My work as a Marketing/ Health Forum
Director and Vice President of Public Relations with the Canadian Liver Foundation here on campus also
gave fundamental insight into the hard work involved with liaising between fellow clubs and executives
while overseeing events and fundraisers; my biggest contribution was establishing the first annual
LIVERight™ Health Forum in early-2013 along with 7 other UBC CLF executives, which involved
participation with 20 other Clubs and Societies on campus and raised our Foundation nearly $8,000 from
fundraising and sponsorships. Finally, judging by the multiple times I have been teased over it by you folks,
my backwater accent from an upbringing in the BC Interior should make me more than personable enough
for even the shyest members of our cohort to approach with ease! Be it for planning events or restructuring
the constitution, I am fully-confident in my abilities to represent this awesome bunch of students as
President of the Nursing Undergraduate Society.
Thank you all for your consideration! May the best candidates earn their positions, and may the Vancouver
Canucks never fail to disappoint.
President
Isha Bee
Hi everyone!
I'm isha, and I would love to represent you all as NUS President this coming
year! Just a little about me: from England originally, I was lucky enough to grow up
between London, Vancouver and Nairobi. The decision to become a nurse happened
overnight about two and a half years ago, and I couldn't be more certain about
anything. I'm interested in many areas - trauma, community (specifically street
nursing), remote nursing, burns, mental health & substance use, wound care,
palliative care, and so many more.
I have a love for life that manifests not only in travel, but also in a tendency to
reach for opportunity. From running two small businesses (one, a painting
company, the other a handcrafted soap stall); organizing/promoting and MC-ing
fundraising parties, and volunteer co-ordinating; to advocating for individuals
seeking to access housing and social services, I have a broad range of skill and
experience that I am excited to bring into the role of president in service of our class.
It will be a great honour to represent our cohort in liaising with faculty, with
other student body representatives, and to work with the rest of our council team in
overseeing, facilitating and organizing our NUS activities over the coming year.
Vice President
Shivinder Dhillon
Hello everyone! For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Shivinder and hope to
represent all of you in the student council as Vice President. I am a UBC graduate
with a bachelor’s in nutrition and have worked in the field of clinical research for
the past three years. Over my long and drawn out undergraduate degree, I have
collaborated numerous community and research projects. I’m honored to say that
some of the projects I have coordinated have had success in getting the ball rolling
for change to happen! While working, I have supervised numerous students and
collaborated with clinics across the lower mainland. Going forth, I’d like to work
with moms and babies and possibly pursue graduate school to fulfill my passion for
research.
I thrive of working in a collective, challenging, and positive environment – go
dolphins! I believe in bringing the best out of individuals and leveraging tasks based
on the strengths of the team members. In addition, I think it is critical to solicit
feedback from everyone on the team and provide a supportive environment that
allows the team to flourish. As vice president, I will be honored to represent and
tailor this position to the needs of our cohort. Being someone who loves to learn and
challenge myself, I am excited for this opportunity and if elected I hope to make this
coming year memorable and fun for all of us!
Treasurer
I am applying for the treasurer position with the NUS. I have previous experience
with the Biology Club at the University of Victoria, where I held a dual position as
the secretary and treasurer. This experience will prove to be an asset to the NUS
team, as well as my friendly, approachable personality. I not only wanted to be the
treasurer based on my previous experiences, but feel like I would like to take a more
active role in my nursing education and the NUS is an excellent platform to achieve
this. I know my skills and experiences will allow me to fulfill the roles and duties of
the treasurer position with the NUS, and I am looking forward to starting this role.
Please see my NUS election nomination form.
Thank you for your time,
Kelsey O'Gorman
Secretary
Lorelei Arteaga
Hello Fellow Nursing Graduates of 2016. My name is Lorelei Arteaga and I would
like to represent the nursing student body as the NUS secretary. Prior to starting
nursing school I worked for six years in an administrative position with Vancouver
Coastal Health. I also volunteer to organize community trail running races where
partial proceeds go to support the BC Schizophrenia Society. Through these
experiences I have organized and attended countless meetings where I was required
to prepare for and then summarize the essence of the meetings through meeting
minutes. I was also required manage supplies and volunteers to ensure smooth
sailing in trail races for over 100 participants. Now, I know this sounds tedious to
most of you, but this is something that I have come to enjoy and would like to be
able to support the NUS to be able to advocate for our student body.
Thanks,
Lorelei
Secretary
Julia Lai
Hello everyone, my name is Julia and I am interested in running for the Secretary
Position of the NUS! I’m not much of a talker, but I enjoy taking on a supportive,
behind the scenes role in an organization. The secretary position is great for me
because I am super-duper organized! I have experience as secretary for several UBC
clubs including UBC Music Initiative. As secretary, I took meeting minutes, booked
meeting rooms, managed club emails and worked closely with the President/VP (I
have a secret obsession for emails). Since September, I try my best to be as helpful
as I can over facebook (adding files, answering question) and in person. I hope to
take this further and help keep all of you organized and informed of NUS activities
as the NUS Secretary of 2014-2016.
Interesting facts about myself: I play the violin and I loveeeee
cooking/baking/photography/traveling! Come talk to me if you have any questions
about my experiences!
Thank you for your vote, cheers!
Julia
AMS Representative
Peter Kent
Sports Representatives
Sabina Bomans
Hey all! For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Sabina and I would love
the opportunity to be a member of the UBC NUS as a Sports Rep!
I am running for this position for two main reasons 1) I want to be involved in
connecting and supporting people within our program and 2) I love adventuresparticularly those involving some form of physical activity, and this position directly
connects both of those! My ideal goal through this position is to create opportunities
for us to engage in some of the super sweet activities Vancouver has to offer! Maybe
there is something you have always wanted to try but never really got around to it/
didn’t really know where to start (eg. rock climbing, kundalini yoga etc). I’d like to
facilitate opportunities for people to come out and try some new (or not so new)
activities, if they so choose. I would also like to work closely with the Charity and
Social Reps to try and create well-rounded activities that everyone can enjoy, whilst
supporting a good cause (and boosting that karma!).
I won’t bore you too long with my past experience, but I have sat on various councils
in my past university degree so I’ve got a few ideas up my sleeve to bring to the
table! Mostly though, I think that my endless enthusiasm, love for adventures and
hanging out with/ meeting new people make me a pretty decent candidate for this
position! Thanks for taking the time to read my little blurb and I’d love it if you
decided to vote for me!
Monica Wilkins
Hello Nursing Cohort of 2016! My name is Monica. I am running for the NUS
Sports Representative Position. I love being active and even better – having
awesome people to be active with! I did my previous degree in Kinesiology at
UBC so I am familiar with the great events that UBC puts on (Day of the
Longboat, Storm the Wall….etc). There are a ton of neat activities and events
in Vancouver that I have tried and even more that I would love to participate
in. I enjoy hiking, soccer, dancing, running, yoga, skiing, climbing, skating,
swimming, and am always open to trying new things. I would love to
facilitate UBC nursing students getting together, being active and having fun!
Stephanie Manou
I have been an athlete my entire life, playing rugby for UBC in my undergrad as well
as involvement in semi-professional arena football, flag football, indoor and beach
volleyball. Following my undergraduate degree in human kinetics, I spent most of
my career in sports and recreation, working for the youth programs at Douglas
College, Volleyball BC, and the adult coed sport organization, Urban Rec. Not only is
sports my life, but I am a kinesiologist and heavily involved in the fitness industry
and would like to think I know a thing or two on that front. I look forward to
bringing all of this knowledge and experience to the NUS to make the upcoming year
packed full of fun athletic and fitness opportunities. Not to mention when it comes
time for that flag football game, I will make sure we end up with a W.
Social Coordinators
Georgina Bruce
Hello fellow nurses to be! I am super excited to
be running for social representative as part of
such a fun and dynamic team of 3! I came in to
this program from a very unsocial science
undergrad and I was very excited to be a part of
such a close community within this program. I
am really passionate about making this
experience more than just the usual school,
clinical, and commute routine. I also would like
to strive to make our program better known on
campus, as we currently seem to be quite
secluded from the rest of UBC. I certainly feel like
I have experience with this position, holding previous event coordinator roles in
past schooling. I currently hold connections with the events manager of the Sauder
School of Business (she’s my sister) and my roommate is the events coordinator
with SPECO, which is a sustainable organization on campus that will work in
collaboration with any event we hold, funding us, as long as we are sustainable. I
hope to organize a variety of events that appeal to all areas of the cohort’s social
preferences including bar nights out, movie screenings, hikes and beach days during
our summer months, and even arranging for a blow up velcro sticky wall rental (if
you don’t know what that is, google it!). I really hope to involve every one of you
with your suggestions and ideas. Let’s make nursing school the best years yet!
Isadora Donoso
Hey guys! Running alongside Tori and
Georgina, I am hoping to be elected as your
NUS social representative. I love being social
(solid requirement) and would love to work
with all of you to find different ways in which
our cohort can create some really great
memories together, outside of the classroom. I
think it is pretty amazing that we are all a part
of this unique program and would love the
opportunity to further add to the nursing fun
we are already having! I am very open to your
ideas and really want to strive for creating
different events that everyone can enjoy since
we are all unique and have different notions as
to what fun, social events are.
Previously holding an executive position for a
health sciences student union has given me
ample opportunities to plan social events and I
have learned that the more people involved,
the better. Please do not hesitate to ask me
about my ideas and I, of course, would love to
hear yours. My hope is that social
representatives can actively partner up with
the charity and sports representative in an
effort to really unite our student body.
Ultimately, I think we are all pretty great and nursing school is a big deal. We are all
doing this crazy, wonderful thing together so why not add to the memories with
events that can bring us even closer together?
If you would have me, I would love to represent you all.
Thank you!
Tori Spangehl
Hello Dolphins! I’m running with the team of
Izzy, Georgina, and myself in the hopes of
becoming your new NUS social
representatives. I’m so excited to be apart of
this amazing community of people; I think that
it’s phenomenal that we have the variety of
backgrounds, experiences, and personalities
that we do in this program. I would love to
work along side our class to try to create fun
events and memories throughout our time in
the program. I have previously been involved
in and later held an executive position for the
Thunderbird Athletic Counsel (TAC) as a
varsity athlete at UBC. Through this, I gained
experience in liaising, planning events, and
trying to create a closer community amongst
athletes of different teams. I believe that
including many voices is essential when
holding a representative role, and as social
representative this would be one of my main
priorities. I truly believe that we are all very
fortunate to be surrounded by such unique
and passionate people for this journey that is
nursing school. Through this position, it is my
hope to represent an incredible group of
people and to create lasting memories, a closer
community, and to have lots of fun along the way!
Code Blue Editor / Book Sale Coordinators
Pit Wah
Hello Everyone, I’m Pit Wah and I am interested in running for the position of the
Book Consignment Coordinator/Code Blue Editor. I would appreciate the
opportunity to be able to meet and get to know all the students in our cohort and I
feel like this position would allow me to do so. I am sure we have all experienced
stress towards the costly prices for our textbooks. Thus, I would like to be the one to
help students get textbooks/nursing gear for good deals! I would be delighted to be
able to connect with everyone in our cohort, as well as the upper and incoming
cohorts to organize book consignments and book/nursing gear sales. This position
also entails working on the Code Blue Newsletter, which I believe would be a fun
and exciting experience. The Newsletter will include news and events the NUS and
Nursing Students have been up to. So please elect me as your Book Consignment
Coordinator/Code Blue Editor. I am super friendly and approachable and looking
forward to connecting with all of you as part of the NUS!
Danielle Chuang
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away… there were cheap textbooks.
My name is Danielle, and I’m running with Pit Wah Lau as Book Consignment
Coordinators/Code Blue Editors. With textbooks being a lot more expensive than
many of us would like, I’m hoping to help organize sales in which students have
access to resources at a lower cost. It’s cost effective, earth-friendly, and benefits a
charity specifically chosen by the NUS charity coordinator. I would also love to
contribute to the Code Blue Newsletter, and collaborate with other students in our
cohort. Just a few more facts about me: I love being organized (colour-coding
anyone?), I’m passionate about finding the best deals, and I’d like to pass a bit of the
dolphin-spirit to the following cohort. I would be honoured to be a part of the NUS,
and help my classmates out as much as I can!
Public Relations / Media Coordinator
Beza Feleke
Dear fellow Dolphins,
I am running for the Public Relations Representative position because I find it a
priviledge to respresent the student body (you amazing folks) at the information
sessions held throughtout the year. I bring my positive energy and experience
working in various community collectives to the NUS Council.. oh and don’t forget
my welcoming smile (see those pearly whites below). To name a few of the teams that
I have worked with: UBC International Peer Program as Group Leader, UBC Peer
Program Executive Committee as IPP Representative, Ethiopian Cultural Community
as Summer Festival Childrens Program Coordinator, Vancouver Neighbourhood
Small Grants – Ethiopian Cooking Class Coordinator, St. Paul’s Hospital Radiology as
Patient Safety Committee member. Lastly, I would bring my photography and
documentary filmmaking skills to the council’s general promoting efforts as I have a
great pasion for telling stories through these mediums!
Thanks for reading and for VOTING!
Truly,
Beza Feleke
Interprofessional Advisors
Hilary Biden
Hello everyone! I’m Hilary and I want to represent you as one of the
interprofessional advisors for our NUS cohort. Before entering UBC Nursing I
completed an undergraduate degree in health promotion and human geography at
Queen’s University where I was involved with model parliament, a spinal cord
research lab, and the Kingston Cancer Clinic. After graduation I travelled to South
Africa where I volunteered as a home care nurse and a youth support worker in a
squatter camp.
I am very passionate about nurses working together with other disciplines to
improve health conditions, ultimately bettering the community as a whole. Through
collaboration with other disciplines we are able to better tackle global and local
health problems.
I want to advocate on your behalf for increased nursing involvement in
organizations such as the UBC Mental Health Awareness Club, a cause that is very
important to me. I will also ensure that nurses have a strong voice in the
Interprofessional Curriculum Committee to improve learning both for us and
nursing cohorts to come. I am a good candidate for this position as I am a good
communicator, enjoy advocating for others, and am committed to further
developing NUS relationships with interdisciplinary committees at UBC. I am excited
about the possibility of representing the NUS in the UBC community!
Alison Vavra
Hey guys! I’m Ali, and I'm running for the position of Interprofessional Advisor. I did
my undergrad here at UBC and after graduation went to Malaysia for a few months
to intern at a community health clinic that was part of an HIV outreach and support
program. The people I worked with were from all over the world in many different
disciplines. This experience really opened my eyes to the many areas of health that
nurses make a difference in, and the importance of interprofessional collaboration. I
believe becoming your interprofessional Advisory is a great opportunity to
represent our faculty to the Health Sciences Students Association and discuss issues
we believe are relevant to us as nursing students.
Another aspect of this position that I am really interested in developing is the ability
to submit events for consideration as passport points. Many of you have already
been posting links to interesting speakers, workshops and other resources that are
not only relevant to our nursing class but enriching events. I did my undergrad at
UBC and was very involved in several clubs such as the Red Cross and the Global
Lounge Organization which was a collection of various internationally focused clubs
across campus. They have hosted an amazing variety of speakers, workshops and
other events focused on everything from aiding disadvantages populations in
Vancouver, to global health issues. I am really interested in bringing forward events
that are interesting to our class and giving them a boost by making them events we
can get points for too.
Blue Sales Team
June Chan and Marina Tan
Once upon a time, before we became dolphins, both June and Marina were predatory
sharks in the rough waves of customer service and retail merchandising. However,
through nurture and care these two sharks have learned to put their skills to good use.
We're very excited at the prospect of taking these skills of visual displays,
organizing, advertising and selling to everyone in the calmer waters of UBC nursing!
Approachability, affordability and accessibility are key principles we’d like to
uphold in this role, especially in coordination with the UBC bookstore. Ultimately,
we are absolutely thrilled about having the opportunity to work with all of you in
designing clothing that represents us all and something we'll be proud to wear.
From sharks to dolphins, VOTE June and Marina for Blue Sales!
“We'll keep you looking fresh. Yo ;)”
Blue Sales Team
Kendall Chan & Tori Lee
Hi fellow nursing students! My name is Kendall Chan and I would love the opportunity
to represent our 2016 SoN class as the Blue Sales Rep. Before coming to UBC I was
working at St. Paul’s Hospital as part of the Radiology and Cardiology research team. As
coordinator for the clinical studies it was my responsibility to order research
devices/supplies and communicate with manufacturers. I’m also familiar with the
shipping and receiving process as most of these packages were coming from overseas. I
am also interested in contributing to the design of the clothing and promoting the sales
to our class and the one to follow. Most importantly though, I think that having clothing
that represents our program is a fantastic idea that shows we are proud of what we are
all doing! I would greatly appreciate a chance to contribute to the NUS in this way and
represent our class. Thanks for your consideration!
-Kendall
Hi SoN class of 2016! I’m so excited for the chance to be your Blue Sales Rep along with
Kendall. I spent five years in retail while doing my first degree, so I’m familiar with the
behind-the-scenes action that needs to happen to present you with the best clothing
options available. I’m not afraid to source out for the good stuff like American Apparel,
and I already have some great places in mind. But most importantly, as your Blue Sales
Rep I want to make sure you are part of the process – the clothing and logo design
should be what you want to see, and what you would be proud to wear. Thanks so much
for your time and consideration!
- Tori
Charity Coordinators
Laura Brown and Izela Lim
Hey friends! My name is Laura Brown and I’m running with Izela Lim for the role
Charity Coordinator. I have a strong background in volunteering, including working
with organizations like AIDS Vancouver Island, the Downtown Eastside Women’s
Center, and Positive Women’s Network. I have also been involved with a number of
student-run organizations at multiple learning institutions like UVIC, VCC, SFU, and
Capilano College. I hope to be able to throw some exciting events where we as a
cohort can have fun and raise some money for a good cause.
Hello everyone! My name is Izela and I'm excited to assist in finding and working
towards a cause with such a socially conscious cohort. My fundraising experience is
through student-run organizations affiliated with the BC Cancer Foundation, Free
the Children, and rural water, school-building, and HIV/AIDS outreach projects in
the international community. I am approachable and eager to integrate ideas from
the student body towards future plans. Given the intensity of our nursing program, I
hope to generate fundraisers where the student body can unwind, de-stress, and
enjoy themselves. Thank you for considering Laura and I, and best of luck to all the
nominees
Student Faculty Forum
Andrea Assumption
Hello there! I am Andrea Assumption and I am running for the position of the SFF
representative. I hope to act as a liaison between us the students, and the faculty. I
have had previous experience as an HEU steward, where I advocated for employees
and their rights, and I hope to continue advocating for us, the nursing students.
Advocacy is my passion, whether it is for patients, students or employees, thus, I
think that I am a great fit for this position. I believe we should advocate for what we
need in order to become the best nurses that we can be. I hope that you feel
confident in electing me as your SFF representative and I hope to gain your votes!
Ian Malnis
Hey everyone,
I like solving problems, always have! At some point over the last two months we
have all voiced concerns about the way this program is administered, either to each
other, our friends, families or strangers on the bus who’ve overheard our ranting. I
want to be able to take those concerns to the people that can do something about it:
the faculty. While I know there is nothing we can do about the past, we have another
four terms to go and your feedback is so important. If we can learn from this first
term and communicate these concerns to the faculty in an open and forthright way, I
believe we can anticipate future problems in order to make the next four terms
much smoother. Who doesn’t want that?
Thanks!
Ian
Orientation Coordinators