MLSA FALL 2023 ELECTION CANDIDATES
CANDIDATES RUNNING:
1L Class Rep (A03): Vanessa Smith, Riley Parker, Logan Nadeau
2L Class Rep: Julia Kwasnica, Landon Law
1L CLASS REP (A03) CANDIDATES
RILEY PARKER for 1L CLASS REP (A03)
Howdy y’all, my name is Riley James Parker.
I am 24, a libra, I love long walks on the beach, and I’m campaigning to be the 1L representative
for section A03.
I have excelled as a mediator in various capacities throughout my life. I was the coordinator and liaison for my volunteer crew at the Winnipeg Folk Festival, I oversaw multiple clubs for my
high school students and advocated on their behalf between them and the staff, and in my capacity as a food expeditor I was the sole intermediary through which kitchen and servers communicated their respective needs and settled their disputes, much like how I intend to be an intermediary between my classmates and the MLSA. To expedite is to speed up, and as your 1L A03 rep I promise to speed up the acquisition of a just an enjoyable scholastic experience to all my fellow classmates. I pledge to become a bastion of knowledge, a humble conduit, for the utility of all my peers.
If you see me meandering throughout these hallowed halls in my infamous polar bear sweater, please feel free to passionately tell me about your experience at law school, or to inquire about what Robson has to offer. As your representative, I will fight tirelessly to ensure that your rights are adequately defended. Scratch that, exceptionally defended. I will be the moat behind which you build your castle of learning.
I hope to proverbially see all of you at the polls, cheers. Vote for me, A03, Riley P.
LOGAN NADEAU for 1L CLASS REP (A03)
VANESSA SMITH for 1L CLASS REP (A03)
Hi everyone! My name is Vanessa (she/her), and I am running to be your 2023-2024 1L Class Representative for A03. I believe I’d be an excellent representative and that I have a platform to enhance your first year here at Robson Hall.
First, just a bit about me:
On top off graduating from the Faculty of Science here at the U of M, I’ve had the opportunity to build experience through community involvement. I have learned advocacy, mentorship, and event planning through my time working at Villa Rosa. I have also learned the importance of teamwork, effective communication, and leadership through my time coaching high school volleyball. I was a member of my high school’s student-lead mental health club, and I am mental health first aid certified. Through all of this, I’ve learned that organization and time management are life skills that are paramount to succeeding at anything. And so, my platform starts there.
My goal is to make your life easier.
If elected as your 1L Class Representative I will:
- Ensure everyone is in the know. As for myself, and for those who I have spoken with thus far, adjusting to the number of emails we receive can be overwhelming. I want to alleviate from stress of missing an important email. Therefore, I will make class announcements (verbally or by writing it on the board) before and after classes when necessary to make sure everyone is aware of what’s going on at Robson Hall.
- Share my resources. I am committed to making sure A03 members are set up for success. I will be providing you with main streamed assignment schedule and other organization tools to assist you with managing a busy school life. I will organise group study sessions around exam times for those in section A03.
- Support you. I am committed to lead with compassion, fairness, and enthusiasm. We have all followed different paths to be where we are today. None of those paths have been the same, but all of them have brought their own set challenges. I want to be someone anyone can talk to, whether it be school related or not.
- Advocate for you. I will participate in the MLSA meetings and represent our A03 class. If you have concerns or suggestions, they should be heard. My goal is to advocate for you and elevate your voice, so you can see the change you want.
Thank you,
Vanessa
2L CLASS REP CANDIDATES
JULIA KWASNICA for 2L CLASS REP
Hi everyone, my name is Julia, and I want to be your MLSA 2L rep!
After last year’s grading snafu and other events, I was excited to hear that this position had opened up! I want to serve as an intermediary between our 2L class and the Robson administration to ensure the smoothest experience possible for our year. I’ve had lots of experience in leadership positions, both in jobs I’ve had in the past and clubs I’ve been in, which has contributed to my ability to work as an advocate for others. I am determined to advocate on behalf of all 2L students if any issues are to arise throughout the year. This includes helping with both individual concerns and issues affecting the entire Robson Hall class of 2025. I’ve also really been wanting to become an active member of the MLSA, and I thought this was a great way to do so! Finally, I think it’s important to have some female representation within the two MLSA 2L reps, especially since, to this day, men continue to outnumber women in the legal industry.
As your MLSA 2L rep, I will be:
Approachable:
- If I am elected as your MLSA 2L rep I will provide my email and phone number to all students so they can contact me directly if there are any issues or questions. My goal is to be easily accessible and approachable for all students from various backgrounds and with various personalities, so that includes the quieter people who have a harder time voicing their concerns. I know personally I am a quieter person, and in the past I’ve had a difficult time having my concerns heard, so accessibility and approachability are my top priority. I’m probably the least intimidating person possible for this role, so my goal is for all 2L students to feel comfortable reaching out to me. Even if fellow students want to stop me in the hallways to chat, I’m open to that as well!
Dedicated:
- I am wholly dedicated to being your MLSA 2L rep. I decided I wanted to run for this position even before the school year began, so me running for this position was not an impromptu, spur-of-the-moment decision, it’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while now. I got all my nominations the very first day that it opened and even had my speech for the candidates’ forum pre-written before classes even began.
Organized:
- I pride myself on my adherence to strict deadlines and due dates. As law students, we are all busy; however, with my excellent time management skills I will ensure that all concerns (& ideas!) are addressed promptly and that nothing gets neglected.
Thank you and remember to check your UM email and vote on Tuesday, September 19th!
LANDON LAW for 2L CLASS REP
Hello Robson!
Hope you all had a great summer, and I hope we all have an even better Fall (see you at the beverage gardens this afternoon).
For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Landon Law, and I am very excited to be running for the position of 2L Representative for the 2023-2024 school year!
I can already hear you asking: “why should I elect this shmuck to be our 2L Rep?” Well, I have the answer for you – As your 2L Rep my job is to act as the liaison between the 2L student body and the MLSA, Faculty, University, MILSA, and more, and I can guarantee three commitments that will allow me to represent my classmates to best degree possible.
1) Commitment
The most essential quality in a class representative is that they truly care about advocating for their fellow students. Since my first day at Robson, I have loved everything about the community, as I have shown through my active participation in various clubs and faculty events. But the experience I’ve valued most has been meeting all of my amazing classmates and navigating our law school journeys together. If I am elected, my commitment is to serve my fellow classmates with the amount of passion and determination they deserve.
As we all know, Law school is not easy. It’s very common for students to feel like they are drowning in an insurmountable amount of readings, papers, projects, and exam studying. This can lead to a decline in students’ mental health, thereby producing the vicious cycle of anxiety that many of us know all too well. This is a topic that I am very passionate about, and I will make a point to take every student’s issues as serious as possible and devote the time/resources to resolve them as quickly and effectively as possible. I want all of our law school journeys to be as smooth and enjoyable as they can be, and I’m confident in my capability to assure it is so.
2) Accessibility
If I am elected, I will make it a point to be as accessible and responsive as possible to my fellow classmates. The class representative’s job is one of service, and I will be receptive to each and every one of you equally, confidentially, and without judgement. Not only am I happy to hear any and all of your ideas and concerns – I sincerely appreciate your willingness to confide in me.
Whether it be by email, phone, Facebook or in person, I will encourage my classmates to reach out, and consider it my duty to reciprocate with a timely response. (This may also be a result of my not having a life outside of law school, but that is neither here nor there, nevertheless, your notification will likely be the only one on my phone, and I will get back to you surely and quickly).
3) Creativity and Enthusiasm
Facilitating a positive law school experience begins with promoting a sense of class companionship. If I am elected, I am very excited to bring a fresh, energetic mindset to this discussion, with plans to promote various morale building activities, be it class get-togethers, additional study sessions, facilitating the creation of study groups, etc. I would also be happy to crowdsource more ideas from my fellow classmates.
Good luck to all of my fellow nominees and I hope to have your vote next Tuesday, Sept.19th-20th!