The ANUSA Education Committee gathered for their first meeting of term four. Hosted in the ANUSA Boardroom, the meeting set the stage for current ANUSA Education Officer Harry Needham to outline five proposals, which aim to alter the functioning of the Education Committee.

Most notably, Needham proposed the establishment of “two or more” new deputy positions to the committee. The deputies would work closely with the Education Officer and assist “with running campaigns and convening the committee”. It was concluded that the positions would be more effective if they were elected.

2019 Education Officer-elect, Tanika Sibal, voiced her support for the establishment of Education Officer deputies. Sibal also supported the appointment of these positions instead of the proposed Education Committee elections.

Needham highlighted that deputy Education Officers would have been “useful” during his organisation of the ANUSA supported first-year camps, citing his excessive workload during this period.

The current Education Officer demonstrated his belief that the limited student engagement in the actions of the Education Committee was partly the result of a lack in “student buy-in” and that the creation of Education deputies would help resolve this issue.

The positions would be unpaid but would be eligible to receive a slice of the current $5,000 ANUSA honoraria fund. However, questions were raised as to the equality surrounding the delegation of the paid Education Officer’s work to unpaid deputies.

It was concluded that constitutional change would not be required to create the positions. Needham clarified that the process for the establishment of the deputy positions is still unknown and was dependent on the pending drafting of the Education Committee’s terms of reference, which Needham is hoping to complete by the next Education Committee meeting.