I'm Yasha — a third-year student running to be your Student Member of the Board. I want a board that hears students before it votes, not after. Real representation, plain answers, and decisions you can actually follow.
Read my platform Meet YashaWHY I'M RUNNING
Tuition changes land in our inboxes already decided. Buildings close for "renovation" with no timeline. Mental-health support has a six-week wait. I've sat in enough committee meetings to know the board isn't unkind — it's just rarely in the room with us. I want to change who's at the table.
I'm Yasha van Praagh, studying Public Policy with a minor in Economics. For two years I've served on the Student Council's finance committee, where I helped reverse a printing-credit cut and kept the night library open through exam season.
I read every page of the budget so you don't have to. I ask the boring questions in the meetings nobody attends. And I write back when you email me — usually the same day.
I'll push for a plain-language summary of every board budget, published before the vote — what's being spent, what's being cut, and who it affects. No more 200-page PDFs dropped the night before.
A six-week wait for counselling isn't support. I'll campaign to ring-fence funding for same-week appointments during term and proper drop-in hours every faculty can reach.
Study rooms, the night library, and shared studios should have hours that match how students actually work. I'll hold the board to a published schedule and a real reason whenever something closes.
Representation only works if you can reach me. I'll keep weekly open office hours, post how I voted and why, and answer every message — because the seat belongs to you, not me.
"I'm not asking you to trust the board. I'm asking you to send someone who'll question it — every meeting, on your behalf."
Yasha van Praagh — for Student Member of the Board
Polls open Tuesday, June 9. Two minutes online with your student ID — that's all it takes.
GET IN TOUCH
yasha@vanpraagh.voteON THE BALLOT
Platform How I'll vote VolunteerAuthorised by the Yasha van Praagh campaign, Student Union.
Student Member of the Board · 2026