No enthusiasm for SAITSA elections

By Aldin Avdic

The hundreds of posters dotted around SAIT added little enthusiasm to students.

Between March 3-6, SAIT students were able to vote for the SAITSA board of directors (BOD), results were announced March 6, at 5 p.m.

Elected board member James Kyle believes the elections matter, many students would disagree with him.

“It would be the greatest honour of my life to represent the students...I just really want to make a difference.”

The 22-year-old is currently at SAIT doing the software development program, a two-year diploma course.

In Kyle's opinion, the SAITSA elections are a time where students can vote and express what changes they support.

Kyle himself is running on the pledges of :

• Start building the SAITSA headquarters
• More mental health support for students
• More scholarships for students
• More support for students

However, Kyle's biggest component of his campaign was creating a 24-hour study space at SAIT. He feels that the implantation of around-the-clock study space would benefit many students, including himself.

“There was a lot of time last semester where I was struggling to complete these projects, and that study space would have really helped me.”

For many students at SAIT, the optimist outlook on the election is nonexistent.

“I feel like it is largely inconsequential," said Roman Rojas. "Not a lot of change happens here.”

Becca Callie sat next to Rojas in the Stan Grad center, in the study pits.

She also echoed what Rojas felt. “I honestly don’t know how much change will come out of the election.”

The issue that both Rojas and Callie felt around the SAITSA BOD elections is that most of what people campaigned about won’t be achieved or realized.

Rojas and Callie pointed out that most SAIT students take two-year programs and would never see long term changes implemented.

“Yeah, you could say a lot, but it doesn't mean a lot will actually happen. I could say that I'm going to fly, but you don’t know that,” said Callie

Rojas and Callie had some basic understanding of the elections and knew about some of the candidates and what they wanted to change at SAIT.

A vast majority of students gave many, I-have-no-clue, answers. Saying that the elections weren’t important to them, didn’t care about them or said they didn’t know it was going on.

Presley Allon said,” I don't actually know what it's for really, I feel like all of a sudden these posters just popped up, and I was like okay.”

Stephanie Gross said that the elections matter more to people in programs that last four years. Since her program of lab technology is only two years, it gets very busy. Making her pay more attention to her schoolwork than the elections.

“I think some of them have great ideas for things to implement, but just by the time I’m done I won’t see those things,” said Gross.

After many interactions with students, Kathryn Fon was the only person who told The Press that she had voted.

“I just think it's important to vote and have a say in what happens,” said Fon.

With the election over and a new day at SAIT. Life went on as if nothing had happened. A new body was sworn in to serve the students' interest, but those students had no interest in them.

Kyle was sworn in as a member of the SATSA board of directors on March 6, 2025.

He said his outreach to students is what got him elected.

“Students want a president or director who talks to people, learns about their problems and creates solutions for them.”

Ashlyn Woodham was asked if she was following the election results. “Honestly no, I have no idea who won.”

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