A Year’s News in Review

October 12th 2011 by Sebastian Boyle

February

• University begins on the 21st, to the traditional fanfare. Canterbury Cards and Hard Cards are collected, as students return to a campus that is now smoke-free and a suburb with a liquor ban in place. UC Live has been decommissioned.
• On the 22nd, the earth screams and falls apart in a 6.3 earthquake that sees campus closed, amid wider devastation in the Christchurch area.
• By February 24th, the Student Volunteer Army begins its second silt clean-up effort, following the work undertaken in September 2010.
• On the 25th, the Big Top, a marquee designated for student space, is erected on the UCSA carpark. Going through phases as a Volunteer Army headquarters, a student hang-out zone, and a gig venue, it remains up until the first week of September.

March

• After almost three weeks, University finally reopens with a lecture in a marquee on the Law carpark. Lectures in tents continue through the first term. Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd visits campus. A massive earthquake and tsunami hits Japan, and UC students raise $7500 for earthquake relief there.

April

• After initial announcements that April Graduation ceremonies would be cancelled this year, the University announces Graduation celebrations, which the UCSA pairs with a Graduation Ball in the SuperTop, a huge marquee on Ilam Fields that puts all others to shame. The UCSA also puts on a Student Volunteer Army Thank You Gig, featuring Shapeshifter, Tiki Taane, and a SuperTop packed full of sweaty students.
• On the Government front, the Tertiary Education Minister signals a tightening of student service levy regulations and a crackdown on student loan defaulters living overseas.

May

• Two University of Canterbury students who helped coordinate the Volunteer Army, Sam Johnson and Jason Pemberton, travel to Japan to help with earthquake relief there. They avoid becoming radioactive.
• The City Council votes unanimously to enact a six month liquor ban in the Ilam area, aimed at curbing alcohol-fuelled troublemaking.
• The Budget sees changes to the student loan scheme, including an end to course-related costs, an end to living costs for students over 55, and changes to repayment rules.
• The UCSA AGM goes ahead with little fuss, as earthquake delays have caused all business to be held over until the half AGM later in the year.
• Work commences on a new student recreation, social, and study space in the Undercroft area of the James Hight Building.

June

• In the lead-up to exams, Christchurch is hit on June 13th by a pair of strong earthquakes. Campus is closed for the rest of the week. After much deliberation, the University announces a number of changes to the exam timetable along with increased exam options and aegrotat eligibility.

July

• CHCH101, a course aimed at integrating students' volunteer experiences after the earthquakes with academic content on the concept of community engagement, begins.
• The UCSA makes it second move since arriving at the Ilam Campus, relocating to an area underneath the Central Library in the James Hight Building.
• The UCSA Half-AGM is held with all the exciting business from the AGM held over as promised.
• Snow results in the University of Canterbury campus being closed for a day and half.

August

• A record field in the UCSA elections sees 46 candidates in the running for nine general executive positions, four vying for finance officer, four for vice president, and six for president. Erin Jackson is ultimately successful in snaring the lattermost position.
• The Government makes long-foreshadowed changes to the student loans scheme under urgency.
• Snow again results in a closure of the University of Canterbury campus, this time for two days.

September

• Media reports suggest 350 jobs are on the line at the University of Canterbury in the coming three years. The University downplays this number, though concedes it will face financial difficulty.
• The UCSA Undercroft opens, seeing great usage.
• Voluntary Student Membership becomes a reality after the Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill passes its third reading in Parliament.