New Student Union Presidents elected for 2024/25

Grŵp Llandrillo Menai’s new Student Union Presidents have been elected ahead of the 2024/25 academic year.

The new representatives will give students a voice across the Grŵp’s nine campuses, and will work to enrich the college experience.

The newly elected presidents are Troy Maclean (Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor), Munachi Nneji (Coleg Menai), Rhys Morris (Coleg Llandrillo) and Rhiannon Williams (Higher Education).

Here’s what they had to say on being chosen to represent their fellow learners:

Troy Kaydon Maclean (Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor SU President)

Troy studies Independent Living Skills at the Dolgellau campus. He pledges to increase the well-being and mental health of students, and promote a more supportive landscape where all students can feel comfortable in discussing their course issues.

He said: “It’s important to support people and see what you can change. I want to improve wellbeing and have more discussions between the whole group, listen to ideas and suggestions and put them into action.”

Munachi Nneji (Coleg Menai SU president)

Munachi is studying A-levels in Maths, Physics and Chemistry at the Llangefni campus. She pledges to promote sustainable practices on campus, such as recycling, reducing waste and conserving energy, creating a green and healthy campus environment.

She said: “I really love the sense of community and the freedom that comes with being at Coleg Menai. I believe that mental health and physical health and wellbeing are important for people to reach their highest potential, and to get the most out of their years at college and take forward into their careers.

“I want to help raise awareness of the activities that people can get involved in so they love coming into college and love learning.”

Rhys Morris (Coleg Llandrillo SU president)

Rhys studies Uniformed Protective Services at the Rhyl campus, and was overall winner at Coleg Llandrillo’s Achievers Awards for the last academic year. Earlier this year, Rhys won The Prince’s Trust Ascential Education Award, which recognises young people who have overcome barriers to education.

He pledges to improve transparency, increase student engagement and ensure that the voice of students is at the heart of everything the college does.

Rhys said: “This role suits the career path I want to go down, which is serving people, representing people and being able to make a difference for people in my peer group.

“I want to give people a voice, and that’s what the Student Union’s all about. I think currently not many people know they have that voice. Being able to get that out to people more will definitely make a difference.”

Rhiannon Williams (Higher Education SU president)

Rhiannon is studying a PGCE at the Bangor campus. She was recently on the learner panel for the new Principal interviews. Rhiannon pledges to help students break down barriers and achieve their dreams through the opportunities provided by higher education.

She said: “I enjoy a challenge, I enjoy helping people and making a difference, and I thought this was the way to go about it. I’ve done a Higher Education course already which was my degree at the Dolgellau campus, and I felt there could be slight improvements for the Higher Education side so this was my way of making that difference moving forward for the college.”

Grŵp Llandrillo Menai’s Student Enrichment Officer Aaron Beacher said:

“I would like to congratulate Troy, Munachi, Rhys and Rhiannon on their success in obtaining their posts for the 2024/2025 academic year.

“I would also like to thank all the applicants who put themselves forward for these roles. Those candidates who were not successful this time are encouraged to participate in voluntary roles within the Student Union to support the Presidents, where they will be a great asset.

“Grŵp Llandrillo Menai will also soon be recruiting for class representatives, who are a vital part of the organisation. Class representatives communicate directly with the Student Union team and attend Learner Voice Panels to ensure learners contribute positively to the ongoing development of their course, campus and overall college experience.”

Earlier this year, the Grŵp won the Learner Voice award at the annual NUS Wales conference.

The award celebrated the Grŵp’s commitment to encourage and include student voice, through hosting its annual Learner Conference and developing support plans in collaboration with learners.

For more information about Grŵp Llandrillo Menai’s Student Union, please email studentunion@gllm.ac.uk or undebymyfyrwyr@gllm.ac.uk