2025 general election: Cumming School of Medicine
In this year’s Students’ Union (SU) general election, five names will appear on the ballot for the Cumming School of Medicine Faculty representative where only two candidates will be successful. Along with the responsibilities outlined for all Students’ Legislative Council (SLC) members, faculty representatives are accountable for responsibilities particular to their role including: Reporting to students of their faculty the policies, positions and programs of the Students’ Union (SU), reporting to their faculty itself (like Dean’s Council) the policies, positions and programs of the SU, representing student constituents of their faculty at SLC, representing student constituents of their faculty on university committees and reporting to the VP Academic on matters of academic importance within their faculty.
Mohamad Aytour
Mohamad Aytour, is running to represent the Cumming School of Medicine (CSM). His platform focuses on affordability, student wellness and community building.
Aytour demonstrates an understanding of the CSM Representative’s role — a position that primarily involves advocacy rather than direct policy-making power. He acknowledges this limitation in areas like tuition reduction by focusing on advocacy.
“I plan to collaborate with the Canadian Federation of Medical Students and bring this up to SLC meetings every week,” said Aytour.
His proposals for weekly events with free food, trivia nights, and increased awareness of mental health resources are well within the scope of the SU and could have a tangible impact on student well-being. His plan to make scholarship opportunities more visible through better advertising is also a reasonable and achievable goal.
“I would make it more popular through like sending emails and putting up posters,” said Aytour.
Some of Aytour’s proposals, however, require faculty buy-in and may face significant hurdles. His idea for optional assessments allowing students to boost their grades would necessitate approval from professors and raise concerns about grade inflation.
“Professors might make these assessments like non-jeopardy,” said Aytour in response to concerns about grade inflation.
Aytour also highlights the bureaucratic challenges clubs face when organizing events, citing the current 14-day approval policy and limited SU staffing as barriers. His plan to advocate for a more efficient approval process at SLC meetings is one of his more achievable goals.
Overall, Aytour’s passion for student well-being is evident, but his platform lacks a pragmatic approach to major structural issues like academic policy reform. With refinement and specificity in his strategy, Aytour is a promising candidate.
Brandon Azer
Brandon Azer is one of five candidates in the running for the two faculty representative positions at the Cumming School of Medicine. This candidate chose not to interview with the Gauntlet but here’s what you can expect based on his platform.
Azer enters the race as a second-year medical student having completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Alberta, he emphasizes the value of every voice within the faculty, understanding the diversity and variation of programs within the faculty. He is running on four central platform pillars.
He aims to resolve the ongoing issue of parking for Cumming students, specifically citing the inability to purchase parking tickets as a barrier for students to succeed because parking at Foothills is connected to the hospital, this may be difficult to achieve. .
Azer’s platform also includes advocating for better food options on the Foothills campus. He aims to diversify the options available to students, while also making these options more affordable and healthy, something that may be outside the scope of his role.
Azer also aims to build better mental health supports for students and improve the existing resources available. Azer cites improving wait times for the Student Advocacy and Wellness Hub (SAWH).
Lastly, Azer aims to prioritize better financial support for CSM students by eliminating printing fees and ensuring essential course materials and academic resources will be available to students without cost.
While Azer’s platform is built around the concept of putting the interests of students first, he lacks a clear and definitive plan for how he plans to execute the goals of his platform, specifically concerning how he will generate the funding to meet his goals by the end of the next academic year.
Despite good intentions, Azer’s new arrival at the U of C is apparent as he does not seem to fully understand the scope of his portfolio.
Hannah Kim
Hannah Kim is re-running to continue filling the position of Cumming School of Medicine Representative in the subsequent term.
Kim’s platform focuses on establishing a direct line of communication between students of the faculty and their representatives, continuing advocacy for student mental health and wellness, and promoting available opportunities to current students and alumni.
When asked about her decision to re-run for election, Kim emphasized the need for more time to pursue her goals as a representative.
“There’s lots of things I learned along the way and that just made me realize there’s not enough time in a whole year to get everything I wanted done, which is why I want to continue in my role,” she said.
Organizing a successful pet therapy initiative last term, Kim’s platform stresses the importance of student mental health and wellness. She ensures that this is an issue that would be taken to the provincial level.
“I think more of the systemic aspect of mental health, like a really big part of that, is having enough funding to have those services in the first place. And I think advocating for that goes beyond just the faculty and with the SU,” she explained.
Kim thanked the faculty for their support in the last election and ensured her re-election would enable her to continue working to represent her peers in the Cumming School of Medicine.
As a successful faculty representative in the previous term, Kim has proven her effectiveness at representing students and their needs. She has demonstrated her ability to be a very successful candidate if elected once again.
Nikhil Srivalsan
Nikhil Srivalsan, a second-year Biomedical Sciences student, is running for the Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) Faculty Representative position on a platform focused on academic support, student representation and mental health.
From our interview, it’s clear that Srivalsan has a solid grasp of the challenges CSM students face. His experience in student governance dates back to high school, where he served as student council president.
His push for clearer grading rubrics and increased accountability in assessments is well within the Faculty Representative’s scope, as it aligns with advocating to and working alongside faculty to improve course delivery.
“I’d hope to advocate for making it more clear and communicating to students what exactly is being looked for,” he said.
Another platform goal includes adjusting grading scales in MDSC courses. While advocating for change is possible, structural grading policies are complex, and Srivalsan does not outline a specific approach for overcoming potential resistance.
“A lot of students do feel they’re fairly assessed, but they still believe the threshold for achieving certain grades is unfair,” he said.
On mental health, Srivalsan highlights the need for increased awareness and expansion of counseling services at the Student Wellness Advocacy Hub (SWAH). He suggests hosting monthly panel sessions and improving outreach efforts.
“A major thing is just marketing it in general and making people aware of the service that’s offered,” he said.
One of his strongest points is his commitment to transparency and student engagement. He plans to use social media and direct communication to keep students informed.
Srivalsan demonstrates strong enthusiasm and a genuine commitment to student concerns. His passion is evident, but his ability to translate ideas into tangible policy changes will determine his effectiveness if elected.
Alex Tam
Alex Tam is running for CSM Representative in the upcoming term. As a member of the Health Sciences Student Association, as well as the Medical Alumni Advisory Committee, Tam was inspired to bring his prior experience forward and advocate for larger student issues.
Tam’s platform focuses on ensuring transparency in MDSC course changes, connecting current students to alumni of the faculty, and addressing the issue of food insecurity within the student population.
Tam explained how his experience as a CSM student shaped his platform, emphasizing the importance of understanding the niche issues of the student body.
“So, within that realm, it’s just sort of about understanding and being familiar with the student population,” he said.
In regards to connecting students to CSM alumni and expanding their knowledge of available opportunities post-university, Tam’s experience of sitting on the Medical Alumni Advisory Committee has brought a new perspective on how to achieve this. He explained how the alumni database can be utilized to tailor events to the diverse interests of both students and alumni alike.
As well, Tam explained his vision for improving the Foothills Community Pantry.
“The signage is there, but it’s not really well known or well maintained. My sort of vision is either through SU donations, SU funded donations, or maybe community partners.”
Overall, Tam offers a variety of goals capable of positive change within the student population. However, many of these goals will need structured plans of action to ensure their success. Tam is a good candidate for CSM representative.
All undergraduate students in the Cumming School of Medicine can vote YES or NO on their ballot for up to two candidates for FACULTY REPRESENTATIVE or ABSTAIN from voting.