17 November 2008

The Third IPC Student Association General Assembly in 2008

By Mika Miyazaki and Moira Blake.

Some students and staff wore national costumes

Racing against the clock - everyone participating in the game

Since the first IPC Student Association General Assembly in July, there has been another assembly in September and the latest one was held on 3rd November 2008. On the day, which fell on the same day as the Cultural Day in Japan, some students and staff were wearing their national costumes in celebration.

Mika Miyazaki, IPC Student Association (IPCSA) President, reported:

I am really happy with the assemblies that were organised by the SA Assembly Committee. The Student Association established the Assembly Committee this year as we believed that all students need to have the same information, and also they need to get together more. It must have been really difficult for committee members to involve as many students as possible as it was a completely new experience for students; however, they have overcome several difficulties and provided useful information for students in an entertaining way.

The assembly held on November 3rd was a kind of a conclusion for the SA 2008. It started with a DVD, which was made by one of the IPC students. It made students think of the importance of being active and trying new things. Following that, all the SA managers came up on the stage and gave short speeches. Each speech reminded me of things that occurred throughout this whole year, such as how we had discussions or how we worked together. At the same time, I was able to see the growth of each manager since we started our SA. I am really proud of the managers as all of them worked really hard as well as keeping up with their studies.

The assembly has been really successful this year due to the huge support from all IPC students and IPC staff members. We are really satisfied with what we have achieved this year including the assemblies but we hope next year will be better than this year. Thank you for your participation this year.

While Moira Blake, an EOC staff member, commented:

From a staff perspective, the November 3rd Student Assembly was another example of the Student Association's ability to organise an event in a very professonial manner. Having a professional photographer outside the Rec Centre beforehand to take photos of students in their national cosutumes was a nice touch, although it did mean that the ceremony was a little late getting started. Once it got under way, however, it was a fast moving event, starting with the leaders of this year's committees summing up the work each committee has done over the year. Next, the results of the voting for the new Student Association leaders were announced. Greg Ng will be President, and Tim Bunting will be Vice-president. Greg introduced himself and his ideas for the next year. Tim is currently one of our students at IPU, so he he had sent a short and amusing powerpoint presentation from Japan.

After this Gavin Mardon was invited to give a brief overview of EOC activities during the year. His arrival on stage caused some amusement as he was dressed somewhat differently from usual - in gumboots, shorts and a black T-shirt - one version of the New Zealand national costume. Gavin's presentation DVD showed this year's students taking part in a wide variety of activities outside the classroom, from skydiving to cooking to learning the road code in preparation for getting a New Zealand driver's licence.

Peter Finch then took to the stage - wearing the national costume of Fiji, where he had recently been on a recruitment visit. Peter reminded students of various forms they need to complete before the end of the year and the deadlines for these and also invited them to the Fireworks night on November 7th.

Lastly, Miho - with a little help from EOC and Student Support staff - intoduced an activity to get students mingling. Students and staff had each been given a jigsaw puzzle piece as they came in to the Assembly. These were all parts of a national flag. They had to find the seven other people with parts of the same flag, and then turn the pieces over and make a word from the eight letters on the backs of the pieces. There was a distinct air of enthusiasm and competitiveness with people rushing all over the gym looking for the right pieces, and gradually forming groups. The time limit of fifteen minutes - counted down on the powerpoint screen - added to the atmosphere, but by the time the fifteen minutes were up winners and runners-up had been identified, and the Assembly finished with the presentation of Award "ribbons" of Chupa Chups and Cookie Time Cookies, which were much appreciated by both the winners and the onlookers.

Dressed in their national costumes, the international students were very glamorous. As for the Kiwis, they provided a humorous touch in a variety of outfits they had decided were the New Zealand "national costume". There was an obvious preference shown for bare feet, and there were also quite a few gumboots and some jandals. Black singlets, rugby shorts, track pants and a variety of T-shirts accompanied the footwear.

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