We’re creeping up on the end of November and are happy to share some long-awaited updates from each of our respective teams! We have been hard at work solving problems that students are encountering on both campuses, and finding the best possible solutions for all of them.
The three concerns we identified as paramount in our last article were: schedules, elevators, and bringing more power to our class representatives. Schedules have already been slightly adapted for the second half of the semester, to, in fact, address the concentration of too many people using elevators in a certain time frame. We are in conversation with administration to find a way to balance schedules better for the second semester. As for class representatives, we are capitalizing on the current semesterly meetings, looking for ways to optimize their voices and set up new institutions to build upon in coming years.
President’s Committee: Johanna Jakobi
With my fantastic committee, we’ve been working on a variety of different initiatives, including a review of the anti-harassment and non-discrimination policy, a proposal on improving the infirmary’s offerings, ideas for expanding the International Mobility partnerships, and more. All of these are being finalized and pending review with the relevant administrative teams. Our strategies continue to be developed for each of our identified departments. I’m also looking into how we can improve the A-Z process of creating a start-up at IE. We’ve received confirmation from the administration that they are moving forwards with installing dispensers in bathrooms for menstrual products across the campuses. I’m greatly looking forward to wrapping up this semester in a few weeks with you: if you have any reflections to share about your experience with the SG during this semester, we’d love to hear from you.
Academics Committee: Donovan Schar Davis & Marc Garrigós
All class representatives have finally been elected! We are utilizing this network to begin studies, polls, and focus groups for all of the schools at IE. Our hope is that, through this research and the support of class delegates, the Academics team will be able to create a relevant policy framework in order to improve and streamline academic quality at an institutional level. Please make sure to fill out our survey on your experience with your degree and its management. This week, we’ve also been busy participating in the semesterly meetings between administration and class representatives. We’ve kept track of everything that is discussed and will make sure to share the information we collect. This will include how our team intends to act upon the points raised.
Communications Committee: Lily Andres & Charly Wayaffe
We are working on different ways of getting the information across, so everyone can stay informed. So many things happen that the student body is not aware of, it’s a shame for the people who put all their efforts into preparing for it. We will continue to post reels on our Instagram to keep you informed and entertained. Be sure to watch the screens of the elevators at the IE Madrid campus for more of our announcements, as well as IE Connects!
Community Development Committee: Sam Ferdinand & Desislava Tsankova
Segovia
The Campus survey we conducted brought up a lot of interesting data to take into consideration for the future. For example, in Segovia, 42% of respondents are unaware of events happening in the Creativity Center, and very few find particular incentives to go there. Also, students are incredibly innovative when it comes to the cafeteria and potential openings for new snack and food options. Overall, 95% of respondents are content with the Segovia campus.
Our goal to build a better relationship with the local Segovian community has not come to a halt and we are working on a Language Exchange program to commence right after winter break. At the end of October, we also hosted a local clean up, where we collected some trash! The aim, as it was for the Local Clean-up, is to bring the two communities together and form a bond between the young adults of Segovia. We have also partnered up with the Motorsport Club for their karting championship, which has been blooming with enthusiasm thanks to all its racing drivers and audience supporting them. We are amidst discussions with the Cafeteria staff to ensure development this year.
It is our goal to be able to host events in partnership with clubs to engage the IE community, as, so far, the events have been incredibly well-organized, and the club officers have been working very hard for it. We have been able to host many events in Segovia over the last month, including Variety Night and the SG Nexus.
Variety Night, which was in collaboration with the Music Club, happened on November 8 in the Creativity Center, and it was an absolute success. We will work hard for the next edition to leave more memorable moments for the students.
We are also very happy to say that the “SG Nexus” networking event, which happened on November 17 in Segovia and on November 21 in Madrid was a huge success, and it was great to have students join us and speak to us about their experiences, worries and future motivations! Thank you for coming!
Madrid
The Madrid campus survey has also provided us with a lot of very useful feedback, which we will act on. We were happy to see that most students know that activities in the Athletics Center are free, but there is a large proportion of students who don’t. Important concerns were the elevators and the temperature regulation in the classrooms, and there are many more things to address. Thank you to those who left some very kind and encouraging comments. We will share our findings with you very soon!
We have also been able to organize events in Madrid, as, on Friday,November 18, we hosted a large IE gathering at the Madrid Music Club’s biggest concert this semester. Three hours of absolutely incredible music and great fun all together. It was really wonderful to see so many people there, and so engaged! There will be more to come for sure!
Sports and Wellbeing Committee: Isabella Ochoa
We have been busy this semester! These past few weeks in particular, we have created a new initiative called “EquilIEbrate” that looks to help students disconnect from their academic responsibilities after an intense midterm season. The event was held in both Madrid and Segovia!
In Madrid, we had: the first edition of yoga with a view, a ping-pong tournament, and a cooking class, where students learned to cook spring rolls with the help of the IE Culinary Club.
In Segovia, we had a music performance with a pool game, powered by the IE Music Club. We had fun making art with balloon dart painting, with the help of the IE Art Club, and then the IE Culinary Club taught us how to cook a delicious Thai Salad! We finished off with a dodgeball and spikeball tournament. It was a great experience, and everyone had a great time!
One of the biggest events in the world, the World Cup, is just around the corner, and your Student Government is working hard to give you the best experience. We have been working tirelessly, and we can announce we will be streaming all games (register here) that are played during the weekdays, at the IE Tower, the Segovia Campus, and MM! For Madrid’s IE Tower and the Segovia Campus, we have prepared free snacks for games at 20h and knockout games, as well as face paint for you to wear the colors of your country.
Besides these two events, we have continued working on growing a sense of community in the IE Athletic Centrer. We have centralized information in a group chat where we send the latest news and other amazing events hosted by the IE Sports & Well-Being Department, like the free swimming lessons at the tower, mountain bike hike in Lozoya, and the multi-adventure day.
For next semester, we are creating events, initiatives and proposals that will look to create a sense of family inside the different teams, as well as increasing the recognition for all the efforts student-athletes put in every day. We are always open to hearing from you, any ideas or suggestions are more than welcome!
