If there’s one thing most IE students have in common, I believe, is we all are motivated to act. We want to learn, travel, experience, and create.
The IE club presidents and members of the student government fit into this category better than anyone, as the people behind the events we see around campus, their creativity knows no boundaries and is what makes our campus and overall university what it is, a place where every day there’s something to do and new people to meet.
A fellow member of the student government, and dear friend of mine, Desi Tsankova, is the perfect example of this, as she shares her envisioned outcomes for the upcoming year.
1. Before we start, would you please tell me your name and your position in your respective club?
D: So, I’m the community development officer in Segovia and I’m working for the student government.
2. Now, 2023 is a year that holds a lot of promise, are you, as a member of the student government, excited for this new semester and this new year?
D: As any new year starts there is a lot of motivation and inspiration that was recharged during the break. Since our current SG team has around 3 months of proper work left before we officially pass on the positions, we wish to make the best of it and push for as many proper initiatives as possible.
3. What would you consider your goals for this year?
D: As Community Development Officer, I have had several goals still in pursuit since the very beginning of the year.
First of all, I wish, as all our team does, for all students to be comfortable at the Segovia campus and to feel a form of approachability to the student government with questions and issues they may encounter.
Second, IE and Segovia relations, and events surrounding their strengthening are a big part of my list of things to achieve.
And of course, finally but not least, clubs’ events visibility is a big one as well deserve attention for the hard work they put into their projects.
4. What is an achievement from last semester that you would wish to see repeat itself in this new semester?
D: I mean, a big achievement I think our team managed to achieve is a certain extent, as I previously said, of approachability. A lot of students now know who the student government is and know that there’s a team out there willing to help them for us that was extremely important and a big step when we first started, and we wish to build off on that and make a certain form of closure.
5. How would you describe your dynamic with the rest of the student government?
D: I would say: precious. I love them and the way that I got into student government was very random. I remember first receiving the email and showing it to my friends like “I’m not applying to this. There’s no way I’m doing this”, and then I got asked, and was like “okay, I’m doing this.”
Our dynamic is very much…yesterday we met… We are very close friends; at least [that’s] how I see it.
There’s a part of it which is work relations, but there’s a certain barrier that we have between work relations and friendships, and we manage to distinguish it extremely well. I think most of it is thanks to our president Jo, who puts a lot of work into it. But now it’s just [that] we are very close. And I think that if any of us finds ourselves in a tough spot in each of our positions, all of us will be there to back each other up for sure.
6. How many members are in the student government?
D: We are eight people. So, there are two of us in communications development; my counterpart in Madrid is Sam. Our president, of course, is Johanna, we have our athletics officer, Isabella, our two “comms queens” as we call them, Charlotte and Lily, and last but not least, our two academics officers, Don and Marc.
7. Any difficulties you fear may come along the way, or any from last year’s experience, that you have learned from?
D: A worry that is always in the back of our minds is how informed our students are of certain initiatives that are happening. Are they aware but do not want to participate or is the ambition there but not the information?
We try to use a lot of our channels to keep students as well informed as possible but sometimes the reach is below our expectations. But we do wish to improve as much as possible for the following months.
8. And now on a lighter note, what are three words you would use to describe your prospects for this new semester?
D: Ambition, hope, and unity.
Now for more insight into other organizations around campus, we have some of Segovia’s club presidents from all areas.
They were all kind enough to share some insights into their plans for the upcoming year as some of IE leaders.
1. Would you please tell me your name and your position in your respective club?
M: My name is Mathilde de Sailly, and I am the Captain of the basketball women’s team in Segovia.
C: My name is Chloe Johnson, and I am the President of the IE Asia Club.
Y: Hello, I am Yu Jie Law, the current President of the Eco Club.
J: My name is Juliette André and I am the Co-president and producer of IE Theatre Club, Segovia division.
2. Now, 2023 is a year that holds a lot of promise, are you, as a club president club-member, excited for this new semester and this new year?
M: I am excited to start this new semester, to see the team again, and practice intensely. We have different games in perspective and a tournament which makes me want to be here for the team.
C: I am very excited about this new semester and year. I have set a lot of goals for myself that I hope to accomplish this upcoming year. I am also excited to spend my last semester in Segovia to its fullest!
For the club specifically, I am very excited for the Chinese New Year and Holi to be held to their fullest capability. With COVID, hosting certain events was difficult last year and it didn’t feel the same. I am also looking forward to many more event collaborations in this upcoming semester.
Y: Definitely, a new year brings a lot of different opportunities, and I am pumped to organize more activities with learnings from the previous semester.
J: Indeed, 2023 comes along with a brand-new project and the realization of our main event, so we are very excited.
Last semester the other board members and I decided to bring new projects to the usual functioning of the Theatre Club – in addition to the annual play that will take place before Spring Break – we are collaborating with IE Music Club on a special Musical project.
Overall, during this semester, we will not only hold our play Perfect Crime in March but we will also organize several workshops in which participants will be able to create their own mini-musical. This novelty is very exciting for us since it will enable us to meet more members of the club and other IE students. This more interactive approach is an opportunity for us considering we usually don’t meet with other people than the cast members.
3. What would you consider your goals for this year?
M: I think the main goal is training hard but keeping this spirit of fun and enjoyment during the practices. We sometimes are [too] focused on the skills, and I think it is important to remember [that] we are here to play as a team and have fun with others. One does not mean excluding the other.
C: My main goal for the Asia Club this year is to solidify and strengthen our events, that way, in the future it is easier to do the same events yearly, and less work for us officers to put in when organizing an event.
Another goal and this is always my goal with the Asia Club, is outreach. I want to reach and connect with other Asians at IE. Last semester we held a dinner to meet other people in the Asia Club and it was fun to meet everyone, new and old.
I also want to continue to build a small community for people to lean on as well. The Asia Club covers a whole continent of countries with so many cultures, languages, and so on, thus, creating a community where we can all celebrate traditions from back home is something important to me.
Y: At the Eco Club, we hope to organize more events that could include a larger proportion of the community. This also includes getting to know fellow club members on a deeper level.
J: For this year, my goal as a producer is to ensure that our main event, the performance of our play Perfect Crime, goes well. Parallelly, I will work closely with Joy Saade (Co-president of the Theatre Club with me) and IE Music Club to make our new project Create Your Own Mini-musical successful.
4. What is an achievement from last semester that you would wish to see repeat itself in this new semester?
M: Last semester we were able to join a league to play games against different teams around Segovia. I am happy to continue that this semester and I hope that we will do better.
C: One achievement from last semester that I wish we can continue is the success in the events we hold. Our events are for everyone, not just Asians exclusively. Even during Diwali, we had officers from the other clubs recommending [their members] to dress up for the event.
I want to continue to host successful events and through these events spread more cultural awareness. There are not many Asians at IE and by different people coming to our events we can share our cultures and educate others. We also have fun and enjoy ourselves while we are at it.
Y: Having enthusiastic members who are passionate about the environment is something that we hope will continue in this new semester
J: An achievement from last semester was the way we worked as a team with the board members, and especially with Joy, the Co-president. We managed to keep track of the important steps ahead, adapt to the difficulties we encountered in the realization of the musical project, and be efficient in our tasks while always communicating with each other.
5. Any difficulties you fear may come along the way, or any from last year’s experience, that you have learned from?
M: It is true that because of weather, practice time, exams, parties… commitment can be complicated. We sometimes don’t have enough players to practice. This may be the hardest thing the team has to face. However, I am sure we will deal with it.
C: There are many challenges when it comes to running a club. I hope that this year, Holi, the Asia Club’s main yearly event, will go even smoother than last year.
Although from the outside it may have looked flawless, behind the scenes there was a lot of miscommunication and disorganization between the two clubs hosting it. Of course, it was a success. But for some of us hosting it, it was a bit stressful, and we had to make very last-minute decisions and unnecessary amendments. Certain rules were overlooked, and boundaries were crossed that should not have been.
This year, after having already held Holi once, I am confident that the Asia Club will make it even more successful!
Y: As our events include a lot of outdoor activities, it was important for us to have plan Bs, especially when activities are rescheduled and postponed due to weather conditions.
J: Our two projects are very challenging so there will be difficulties along the way. Launching a new project always comes up with complications as it implies promoting it and getting people to come and like it.
As for the play, we still have lots of things to do, especially on the production side, so I will have to work a lot on it and gather teams to help me in all fields (lights and sounds, props, make-up, costumes, …).
What we learned from last semester and last year is that the key to success is to collaborate and plan things out in advance, having a clear idea in mind of what is next.
6. And now on a lighter note, what are three words you would use to describe your prospects for this new semester?
M: To surpass, fun, and cohesion.
C: Energetic, chatoyant (figurative), and memorable.
Y: Growth, community, and care.
J: It is very hard to reduce next semester in three words, but I would say: Challenging, exciting, and rewarding.
As you see this new year holds a lot of promises for IE, so don’t hesitate if you wish to contribute or participate in any of these clubs, and of course, reach out to the student government!
