Curtin Student Guild
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The Curtin Student Guild represents over 30 000 Curtin University students enrolled in 14 West Australian campuses and one interstate campus. The Guild is located on Curtin’s main Perth Bentley campus. The Guild complex houses the offices of the elected student representatives and Student Assist staff, is the location for some of the Guild operated retail and food outlets and has two courtyards equipped for students to socialise, read or study. The Guild is an organisation which is run by students for the benefit of all students. Its primary goal is to make sure that students have the opportunity to receive an equitable high quality education and have access to support when these opportunities are compromised. The Guild also ensures that whilst students are studying they can thrive in non-academic arenas, achieving excellence in sporting, investing time in self development courses and networking with peers sharing similar interests.
Representation and Advocacy and what it means
The student representatives who are annually elected by Curtin students sit on a variety of University Boards and Committees. Within this setting they can raise issues which students have highlighted as problem areas that need to be fixed. They also have access to future plans and changes that the University intends to implement and this allows them to voice the student opinion whether it be supportive or providing alternative recommendations.
Student representatives and Student Assist staff help students with their concerns regarding areas such as enrolment, learning, welfare, assessment and university facilities. This assistance can be in the form of directing the students of what to do next in resolving the problem or informing the relevant University staff and recommending a course of action.
Another aspect of student representation is the organisation of campaigns. The Guild is concerned for the wellbeing of students and any legislation or action which has the potential to detrimentally affect students is likely to become a point of collective action by the Guild. Student representatives that are involved in this area put in their time and effort organising resources and publicising actions.
What does Guild membership entitle?
The membership package contains a Guild Diary with discount vouchers and directions on how to pick up cool freebies such as Guild bags, photocopy entitlements and tricolour highlighter pens. Whether it is academic, welfare, tax or legal problems, the Guild has professional staff to provide members with assistance. Members are covered by 24hr/365 days/year personal accident insurance for university-related accidents. Aside from supporting the academic side of life, the Guild is equally active in ensuring that the university experience is enjoyable and active. The Guild offers member discounts at Guild operated food and retail outlets on campus and has negotiated discounts with over 100 shops in the Perth metro area. Discounts are also available for the Guild’s recreation program which involves a variety of health and fitness, lifestyle, sports, dance and adventure courses. Members are entitled to reduced fees to join any of the Guild affiliated academic, international, religious, social or sport clubs and discounted tix to the big Guild events.
Clubs
The Guild provides financial support to a wide range of academic, international, issues based, social, special interest and religious clubs.
Academic clubsin the areas of:
Chemical Engineering, Biology, Computer Science, Architecture, Engineering, Jewellery Design, Marketing, Environmental Health, Health Promotion, Nutrition, Physical Sciences, Social Work, Journalism, Nursing, Mathematics, Fashion and Textile, Therapy, Allied Health.
Asian, Indonesian, Malaysian, Chinese, Singaporean, Saudi Arabian.
Amnesty International
Antics, Beer Appreciation, Country Students, Dangerzone, Persians, Funk Club.
Go (board game), Imagination, Mahjong, Metal Appreciation.
Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, Catholic.
Sports
The Guild supports students who want to play intervarsity regional and interstate sport. Curtin University students can sign up at the Guild to be involved in Australian University Sport which also organises the annual University Games. These games involve competition within the following sports: Athletics, AFL, Baseball, Basketball, Beach Volleyball, Cross Country, Cycling, Hockey, Judo, Karate, Kendo, Lawn Bowls, Netball, Rugby Union 7’s, Soccer, Softball, Squash, Swimming, Taekwondo, Tennis, Tin Pin Bowling, Touch Rugby, Ultimate Frisbee, Volleyball, Water Polo. The Guild coordinates social netball games on a regular basis and offers students the opportunity to enrol in a variety of recreational courses.
Guild Affiliated Sports Clubs
Scuba Diving, Athletics, Baseball, Golf, Karate, Cricket, Netball, Skydiving, Hockey, Rugby Union, Soccer, Football.
Retail and Food Outlets
With seven Guild operated food outlets on campus, all students are only a few steps away from hot coffees and chocolate! Students can purchase cheaper books from the Guild Secondhand Bookshop and save on photocopying and printing at the Copy and Design Centre. The Concept Store is the newest outlet, selling icecream, coffee, juice, Curtin branded merchandise, secondhand CDs and downloadable music.
Events
The Guild kicks off each year with a fun festival atmosphere during O Day to welcome new Curtin students. The 2005 O Day featured a live performance from Little Birdie and the Guild has continued to host great bands on multiple stages as well as showcasing over 100 student clubs and discount provider stalls. Throughout the year the Guild’s Tavern is host to annual events such as Beach Bash, Beer Appreciation Night, DJ Comps, National Campus Bands, Comedy Night and the ever anticipated Oktoberfest. The Guild also organises some spekkie off campus events such as the Guild Evening of Elegance Ball and Cocktail Nights. With a range of regular on campus activities, there is always an event for students to look forward to!
Curtin University Postgraduate Student Association (CUPSA)
As part of the Guild, CUPSA similarly offers postgraduate student representation and advice. Postgraduate members can apply for CUPSA’s computer lending scheme, scholarships, bookshop grants and sponsorship. Students can also become involved in the peer-to-peer support program and various events organised by CUPSA.
International Students Committee (ISC)
With Curtin University having one of the largest proportions of enrolled international students in Australia, it is easy to see why the Guild’s ISC is a hive of activity. Alongside providing representation and support to students, the ISC organises large events such as Pasar Malam which has drawn thousands of students to Curtin grounds during their Multi Cultural Week of activities. They organise an annual Ball and most recently gave Curtin students an opportunity to display their vocal talent in Curtin Idol. ISC writes, produces and edits their bi-annual student magazine ‘Paragon’.
Departments
The Guild has set up departments which focus on supporting women, indigenous and queer students. There are three department rooms located on Sir Charles Promenade which are comfortably equipped for students to speak to officers for advice or support. The department officers organise activities which are directly relevant to promotion and interaction amongst students from their groups, such as No Diet Day.
History
The formation…
A year after the Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT) was established in 1966, the Institute Board of Management recognised that there was a lack of ‘community’ amongst the students and made the first tentative steps toward establishing a student union. WAIT staff and student departmental representatives worked together to agree on a constitution, however formalising a student union brought upon unanticipated obstacles. The Institute’s Act had not made legislative provision for a student union and it became a hotly debated issue in parliament. Sir Charles Court’s state government strongly objected to WAIT’s proposal for compulsory Guild membership and the term student ‘union’. ‘Union’ it seemed, was too strong a word and the government was prepared to fight for the more watered down term of ‘council’ or ‘guild’. Eventually, after many political fisticuffs and the Institute’s refusal to comply, the WAIT Council settled to the government’s demands. Thus, at 6:45pm on 11th February 1969 the first Student Guild took office, comprising of a Guild Council and associated activities council and sports council.
The beginning…
Building plans for a Guild area were underway, but in the meantime the Guild needed a temporary office. In 1969 there was a pharmacy furore when the Guild was allocated the pharmacy reading room for office space. A few temporary cubby-hole offices were built in a large barn-like room located in what is now the front end of the bookshop. Regardless of the limited space, the Guild managed to distribute their first student newspaper Aspect. The first print run of 5 000 copies was produced for $458, much to the horror and distress of Guild penny pinchers. With a generously allocated budget of $150, and $50 gained from advertising, Aspect had overspent itself. As WAIT had branches in St Georges Terrace and James Street, as well as Bentley, the Guild decided to hold a George James week to unite students. In a prelude to the first George James week, two hundred students took to the streets with toy clickers and armfuls of Aspect. They stood outside the Parmelia Hotel and to the sounds of cicada-like clicking, showed their social awareness by jovially protesting the lack of amenities for horses outside hotels. Playful antics, performances and processions during George James week proved popular and became an annual tradition. The establishment of the Guild also brought about Orientation Week, Spectrum and Wisgo (weekly publications) and the end of exams Recovery Ball. The Guild also recommended WAIT to implement the common free time that we still enjoy every Wednesday afternoon to this day.
The Guild voice…
The Student Guild’s voice reached a level of formality in 1971 when amendments were made to the WAIT Act to allow student representation on Council and some boards. This allowed the student representatives to have input into the planning and running of courses and WAIT activities. The Guild also used other avenues to communicate student concern by encouraging a successful library sit-in to extend library hours and expressed views in Aspect. The early years of the Guild newspaper informed students about radical issues such as apartheid, Vietnam and other not-so-radical issues which are similar to the problems students face today, including student parking!
A new home…and new activities…
In 1972, three years after the official Guild establishment, the Guild Building was finally open to the sound of 24 speared kegs donated by WAIT. It provided a ‘home’ for student representatives and staff to undertake activities and commercial ventures. As a result of the new amenities available to the Guild, the 70’s was a time of expansion to provide more services to the students. A second-hand bookshop, fruit and vegetable market and Guild Emporium were set up and a full pharmacy established. Bookshop grants were introduced along with student insurance coverage, a taxation advisory service, external students’ newsletter, student radio and the appointment of an environmental and homosexual affairs officer. Other activities included starting up an unofficial child care centre which would later become a joint project with WAIT to form an official establishment. A newly built Guild House was opened in 1977, which provided low cost accommodation to 150 students. Amongst all this activity, the Guild hosted two national student conventions and gained student representation on staff selection panels.
Student ideals and shenanigans…
The early seventies was an era characterised by good times and commitment, the commitment to study and partying hard. It was also an era of political radicalism, individualism, diversity and hybridity. Guild Councillors called each other ‘comrade’ and proudly titled themselves ‘Maoist’ or ‘Maoist-Leninist’ proclaiming their own personal potpourri of politics. The parking protests of 1971/72 saw every parking sign on campus ripped up and ceremoniously dumped into the lake. The Dean of Business Studies suffered the plight of finding his car abandoned in a sea of sand in the pine plantation. A group of aspiring student Schwarzeneggers had carried it there. Although 1975 was International Women’s year, on campus it became known as the year of the ‘Guild Prostitute Scandal’. The Engineering Orientation show ran a prostitute raffle as its main attraction and as fate would have it, and in true Engineering style, the ticket holder was far too inebriated to collect his prize.
The day the Guild closed…
During the late 1970’s the Government tried to make advances towards enforcing voluntary student unionism (VSU) to subdue student’s voices in higher education. In 1979, the Guild President took an extraordinary measure of halting all Guild operations. This led to students becoming more aware of the Guild’s significant role in services and a unified group of 1000 students protested at the Government’s attempt to restrict student organisations. Even faced with future uncertainties, the Guild became a stronger organisation, opening the newly constructed Muresk Guild Building to support sports and activities.
Services aplenty…
Although the Guild suffered from financial and internal turmoil in the 80’s it continued to provide support for students and even extended services through new projects. Commercial services were expanded to include a Guild owned hairdresser (Campus Cuts) and leased a health food shop, an optometrist and a health appraisal centre. The Guild sponsored the Ajax Shield (WAIT interdepartmental competition) and initiated a WA intervarsity challenge. Guild regulations needed to be changed to suit the new WAIT divisional based system and a policy handbook was developed. The Guild also became the sole organisation responsible for running the child care centre.
Evolution of the student newspaper…
In 1972, almost without a murmur of protest, Aspect was changed to Grok, meaning to completely understand it and all its implications. In 1974 Grok became Paperwait (pun on WAIT) under the editorial leadership of Ray Morien. Morien modelled the newspaper on the Daily News and perhaps for the first and last time, it took a ‘right-wing’ position. In 1983 the student newspaper was called L’Grok, but only for a year, after which it was changed back to Grok. Grok became Aliwa in 1988, which is an Aboriginal word for ‘be alert, be aware’. The name was once again reinstated as Grok after a referendum on the issue was held and concerns were raised. The referendum was passed by a large majority and this signalled that the Guild was once again moving in a new political direction.
Guild restructuring…
Although the Guild’s responsibilities and services to students were increasing, the Government persisted with its anti-guild VSU legislation. The Guild experienced its second shut down day on 31 August 1993 to display to students what services would be lacking if there were no Guild. In 1994, VSU was passed in the State Government thereby enforcing a voluntary student services fee. This meant that the previous main source of funding from students would be dramatically reduced as students were no longer required to be members of the Guild. Fortunately, with the ever present threat of the new legislation, the Guild had taken precautionary measures pre-empting the decline of student funding. This included the closing of the Guild Emporium/Guild Shop and the tool library. On the other hand the Guild took over the Curtin Tavern, which was previously run by the Curtin Students’ Social Club, the Sports Store, set up a Copy Centre and took over catering. Amongst other things, the Guild had to become more commercially driven to afford the provision of other student services. It was a case of sink or swim, and swim it did, until the legislation was repealed at the end of 2002. Within this time the Education Action Group, Environmental, Women’s and Curtin Lesbian Alternative Gay (CLAG) collectives were formed and a new Member Services Officer role was created. Communications between the Guild and students improved with the launch of the Guild website and regular issues of Grapevine e-newsletters. The Tavern and Guild courtyard were refurbished along with improvements to the food and beverage services around campus. In the midst of the VSU period, the Guild celebrated it’s 30 year anniversary and calculated that Guild Representatives had sat on around 19 500 boards and committees, organised over 100 rallies and petitions and written over 10 000 reports.
More activities…
In amongst the Guild restructuring, student representatives were working away to help improve local problems such as student services, lighting, security and parking. A lack of public phones on campus spurred the Guild to initiate a contract with Telecom. Apart from the anti-VSU campaign, there were three main campaigns held during the 90’s. An Austudy campaign targeted prominent politicians by setting up a row of phones so that students could directly express their concerns. The student poverty campaign involved a soup kitchen and ‘poverty prices’ at the Tavern. The Guild was also involved the infamous ‘Fight up-front fees’ campaign in which approximately twenty calm students scared the Vice-Chancellor into organising police patrols on campus. The structure of student representatives changed to one that focused on separating representation issues into divisions of study. In recent years, reviews of Higher Education were conducted by the Federal Government and the Guild was heavily involved in campaigning against increased HECS fees and domestic full fee paying places. Although the legislation was passed in favour of increasing student fees, campaigns at Curtin have helped lead the university to a positive decision for students, by keeping the status quo for 2005.
"Reece Wheadon 2006 Activities Vice President"
Known around campus as the face of the Guild Reece had a successful year in 06 and has retired to be replaced by Mat Bonomi, a Lawn Bowls compatriot. Among Reece's greatest achievements were fullfilluing his election promise4 to streak through campus in blue body paint (if people knew it was true he probably would have not gotton any votes), he had his ass crack waxed for charity raising several hundred dollars, and also rode a mechanical bull in only an apron and led 400 people in a rendition of daddy cool's "Eagle Rock", also only in an apron. Shenanigans aside Reece invested much of his time establishing quality events and activities while also believing he should attend all activities. Reeces major brain child was the "Funckn Bllues and Roots Festival" held at Curtin at the beginning of semester 2 06. The event involved some of Perth's best funk, blues and roots musicians while also featuring Dallas Frasca from Victoria.
Since leaving the Guild Reece has come to terms that his doctorate is false however still insists he be called DR or Dr Riggs in bed.
Renovations and the future…
Restructuring of the Guild complex began in 2003 working towards centralised office space for Guild staff and student representatives and a more student friendly second courtyard. Separate offices were developed along the Sir Charles Court Promenade to house the Postgraduate Student Association (CUPSA), International Students Committee and the Queer, Women’s, Indigenous and Part Time Mature Age Departments. The Guild restructuring and building was completed in 2004 and this will facilitate the Guild to continue to provide services and support for students that it has built up over its 35 year history.
Although the face of the Guild has changed, the Guild continues to work towards the basic objectives clearly stated in the 1968 proposed constitution which were:
o To provide for and encourage the meeting together of its members in matters of common interest
o To promote the general extra curricular activities and well-being of its members
o To represent its members whenever such representation is necessary or desirable and to afford a recognised means of communication between its members and the Institute (Curtin) authorities.
“[The Student Guild] will survive and work for students for as long as there are students prepared to work for the betterment of their fellows”
Ken Gibbons, Guild President 78/79.
Sources:
Curtin Student Guild, 1987-2000, Grok [Official Guild Newspaper], Perth.
Curtin Student Guild, 1987-2000, Guild Council Minutes.
WAIT Student Guild, 1968-1986, Guild Council Minutes.
WAIT Student Guild, 1969-1971, Aspect [Official Guild Newspaper], Perth.
WAIT Student Guild, 1972-1986, Grok [Official Guild Newspaper], Perth.
WAIT Student Guild, 1974-1985, Annual Reports.
White, M., 1996, WAIT to Curtin, Paradigm Books Curtin University, Perth.
(Particular thanks to Terry Craig who helped to compile the Guild history in WAIT to Curtin)
The 2006 student representatives
Kate Meenan, Guild President
Laura Stevens, Education Vice President
Rebecca Higgie, General Secretary
Reece Wheadon, Activities Vice President (see above)
Emily Cotton, Business Divisional Representative
Len Bailey, Humanities Divisional Representative
Steven Brockman, Health Sciences Divisional Representative
Emma-Lee Dellar, Resources and Environment Divisional Representative
Troy Astle, Engineering, Science and Computing
Eric Pang, ISC Convenor
Wendy Chan She Ping, CUPSA President
Phillip Dundas, Councillor
Esther Low, Councillor
Laura Tracey, Councillor
May Suet Tang, Councillor
Laura Money, Councillor
Samantha Ho, Councillor
Robert Affleck, Councillor
Alex Nietrzeva, Councillor
Euntaek Lee, Councillor
Guild in trouble with Voluntary Student Unionism (VSU)
After students successfully lobbied the State Government to overturn VSU in 2002, the Curtin Student Guild once again faces VSU (federally imposed) from July 2006. Universities are no longer allowed to collect non-academic fees which were previously used to support student wellbeing through student run Guilds. As witnessed in 1995, voluntary membership fees will result in a drop in Guild funds. This will affect the Guild’s ability to provide the essential student academic and welfare support amongst other non-profitable activities that are normally offered for the benefit of students.
Past Guild Presidents
2005 Patrick Gorman
2004 Kristal Mihal
2003 Terry Healy
2002 Zaneta Mascarenhas
2001 Kate Mills
2000 Jonathon Saw
1999 Jamie Gannaway
1998 Alison Karmelich
1997 Colin Sadlier
1996 Justin Cole
1995 Melissa Robinson
1994 Paul Gamble
1993 Simon Johnson
1992 Peter Ellis
1991 Leeza McMullan
1990 Pablo Campillos
1989 Andrew Waddell
1988 Roger Fletcher
1987 Georgina Motion
1986 James Best
1985 Stuart Sturgess
1984 Paul Grove
1983 Peter Fagan
1982 Adrian Fisher
1981 Steve Wakeham
1980 R. Duncanson
1979 Ken Gibbons
1978 Ken Gibbons
1977 Wayne Carter
1976 Tim Ryan
1975 Ross Barrett
1974 Ross Barrett
1973 P. Krishnasamy
1972 Peter Quinn
1971 Wayne Poulsen
1970 T. Naarstig
1969 Thomas J. Silvan
