Happy New Year everyone, and I hope you all are well done and dusted with semester one and ready and raring to go with semester two!

Reflecting back on the work we have done as a Students' Association in semester one and the possibilities going forward to the end of the year is very exciting. At the last College Board of Management meeting, I brought up the five key student issues you've raised with us and they were very receptive - bringing these issues to that level is something which is very encouraging and getting reports coming back about what the college is doing about these issues makes it even better.

I will have a full report on the five key issues to present at the next round of Class Rep conferences coming up at the end of January/beginning of February.

As great as this work is, it's clear that five issues don't cover the whole range of student experiences at the college. We have 'Course Team Self Evaluation Days' (snappy title or what!?) approaching in February, where all the lecturers and class reps in your department come together to talk about all the good stuff going on in your course and also the opportunity to identify areas for improvement. On these days lecturers and LDTs have to listen to what you have to say and make commitments to improving the course for future students. It’s a very selfless act but one that is very rewarding and something you can take away and say to yourself - "I really have made a difference for future students". One of the key responsibilities of a class rep was to attend one of these days this year and I really hope to see a big turnout this year. I’ve met some really passionate students this year who really care about their education - let's not allow this opportunity for real change to happen slip by us. Get classmates geared up and ready to participate in these days and improve the quality of learning and teaching at Edinburgh College!

All dates and times to all class rep conferences are available below and look out for emails coming your way soon to allow you to register for the upcoming events. I look forward to seeing you all again soon and make sure to contact the team if there is anything urgent that needs addressed.

Good luck for semester two and well done on all your successes so far in this academic year, why don’t we go out with a bang and really show the college what we can achieve as one of the best and strongest Students' Association in 2017!

Class Rep Conference Dates

Sighthill - 31st Jan - 12.15 till 2.15pm - Room 1-01

Midlothian - 2nd Feb - 12.15 till 2.15pm - Room 2-13

Milton Road - 7th Feb - 12.15 till 2.15pm - Room G-28

Granton - 9th Feb - 12.15 till 2.15pm - Room P101

Please ensure you let your lecturer or LDT know in advance that you'll be attending the Class Rep meeting if you're timetabled to be in class during it.