What is the KSU?
King’s Students’ Union Overview
Every student at King’s is a member of the King’s Students’ Union (KSU), the voice of King’s students. Through the Council of Students, we provide advocacy and representation, ensuring that your wants and needs are heard in council meetings, discussions with King’s administration and in our daily operations.
The King’s Students’ Union Council is a body that meets biweekly. It convenes with all Union representatives: all members of the KSU Executive; the Member-At-Large; 2 Board of Governors Representatives; and the Arts, Science, Journalism, Residence, and First Year Representatives. Together, they decide the direction of the Union and its ongoing actions and campaigns, bringing up and representing the opinions of each Councillor’s constituents.
Our Services
We offer various services for students, including:
- Health and Dental Plan: Comprehensive coverage to support your health needs.
- Free General, Menstrual and Sexual Health Products: Ensuring accessibility to essential health products (including masks and rapid test kits).
- Support for Societies: All King’s societies are ratified through the KSU and can receive funding for events and meetings.
Student Engagement
We operate and manage the Galley and Wardroom, places where every student is a stakeholder. Additionally, we organize one of the few student-run Orientation Weeks in Canada each year, working hard to create a welcoming and engaging experience for new students.
Get in Touch!
Our office is located in the Link. We’re here to help, answer questions, or just chat. Stop by anytime!
Stay Connected! Follow us on Instagram for updates on events, reminders, opportunities, and more!
Meet Your Executive!
KSU Execs manage the day-to-day operations of the Union and are always happy to help and answer questions.
You can find them in the KSU office during their office hours, so stop by to chat or say hi!
President - Sara MacCallum
(she/her)
Sara MacCallum is the KSU President for 2024-25. The President supervises the general functioning of the Union, including the student businesses, Union committees, Orientation Week and Union employees. They organize training for and support the rest of the Executive and KSU Council, while sitting on the King’s Board of Governors and many King’s committees to represent student interests.
Sara is pursuing a degree in Law, Justice and Society with a minor in English. She believes in the importance of a strong and stable student Union as a way for students to connect with and support each other, and wants to continue to build that community at King’s. When she’s not on campus, Sara is usually watching Blue Jays baseball games and crocheting or exploring local bookstores and cafes.
Office Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12 pm - 3pm
External Vice President - Ellie Anderson
(she/her)
Ellie Anderson is the KSU External VP for 2024-25. The EVP maintains relationships with local societies, resources, non-profits, and other student unions. This includes sitting on the provincial executive board of the Canadian Federation of Students NS, which represents student unions across Nova Scotia and the country. On campus, the EVP meets with student workers and sits on University committees like the Investment Committee.
Ellie is going into her fourth year and is majoring in Political Science and minoring in Religious Studies (meaning she can take all the fun occult classes for her degree!) When she's not in the union office, she can be found catching up on schoolwork in the Wardy or Oxford Taproom, cross stitching in the quad, and trying to befriend the ducks in the Public Gardens.
Office Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm
Communications Vice President - Aniqa Jalal
(she/her)
Aniqa Jalal is the Communications VP for the 2024-25 academic year. Responsible for managing all communications-related matters, the CVP runs KSU social media platforms, publishes KSU governance documents, writes the Union's weekly newsletter, "This Week At King's (TWAK), and chairs several Union committees. As a BIPOC student herself, Aniqa is committed to making the University a welcoming space for other BIPOC students. She is currently working on projects for the Racialized Students' Collective, the resource center for BIPOC King's students.
Aniqa is in her second year, doing combined honors in Neuroscience and the History of Science and Technology and a certificate in Neurotechnology Innovation. In her spare time, she enjoys playing violin in her baroque ensemble, Python programming, doing Bengali classical dance, and is almost always found at Glitter Bean cafe. Aniqa is beyond excited to meet all the incoming King's students at O-Week and beyond. Welcome to King's!
Office Hours: Thursdays and Fridays, 12:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Financial Vice President - Olivia Chaput
(she/her)
Olivia Chaput is the KSU Financial VP for 2024-2025. The FVP manages the KSU’s payments, budget, and other things related to the Union’s finances. This includes chairing the Finance Committee, which approves funding requests for ratified King’s Societies and consulting on the KSU Budget. The FVP also sits on multiple other committees, including the King’s Budget Advisory Committee and the Wardroom Advisory committee. She is available during her office hours or anytime over email to answer any questions about the KSU budget and the way that your Union dues are being spent.
Olivia is in her second year at Kings working towards a degree in English with a minor in Film Studies. She loves reading and spends her spare time doing various crafts, like book-rebinding and sewing. You can often find her hanging out in the Wardy, or around the city on a mission to ride on every Halifax Transit bus line.
Office Hours: Tuesdays 1-4pm, Thursdays 12-2pm
Student Life Vice President - Anna Carsley-Jones
(she/they)
Anna is the KSU Student Life VP for the rest of the 2024-2025 Academic Year. The SLVP is responsible for representing and supporting the student body in their social, academic, and athletic goals. Some duties of the SLVP are coordinating the ratification of KSU societies, planning events to engage students, and chairing the union's Academic Committee and Equity Affairs Committee.
As SLVP, Anna is dedicated to collaborating with students to make their experience at King's as enjoyable and meaningful as possible. She is entering her fourth year (of five), learning between the programs of Contemporary Studies, Gender & Women's Studies, History of Science & Technology, and Law, Justice, & Society. They enjoy writing poetry, listening to music, watching wonderfully bad reality or YA tv shows, eating a sweet treat, and reimagining our world.
Office Hours: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Kings Student Union Council
Meet your Council Members!
Academic Representative – Gale VanAmburg
Gale can help you navigate academic resources and accommodations, field suggestions about curricula, and advocate for you in academic spheres. The academic representative also sits on the Academic committee. The academic representative is here to ensure that your academic experience at King’s is accessible and fulfilling. As the academic advising role is new this year, they are super excited to see how the King’s student body would like to shape it.
Gale is currently in their second year at King’s pursuing a degree in Contemporary Studies and Sociology and Social Anthropology. They are passionate about disability advocacy, spending too much money on coffee and cooking. If not in class or napping, you can often find them at the Wardy. Come see them during their office hours!
The other stuff: 2nd year, Aries, my comfort show is Bob’s Burgers
- Office Hours: Every Tuesday from 11:30-12:30 pm and virtually
- Contact Info: academicrep@ksu.ca
Advocacy Representative – Iman Mannathukkaren
Iman Mannathukkaren is the Advocacy Representative for the 2024-2025 academic year. The Advocacy Representative represents student needs, with a special emphasis on advocating for underrepresented students and working with student groups that represent specific student communities. The Advocacy Representative also suggests causes or charities for the Union to potentially donate to.
Iman is a first year in the Foundation Year Program – Arts, and has many areas of interest that she is debating between for her upper years, such as Political Science, Contemporary Studies and Cinema and Media Studies. Being a racialised student, Iman is passionate about preventing students from being alienated at King’s. When not doing her FYP reading or essays, she can be found consuming media in various forms and doing Indian classical dance.
- Office Hours: Every Monday from 1:30-2:30 pm
- Contact Info: advocacyrep@ksu.ca
Residence Representative – Ella Chriske
The resident rep’s job is to advocate on behalf of the students in residence and make sure that they are informed. Ella is passionate about making sure students feel they have autonomy over their space. If there are any issues relating to residence, she is happy to help in any way she can. She also helps host and organize events and sits on a residency and dining committee. Her goal is to make sure that all students living in residence feel safe, heard, and that they have a voice over their physical space.Ella is in her first year at King’s taking FYP. When not at King’s she can be found at the Public Library or Glitter Bean Cafe in the company of a chai latte. She enjoys watching films, listening to music, writing, and befriending all the cats on campus.
- Office Hours: Every Monday from 2:00-3:00pm
- Contact info: residencerep@ksu.ca
2024/2025 Council Schedule
Council dates are listed below for both Fall and Winter term. All meetings will be held at 10:00am – 12:30 pm ADT in the Rowland C. Frazee Room, located on the second floor of the Main Academic Building.
Fall Term:
- September 15th, 2024
- September 29th, 2024
- October 10th, 2024 (virtual)
- November 3rd, 2024
- November 17th, 2024 (virtual)
- December 1st, 2024
Winter Term:
- January 19th, 2025
- February 2nd, 2025
- February 16th, 2025 (virtual)
- March 2nd, 2025
- March 16th, 2025 (virtual)
- April 6th, 2025