Usman Mahmud for LUMS Student Council '21-'22

Dear LUMS Community,

Here we are; the final day. I know the journey and constant election spam may have felt unnecessary but for me, it was a matter of earning your trust. I want you to know that the promises I made were not just a campaign gimmick. With each day bearing down on students like a dark cloud, it is important to continue raising our voices and to stand up for what we believe in. I have done my best to represent that and will continue to do so - not just as a student of LUMS but also someone who believes each one of you deserves better.

Accountability, transparency, and approachability - this will continue to be my mandate. However, the trust needed to earn that position lies in your hands. I hope to be worthy of your vote.

I also wish all the candidates Good Luck for tomorrow. May the best candidates win.
Stay Safe

Around 50% of the students have been deprived of campus for over a year now. There are more than four months left before the start of the next semester. We can plan out a strategy and work with the admin to ensure that campus is accessible to everyone next semester.

We all came together in the last semester to push the admin for campus reopening; as a result, the campus was made accessible for 50% of the students. Now is the time to be united yet again and brainstorm ideas on how to go about vaccination. We understand that some of the students are already working on it, and we want to extend our support and invite everyone on board to tackle this issue.

There is a possibility - given the current situation - that next semester the government restricts the number of students allowed on campus. In that case, we propose that we should push the admin to make off-campus accommodations ready as a contingent plan.

We all have been drained out due to almost three consecutive online semesters, and we need to be back on campus next semester for the sake of our mental peace. Come, let's work as a single unit on this issue!

Yours,
Usman Mahmud

Dear LUMS community,

I propose the third set of my manifesto, which caters to campus jobs, facilitation of sports, and lockers for day scholars.

CAMPUS JOBS

Our campus lacks to provide paid working opportunities for enrolled students. We will work to introduce campus-based paid part-time jobs for students to get a first-hand experience of the daunting corporate world and a perfect addition to their CVs/resumes.
These jobs will range from Assistant Receptionist at the Library, Graphic Designer or Web Developers for LUMS social media pages, Wing Managers for each hostel, and many such job openings, thus suitable to our diverse student body.

FACILITATION OF SPORTS

To revive LUMS' sports culture, we aim to organize an inter/intra batch sports league, titled "LUMS SUPER LEAGUE," once a semester. This will bring back the love for sports we often lose while catering to our enormous workload.
We will also ensure that access to sports facilities, especially the availability of sports fields and equipment at night, is made more accessible.

LOCKERS FOR DAY SCHOLARS

Are you tired of carrying your heavy bags? Day Scholars, especially those living far away from LUMS with no hostellite friends, suffer when they have to spend long hours on campus and do not have a place to store their personal belongings.
We aim to introduce in-school lockers - dedicated locker rooms in each of the four schools - which students can register based on which school they visit most frequently. This will lift a lot of the burden off of your shoulders, and you can enjoy campus life without being weighed down by your belongings.

Yours,
Usman Mahmud

Dear LUMS community,

I present to you my second set of our manifesto points which cater to mental health and harassment policies.

MENTAL HEALTH

We have all seen our mental health decline to dangerously low levels, with the increased competition, stress and anxiety, especially during the online semester. To facilitate mental health concerns, we would increase communication between the student body and LUMS Counseling and Psychology Services. We would effectively cut down this communication gap by encouraging CAPS to hold office hours and webinars at least twice a month which would increase awareness and approachability. Furthermore, we would ensure that CAPS issues a live calendar which helps the student body choose the date and time according to the availability of both parties. This would allow the council to immediately and effectively cater to students experiencing difficulty with academic/personal issues that negatively impact their mental health. Furthermore to help reduce stress levels escalating, we would conduct khoka nights, along with music or dog therapy. Most of us love dogs, no?

STRONGER HARASSMENT POLICIES

Shedding light to recent events which opened our eyes to how many women on campus feel unsafe, we will:
(i) Appoint a legal advisor on the sexual harassment committee who can dispense legal advice to victims on due actions and processes and pre-empt possible legal complication.

(ii) Give victims the option of a policy where a member of the Student Council will advocate on behalf of the victim in front of the DC committee in order to prevent them from having to relive their trauma. Moreover, access to legal and mental health / counselling facilities will be provided to them in order to create a support system.

Yours,
Usman Mahmud

Dear LUMS Community,

I propose the FIRST set of my manifesto which caters to our current problem - Online Education

LUMS STUDENT PORTAL

We all hate writing emails and filing petitions via email because there is an uncertainty about when and even if we are going to hear back from administration. This portal will show us the progress of all the complaints/suggestions launched so that we do not have to email admin multiple times. This portal will also contain the progress and decisions made by the student council to ensure transparency. This portal will be created with the help of IST and the talented web developers in our LUMS Community.

INCREASE APPROACHABILITY

Sometimes due to poor time management and/or communication gaps members of student council aren't easily approachable. I vow to effectively bridge this gap. Twice every week a meeting will be conducted, providing an open forum to the student body to voice out their opinions and provide feedback or suggestions thus, ensuring no concern goes unheard.

INSTRUCTORS’ EVALUATION FORM

Majority of the student body regards semester end course evaluation forms ineffective with having little or no impact. Introduction of anonymous mid-semester and end of semester - AFTER GRADER HAS BEEN RUN- course evaluation system, which would ensure stricter accountability and enable instructors to address the complaints and apply relevant feedback with that semester only. We also propose to share the ratings of these forms with students.

Stay tuned for the rest of the manifesto points!!

Yours,
Usman Mahmud

Dear LUMS community,

My name is Usman Mahmud and I’m running for the Sophomore Student Council Elections 2021-22.

I stand for student empowerment, for accountability, as a representative, not a moderator.

I aim for us to work together, to address all your concerns, and to ensure that you all get the most out of our second home, LUMS.

I am really looking forward to your love and support and I would like to wish good luck to all the other candidates and I hope that we are all successful in delivering what we promise to deliver.

Yours Sincerely,
USMAN MAHMUD