Auckland University Students’ Association celebrates 125th birthday

June 24 th 2016 is a special day for Auckland University Students’ Association – it’s the day it turns 125.

Says AUSA President Will Matthews: “On the 24th of June 1891, 27 Auckland students and graduates met to discuss growing concerns over a lack of a communal spirit as well as social and cultural life, with no organised voice or official representation in college affairs.

125 years later the organisation that they founded is alive and well, and fighting every day to make the University of Auckland a more interesting, vibrant, safe and supportive space for everyone in it.”

Two fundamental aspects to AUSA have been the fight for control of student-controlled spaces for the benefit of students, and increasing student representation and voice within the University and the wider community. Since that day in 1891, the student-led Executive of AUSA has been at the forefront of some of the most well-known social movements in the history of New Zealand, organising large numbers of students to march against the Vietnam War, the 1981 Springbok Tour and in favour of a nuclear-free New Zealand.

AUSA railed against the reforms to the tertiary education system in the 1990s, establishing an Education Action Group that organised thousands-strong marches up Queen Street, bus trips to Parliament and occupations of the University Registry to demand a return to a fairer, more affordable system for students.

AUSA has also made a major contribution to the social and cultural life of Auckland. The Association owns 95bFM, a radio station that began as ‘Radio Bosom’, a pirate station operating out of Auckland Harbour, which has now grown to become an iconic part of Auckland’s music scene. It also owns Shadows Bar, which for decades has provided students with a friendly and affordable environment to take a break from their studies.

Today, AUSA supports Auckland students through a comprehensive welfare system and a large Student Advice Hub providing free confidential legal advice to students struggling with anything from tenancy issues to StudyLink funding problems. It also enriches the campus experience through a large portfolio of events, including ‘Orientation in the Park’ - a week long festival held in Albert Park. Student representatives from AUSA are present at all levels of the University, making sure that every decision made in each corner of the University serves students first and foremost.

The political spirit of AUSA has persisted into the era of legislated Voluntary Membership of Students’ Associations. In 2016 AUSA has successfully campaigned to increase awareness around safety in Albert Park and rallied to urge the University of Auckland to consider fossil fuel divestment. The Association considers taking a strong principled stance against continuous fee rises to be a cornerstone of its duty to students, and organises against these increases each year.

“125 years on, AUSA is alive and well” says President Will Matthews.

“We are incredibly proud of the legacy that we have inherited, and we do not take it lightly.

We, and every Executive that comes after us, has a duty to ensure that the spirit of AUSA endures for another 125 years and beyond, and I am confident that the future for Auckland students is bright”.

AUSA will be celebrating this milestone with alumni and key stakeholders from the University of Auckland and related organisations at the Fale Pasifika on the 17th of August, and will be also be running commemorative events for current students.

ENDS

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