Students’ Union President, Kanwar Brar, steps into position

Photo by Luke Sarazin

Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union President & CEO Kanwar Brar officially stepped into his new position this past week.

Brar began the transition into the role immediately after his election in January.

His transition included shadowing former Students’ Union President & CEO Tyler Van Herzele.

Brar explained that preparation was the key to the confidence he now has in leading the Students’ Union.

“I have been put in a position where I feel very confident with what I am doing, and my team knows what we’re doing all together. We’re fit for these roles in the sense that we had all the preparation leading up to it,” Brar said.

In order to kick off the new Students’ Union team, a retreat was held from May 1 to May 3 for Brar, full time staff and two executive members.

The retreat saw members focused on getting to know each other, working as a team, conflict resolution, crucial conversations, presentations and proposals in order to prepare for the upcoming year.

Much of Brar’s summer will focus on preparation and planning for the upcoming year.

I have been put in a position where I feel very confident with what I am doing, and my team knows what we’re doing…

Brar will also be creating plans for projects that were presented during his election platform.

“Summer months are crucial for planning so we can start executing beginning in fall,” said Brar.

“My mentality is that I don’t want to rush into anything just because I’m excited about it or eager to complete it, it’s about addressing who are the key stakeholders.”

Brar plans to focus on being an effective CEO so he can be an efficient president.

“Too often … students don’t see the role as CEO, and the way I see it is that in order to be a good and efficient president, I also need to be an effective CEO,” Brar said.

By using this summer as a time to prepare and plan for the upcoming year, Brar will have more time to focus on responding to student needs once the majority of students are back in the fall semester.

“[I want to be] your president who is reaching out to students proactively, instead of just waiting for issues to happen,” Brar said.

“I want to do that through public forums, whether that is going to the concourse, RCW lobby, or anywhere else on both campuses and reaching out with the staff, because I think that is really important.”

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