Board of Governors: Jonathan Frontain

Editor’ Note: This interview has been edited and formatted for style and clarity

Name: Jonathan Frontain

Program and year:  I am currently doing my first year of a Master of Public Administration and also finished a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science here just last year.

Why are you running? What made you decide to run?

There are two main reasons that I decided to get involved in student politics. The first reason is that I am disheartened by what effectively amounts to cuts in education spending from the province. The other major factor that pushed me into this campaign was my perception of student politics here at Dal. It’s clear from our voter participation, my conversations with my fellow students and the state of our current election debates that people feel that something is definitely wrong with our student politics, something I am driven to change after extensive consultations.

What are your goals if elected?

Within council I want to push for more transparency in union decisions and especially in the budgets that are published. I want to push council to consult with students and their societies before making bold decisions. I also want to see more DSU funds allocated to student societies, as much of the vibrancy of Dal’s student life comes from those organizations tailored to our individual interests.

What is something interesting about you that the student body would be interested to know?

I plan to stay at Dal for a long time to come! Once I am finished my master’s degree I hope to attend our law school.

What are the responsibilities of the Board of Governors?

The Board of Governors serves a stewardship role in the university, delegating the day-to-day management of our institution to the president and senior administration. They handle the general management and administration of the university and ultimately approve major policies, capital projects and changes to tuition.