STUSU rolls the dice on valedictorian selection process, again
- Fernanda Sanchez
- Feb 2
- 4 min read
Every spring convocation, St. Thomas University chooses a graduating student to deliver the valedictory address and bid farewell to students completing their degree, including bachelor of arts, bachelor of applied arts and bachelor of social work.
What was once a democratic process prior to 2023 has been replaced by a selection committee made up mostly of university administration and senior faculty, with only one sitting student, the graduating class president.
The last democratic vote on the valedictorian was at the spring convocation of 2021-22, when Victoria Young, former 2021-22 STUSU vice-president student life and 2022 valedictorian-elect, stepped down from both positions.
In a letter to the editor that Young sent to the Aquinian, she explained her resignation from STUSU and valedictorian positions.
“After being elected valedictorian, I was accused of affecting the complaint process because of my position on the students’ union executive team. All I did was put my name forward and win,” she wrote.
Young also stated she faced cyberbullying and negative comments online.
“I strongly believe presenting me with a letter of removal from my VPSL position was a quest to deem me ineligible to be valedictorian,” Young wrote.
Young’s graduating class was the last one to see a democratic vote through the STUSU spring general elections for valedictorian, handled by STUSU’s chief returning officer.
With posters hung on campus, events promoted on Facebook, and constant networking, graduating students had the opportunity to interact with the valedictorian before seeing them on the podium on graduation day.
Now, the class of 2026 is facing a much different experience.
In March 2025, the 2024–25 STUSU executive team implemented a ban preventing STUSU executives from running for valedictorian, a decision supported by the university. Now, the future of that ban remains uncertain as the 2025–26 STUSU executive team has revisited the policy.
Ana Lucia Pavón, current STUSU president and former 2024-25 vice-president education, said the ban was implemented after events that had happened in the 2024 spring convocation.
“The vice-president administration of the time got selected to be valedictorian over some other finalist that, in the eyes of many people at [STU], we thought was a better candidate at the time,” said Pavón.
Pavón also said that she was one of the executives who worked toward the ban as she thought "it's good to give other people [the] opportunity … to showcase themselves.”
Although executive members work closely with senior administration throughout the year, Pavón said she does not consider this a conflict of interest, but rather “an unfair advantage.”
On Friday, Jan. 16, the current STUSU executive team introduced the executive ban to the Student Representative Council (SRC), turning the ban into a vote of the entire council, stating that if the vote passes, the ban will be lifted.
The vote on the ban passed with 10 votes in favour to abolish it, four voted against and 2 abstained.
Among the 2025-26 STUSU executive team, Pavón and Alejandra Baca, current vice-president administration, abstained from the vote, while Sochane Campbell, vice-president student life, and Camila Baquerizo, vice-president education, voted in favour.
“I did not expect it to pass,” said Pavón in an interview following the SRC meeting.
Baquerizo said she found out about the ban after being elected to her position, which she thought was unfair.
“When I learned about the ban, it definitely created some sort of emotional reaction,” she said. “I am a student and I have been here for four years, which in those four years, I have participated in multiple things on campus that represent [STU] in other countries or other provinces here in Canada.”
Baquerizo said working closely with senior administration does not necessarily mean having a good relationship, adding that STUSU often challenges the university through press releases to advocate for students’ needs.
“My job is [to] represent students … there's a bunch of situations where I was not necessarily on the good side of senior administration,” she said. “I would even put [myself] at a disadvantage to some point, because people create their own biases.”
She added that the four executive members discussed the ban beforehand, in which they admitted to having different opinions, bringing the vote to the SRC for a “joint decision.”
Regardless of the executive team’s opposing views, Baquerizo said that it has not created tension between them.
Kate Haché, a fourth-year student and student representative on the Board of Governors, said she found out about the ban through word-of-mouth. She believes that, regardless of the ban, the STUSU executive members are great candidates for the valedictorian position.
Nevertheless, Haché agreed that executive members may “have an advantage in that they work very closely with the administration and so when it comes to the vote, they could be favoured."
“I think we need to restructure the voting system entirely so that it's fair for anyone who wants to run,” said Haché.
Haché suggested proposing a combination of student body votes, grad class president vote and administrative votes to elect the class valedictorian.
“It's not the students choosing who will represent them best; it's the administration choosing who they think represents the student body … that disconnect between administration and between the student body. Or we might see [fewer] STUSU executives running for valedictorian,” she said.
Haché highlighted that the 2025-26 STUSU executive team members are both well-known and accomplished enough to represent the students at the spring convocation.
“I'm just maybe worried for future years when maybe [an] executive isn't as connected or isn't as involved and then maybe somebody is snubbed from that position just because they're not in STUSU.”
The final decision to confirm whether the vote is approved rests with the selection committee, which includes Kim Fenwick, provost and vice-president academic and research at STU, and the registrar’s office.
With files from Emilia Alvear
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