Hastings men lead New Zealand Union of Students' Associations

NZUSA national vice president Liam Davies and national president Andrew Lessells. Photo / Supplied

Two Hastings men are ready to tackle the issues students face nationally in their new leadership roles at the New Zealand Union of Students' Associations (NZUSA).

Formed in 1929, NZUSA is a union of student associations around the country and represents and advocates for students.

Andrew Lessells, who moved to Hastings as a child and was previously president of the EIT student association Younited, has been elected as the national president of NZUSA.

He joins national vice-president Liam Davies who was born and raised in Hastings and attended Karamu High School before studying a Bachelor of Communication at Massey University, Wellington.

Both have previous experience in student associations and advocacy.

While with Massey at Wellington Students' Association (MAWSA) Davies has made submissions to parliament on housing, renters rights and student pastoral care and has engaged with Greater Wellington Regional Council and Wellington City Council on free public transport for low-income earners and student-centric urban development.

Lessells sat on EIT's academic board and governing council, lobbied EIT to better support students through lockdown and pushed for refunds for students in EIT accommodation who had to return home in level 4.

The pair hope to tackle issues such as the cost of being a student and create barrier-free access to tertiary education.

"Although student loans are common knowledge, the cost to live comes as a shock to many," Davies says.

"While some students are eligible for a living allowance, maximum $239.76 per week, most add to their loan or work more than one job to pay rent and bills before even thinking about food.

"Until the government recognises that higher education is a public good and a full-time job, rather than a business model to get bums on seats, students will continue to rack up tens of thousands of dollars in debt, which will affect them for the rest of their lives."

The cost and accessibility of tertiary education are also some of the biggest issues Hawke's Bay students face.

"With some of the highest levels of student poverty in the country, Hawke's Bay learners are constantly having to decide between things like having lunch or affording the bus home.

"They simply don't have enough to live on to survive, let alone live," he says.

NZUSA is lobbying the Government for a universal education income that is $100 more than the existing student allowance.

Lessells says it "will put money in the pockets of those who need it and eliminate the age-based and parental income discrimination of the current student allowance model."

Another area of importance, Lessells says, is ensuring NZUSA supports member associations to do what is best for students navigating study in a Covid-19 world.