The newly elected KNUST SRC President, Jude Michelle, has identified data affordability, high hostel charges, transportation and student security as key issues she intends to address during her administration.
Speaking after her election, Jude said her immediate focus would be to continue discussions on increasing the amount of data bundles available to students, describing internet access as essential to academic work.
She said students increasingly depend on internet connectivity for learning and access to academic resources, making affordable data an important part of the student experience.
“Students come to school primarily to learn, and at the point where they don’t have the resources to be able to achieve that, it becomes problematic.”
Beyond data, she identified hostel accommodation costs as one of the major challenges confronting students, questioning the disparity between academic fees and private hostel charges.
“Sometimes you can’t have your school fees as low as GH¢2,000 and your hostel price as high as GH¢7,000. That is too much.”
On transportation, Jude acknowledged efforts by the university to improve mobility, including the addition of new buses, but said the number of buses available relative to the student population remains a concern.
She said her administration has already begun engaging key stakeholders and is developing policies aimed at addressing the challenges.
Security is another priority on her agenda, particularly given concerns that have emerged around the safety of students.
Jude noted that the Ashanti Regional Minister has previously identified campus security as a priority and expressed confidence that ongoing engagements with relevant stakeholders would help strengthen security measures.
She said her administration, which will run for eight months, would measure its success not by promises but by tangible improvements experienced by students.
“We are hoping that at the end of the eight-month administration, it’s not just talk, but the students actually see a change in action.”
