Henry Ladd has been elected as 2014 ANUSA Social Officer at a Student Representative Council (SRC) meeting last Thursday.

Ladd will be replacing the previous Social Officer-elect, Lachlan McDermott, who resigned before beginning his role on December 1.

Dan Trevanion and Shane Paderanga also nominated for the position.

2014 ANUSA representatives reviewed each nominee’s application before hearing a three-minute speech by each candidate. Questions were opened to the floor, followed by a closed ballot. Ladd received 21 of the 25 votes cast.

Ladd is currently the Vice-President of Burgmann College.

Ladd was initially offered the role on a ticket that didn’t eventuate, but declined because he “wasn’t comfortable with the level of electioneering that has to take place to sell yourself for the role”.

Ladd also explained that he had been “tuned out of ANUSA happenings for a fair amount of my time at ANU, so when this opportunity came up it seemed like a logical way to get involved.

“It’s also a pretty good excuse to give my parents when I inevitably do poorly in my subjects.”

Although at this point in time Ladd has no big plans as Social Officer, he asserts the importance of students taking the lead on social events themselves: “I’d like to see opportunities for people to help out with running ANUSA events – not just volunteering on the night, but the whole process.

“Give us an idea, a budget, a timeframe, and we can support, give you some help and back you up on it.”

Ladd also has ideas for streamlining how clubs and societies apply for grants from the Grants and Affiliations Committee (GAC): “Put it online, make it simpler and more accessible. There is potential for payment up front so students aren’t out of pocket.

“One idea is to give short term loans that don’t have to be repaid upon presentation of receipts and meeting other criteria. I also think getting the treasurer and book-keeper more involved with the communication with applicants is a must.”