Committee

The MCR exists to represent the interests of graduate students to Magdalen College, and thus provides the first level of support for students, whatever your concern. For specific queries, feel free to contact the appropriate MCR representative.  For more information on the function of the MCR, please see our constitution and an explanatory memorandum concerning recent changes.  Magdalen MCR also welcomes applications from non-affiliated members of the Oxford community with a close connection to Magdalen College (unaffiliated postdocs, partners of MCR members, etc.).  Associate members are given access to the MCR and its events, though are not recognized as full members of the College.  If you are interested in becoming a MCR associate member, please contact the MCR secretary (details below).

Executive Positions

President:
Joe Gattas (joe.gattas@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The face of the MCR in college and the wider university. The president is ultimately responsible for all MCR activities, functions and events. The MCR President sits on a number of college committees and represents the views of the MCR in the governance of the college. The president is charged with ensuring all members of the committee fulfill their mandated duties.

Vice President:
Shay Bishnoi (shay.bishnoi@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The VP's role is one of the most flexible on the committee, allowing you an input into all major decisions as a member of the executive, while the exact responsibilities of the position depend on the division of work with the president. Officially, the role involves the rostering of comittee members at MCR events and taking charge of the accommodation ballot. Other than that, duties such as overseeing elections and organising invigilation for college exams can be assumed, but are not constitutionally required. I'd recommend this position to anyone who wants an influential voice both on the committee and within college generally.  

Treasurer:
Sam Thelin (sam.thelin@magd.ox.ac.uk) 

The role of Treasurer is an important role, combining general responsibility for looking after the MCR's finances with a strong input into the MCR's day to day spending decisions. The Treasurer drafts the following year's budget at the end of Michaelmas Term, and is thereafter responsible for taking decisions as to how the MCR's money is spent, working together with the rest of the Executive Committee. The role also involves taking care of the MCR cash box, and responsibility for reimbursements. The Treasurer will need to build a relationship with the College Accountants who manage the formal accounting systems that govern the MCR's finances.
It is a great role for anyone who wants to be able to play an integral role in the committee, and requires no previous accounting experience, only a willingness to learn!

Secretary:
Rhea Longley (rhea.longley@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The secretary is responsible for organising the MCR Committee, for safeguarding/updating important documents and keys, for maintaining an accurate MCR membership list and graduate directory, and for generally ensuring that MCR Committee meetings run smoothly and are productive.  For all MCR meetings (general, committee, executive), the secretary sets the agenda, takes and posts minutes, and follows up on decisions made at meetings to ensure they are implemented.  The secretary sits on the MCR Executive but also liaises closely with all other members of the committee, so the position provides a good opportunity to engage with all aspects of MCR life.  One of the enduring memories of the MCR year is the Banquet in Trinity term, in particular the group photographs then taken - organised thanks to the secretary!  

Committee Members

Social Secretary (x2):
Clare Bucknell (clare.bucknell@magd.ox.ac.uk)
James Hillis (james.hillis@magd.ox.ac.uk)

This is certainly the role that will have the biggest impact on the day to day life of the MCR. Working very closely with the bar managers, the food and facilities rep and the arts and research rep you are responsible for making sure that events happen when they are supposed to, have a reasonable attendance and for keeping the deans happy. On a day to day basis this can be anything from applying for late drinking hours from the home bursar to stringing spiders' webs all around the MCR. It can be occasionally stressful but generally really good fun.  

Bar Managers (x2):
Eli Ball (eli.ball@magd.ox.ac.uk)
Michael Jones (michael.jones@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The title Bar Manager provides a relatively accurate description of the role which you will play in the MCR committee. The bar manager is entirely responsible for maintaining the stock, which is kept in the MCR booze cupboard, and the day to day running of the bar. Along with the entz reps, the bar manager has a large influence in the direction of the events that take place. You'll be responsible for a  range of stuff, though, not just choosing which beer to buy. You'll get to think about how the rota should work, how the bar is best staffed, when to open and close, whether you want to open the bar on different nights, what to put on the cocktail list, the best way of kicking people out come last orders, and how you can persuade people to help you clean up afterwards. Although not technically part of the job description, it's good for (one of) the bar manager(s) to be present all night at the events that run, in case things get very busy or something goes wrong. This is great in that it throws you right into the midst of the MCR. 

Catering Officers:
Adjoa Smalls-Mantey (adjoa.smalls-mantey@magd.ox.ac.uk)
Elizabeth Nyikos (elizabeth.nyikos@magd.ox.ac.uk)

We have reason to believe that this is the most fun office on the committee, consisting as it does primarily of wining and dining, with a bit of parenting and fixing-upping thrown in. Duties include hosting regular events such as Sunday Brunch, Exchange Dinners with other Oxford MCRs, and MCR Guest Dinners, as well as special events such as the May Morning Breakfast, Trinity Banquet, MCR Christmas Dinner, and Magdalene Cambridge-Exchange. The Food & Facilities Officer is also the go-to person for any catering needs, and contributes food-related expertise to the planning of events such as Arts Week and Freshers Week. The office also includes day-to-day duties such as seeing to coffee/tea and biscuit supplies; care and maintenance of electrical appliances (including the espresso machine and the glasswasher); and making sure the MCR is generally a tidy and welcoming place. In this role, you will work closely with the Social Secretaries and Bar Manager, and inevitably develop a relationship with the MCR Scout, the college Catering office, the Butler, and the Sainsbury's delivery system. 

OUSU Officer:
Jessica Howley (jessica.howley@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The OUSU Officer acts as an intermediary between members of the MCR and the Oxford University Student Union.

IT Representative:
Pedro Vitoria (pedro.vitoria@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The MCR IT Rep has a number of responsibilities; these include maintaining Committee IT resources, including the website and the mailing list, and acting as an intermediary between members of the MCR and college IT staff.

Arts and Research Representative: 
Marko Sustarsic (marko.sustarsic@magd.ox.ac.uk)

This twofold position is for anyone who is passionate about the College's cultural and intellectual life. As Arts Representative you should organise group outings to concerts, operas, plays, museums and local breweries at least twice a term.  The other role as Research Representative involves co-organising the Magdalen Research Forum,a thrice-termly colloquium that serves to facilitate a sense of academic comradeship between the MCR and SCR.  Taken together, this post is ideally suited for an artsy humanities student who has aspirations for an academic career, and who already possesses good networking skills.

Sports Representatives:
Stephen Kyriacou (stephen.kyriacou@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The MCR sports representatives deal with MCR sports equipment (ie maintenance, replacements or new purchases), MCR teams (eg football and cricket) and general college sports liaison. The sports rep is required to attend termly sports meetings with the President, Home Bursar, JCR sports rep and John Stein.

Fresher's Representative:
Jodi Gardner  (jodi.gardner@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The Freshers' Representative coordinates and plans all the activities in Freshers' Week in Michaelmas, as well as any other Fresher-related events, such as the Matriculation Brunch.  The position also involves a small amount of work during term, answering email queries from prospective students and taking the occasional tour.  The majority of work needs to be done over the summer holiday between Trinity and Michaelmas, so you will need to be around and available during (enough of) that time.

Charity & Welfare Representatives:
Kate Mitchell (kate.mitchell@magd.ox.ac.uk)
Zachary Frankel (zachary.frankel@magd.ox.ac.uk)

This is a position with a growing profile.  It aims to provide welfare support for graduate students, both by the rep being available to all members as someone to talk to and by providing a link to the extensive welfare services of the University. The position is also responsible for initiatives by the MCR to raise money.  

Facilities and Environment Representative:
Ariane Bardout (ariane.bardout@magd.ox.ac.uk)

The MCR environment representative coordinates and plans all of the MCR's environment related activities.

General Committee Members: 

While these Committee members do not have distinct portfolios, they are crucially important members of the Committee.  Various non-official roles are shared amongst the General Members (eg Information Officer who sends out "Have I Got News For You" - HIGNFY), and the General Members also help out with other Committee positions that require more effort than one person can provide at certain moments (eg Freshers' Rep during Freshers' Week).  General members will help with particular projects decided on by the Committee during the year.  In addition, the General Members have important representative voices at Committee Meetings, and, along with all other Committee positions, help out with organisation and manpower at Bops and Brunches.  These positions do, however, come with less commitment and responsibility, so they would be ideally suited to someone who wanted to be involved with the Committee but was concerned about their time commitments next year.