Local student elected regional officer of Irish Second Level Students Union

A local secondary school student has been elected as the 2020/2021 Regional Officer of the Irish Second-Level Students’ Union, the national representative body for second-level student councils in the Republic of Ireland.

Patricija Rybakova, a second year student of Athlone Community College took up her role on January 1st, and will work alongside her fellow Regional Officer Christopher Erhagbe, a student of St. Mel’s College Longford for the year ahead.

Patricija is passionate about education issues and gender equality in schools, saying: “I love how the schools put effort into making their students feel educated but also heard. I aim to ensure that different communities within the school are safe and healthy. I hope to expand students' understanding of different ways in which the education system can affect their future, making it better and how a student union like the ISSU can help them to make that work.”

The Regional Officers plan to work alongside local TDs and County Councillors in their term, and also to grow the ISSU in the region of Westmeath/Longford for the year ahead. The ISSU has played a central role in many of the decisions made around schools and exams during COVID, and Paricija and Christopher plan to make sure student voices are heard at the local level for the year ahead.