BRACU Alumni Association General Elections '15
The BRAC University Alumni Association (AABRACU) has witnessed a truly remarkable General Election in 2015. Riding the current wave of technological revolution and leveraging online opportunities, AABRACU members elected their newest Executive Committee over a revolutionary and freshly designed online polling system! Alumni across 29 countries registered as voters and cast their votes through the online portal to elect the 10 new faces they wanted to see represent them for the next term.
Months of planning to design an effective, secure and easy-to-use online voting system paid off. Of course there were lessons learned on how to make the system more effective, but the upside is the system will be BRAC University's very own and that means the opportunity to leverage it to stay connected with its alumni and to enhance connectivity among them.
An exemplary process was used to define the nomination criteria for the elections. Recommendations from senior alumni and the departing Executive Committee members were sought. Furthermore an ad-hoc Alumni Working Committee was formed to guide the norms and ensure an all-inclusive, free and fair election. An Election Commission consisting of BRAC University staff, i.e. relevant functional heads and staff with appropriate expertise was formed – ensuring that the spirit of the elections were acceptable and fair.
26 candidates contested for 10 positions in the General Elections. Clearly defined and well accepted campaign guidelines meant that there was a congenial yet competitive environment for every candidate to demonstrate their credentials. Social media played a substantial role in these campaigns as specific official pages, websites and groups were bombarded with manifestos and inspirational messages! Emails and SMS were also leveraged in the campaigns, which speaks highly of the level of engagement from the candidates.
Finally on 24 and 25 April the elections took place with the Office of Career Services, Alumni Relations (OCSAR) and the Election Commission declaring results in a ceremony held at BRAC University on the 26 April. The 10 new faces of AABRACU Executive Committee have been elected and their journey to take the organisation across frontiers has begun. The manner, methods and discipline with which the election occurred were undoubtedly challenging. However this was certainly the very embodiment of precise vision, planning and execution of a completely new and effective electoral system that ensured a successful election. The stage is set and the Executive Committee is ready – one can only hope that the next leap for AABRACU will be one of effective proportions.
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