In a contested race for the top seat, three students vie to be the next president of Queen’s Engineering Society (EngSoc).
In the running are Matthew Brown, Sci ’25, Taylor Hambleton, Sci ’25, and Jack Walker, Sci ’25. Two presidential candidates for EngSoc sat down with The Journal to discuss their platforms and goals.
Hambleton declined to share information about her vision if elected EngSoc president.
The President of EngSoc is the primary representative of the society, and oversees the Directors of Academics, Professional Development, First Year, and External Relations.
Matthew Brown
Brown envisions the future of EngSoc as incorporating more Kingston community outreach and growing the number of students involved with the society. He pointed to EngSoc’s longstanding relationship with the Rotary Club and hopes to expand partnerships with external organizations.
Brown is a Mechatronics and Robotics engineering student, and currently holds the position of Director of Student Life. In this role, Brown is responsible for supervising the year executives and coordinating annual events such as the Terry Fox Run and EngWeek.
He thinks partnering with organizations like the Kingston Humane Society and its pet fostering program could work to achieve both these goals.
“The Kingston Humane Society, I think [is] a great cause. I know of their fostering pet system. I think that’s awesome. I think if we can get more engineers doing that, that would be amazing,” Brown said.
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To boost engagement, Brown proposes the continuity of initiatives like EngPal and First Year Project Coordinator (FYPCO) mentoring programs, channeling the energy of first-year students into society initiatives, and fostering professional development from the get-go.
“By expanding, opening up new positions for FYPCO for first years, by encouraging mentors more and more and more, [it] will greatly benefit the society,” Brown said.
Expanding EngSoc’s outreach is critical for Brown. He hopes pushing EngSoc’s no experience necessary hiring practice will bring more students into the society.
Seeking to strengthen ties with the AMS, Brown proposes students going on internships opt-in to student fees, allowing them access to insurance plans provided by the AMS.
Brown is driven by a ion for student advocacy, motivating him to pursue the presidential role at EngSoc.
“I’m never going to run out of fuel. I’m a very ionate person, and that really drives me. I’m never going to stop fighting for the student voice. I’m always going to push for student representation and what we, as a society, want,” Brown said.
Jack Walker
Walker wants to optimize the experience of all engineering students who pay their tuition fees, not just students already involved with EngSoc.
Walker believes boosting student engagement involves creating low-commitment activities and opportunities that are often overlooked, with focus given to higher commitment activities such as engineering design teams.
These activities offer students more chances to connect and contribute within EngSoc. For Walker, everyone should feel represented.
“Even simple stuff. We’re going to give out free hot chocolate during exams, or we’re going to have booths to collect on what students would like to see,” Walker said in an interview with The Journal.
Part of his outreach plan is to enhance communication accessibility with the student body, particularly those students not actively engaged in the society.
Walker is studying engineering physics and is EngSoc’s current Director of Academics, where he is responsible for academic advocacy initiatives, managing the Better Equipment Fund (BEDFund), and supervising all discipline clubs.
Walker proposes changes to EngSoc’s equity, diversity, Indigeneity, and inclusion (EDII) program by introducing new roles. Currently, the EDII team reports to specific individuals, such as the EngSoc director of social issues, while the remainder of the society operates independently.
Walker stressed the importance of integrating EDII across all teams. He wants to hold all teams able to ensure initiatives taking place uphold the values of all Queen’s engineering students.
If elected, Walker wants to commit to ability by sharing his activities and progress in monthly reports throughout the year. He would present a version of these reports to EngSoc Council.
Also on the agenda, Walker proposes centralizing the transition process for leadership positions within EngSoc to improve continuity for groups and clubs. Reducing the time spent transitioning students would allow them to focus on their respective clubs.
“I would like to centralize that a little bit, and make sure we’re ing all of our groups through the role transitions rather than just the executive directors,” Walker said.
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