Background to the Merger

At the May Councils of STANZ and NZUSA full discussions were held on the desirability of merging the two organisations into a National Union of Students. It was decided that such a move would be possible only if students throughout New Zealand had a chance to study the issues involved and to vote on practical proposals. All students' Associations have been asked to decide by June 30 this year whether or not the proposals in this paper are acceptable. If they are acceptable to a majority of students then the STANZ and NZUSA Councils will be combined at Christchurch from August 19 to 22 to accept a constitution, draw up a budget, and decide on policies for 1973.

The New Zealand University Students' Association (NZUSA) and the Student Teachers Association of New Zealand (STANZ) are both national associations of students in New Zealand. The former, with some 35,000 members, and the latter, with some 8,000 members, both have a federal structure with constituent members. Both have a federal structure with constituent rather than individual membership; both have Council meetings in May and August; both have a $1.00 per student levy; and both maintain' national offices in Wellington.

Essentially, a merger would be an acceptance of the view that all tertiary students, whether training to be teachers, technicians, research scientists, or medical practitioners are students with common interests and common aspirations. By merging these interests we could have a stronger, more dynamic national union, capable of providing consistent administrative facilities and able to coordinate the common aspirations.