Sunita Goddard Patel – External Trustee and Deputy Chair of the Board

Sunita has worked in governance since 2012, starting in representation and democracy at the University Of Birmingham Guild Of Students where she facilitated the Guild's democratic structures. Through her work at the Guild, she developed a passion for Student Voice and HE, working with officers teams to ensure that students were listened to through effective democratic structures and engaging campaigns. She now works as Head of Governance for a Multi Academy Trust where she is responsible for overseeing academy governance structures at, training governors and overseeing the organisation's policy framework.

Whilst enjoying working with academies, Sunita wants to continue her involvement in the HE sector and is thrilled to have a position as a Trustee at Aston Students' Union. She is also a member of the Governance Sub Committee of the board.

Anton Schwarz – Alumni Trustee

Anton was President of the Students’ Union in 1978. He has some great memories of the SU and is keen to support the SU in his role of Alumni Trustee. After graduating from Aston in the late 70s, he and his best friend set Laser Expertise Ltd – a Fabrication and Laser Cutting business in Nottingham, which he remains the Managing Director of today.

Michael Pritchard – Student Trustee

Michael joined Aston as an undergraduate in 2015, graduating in 2019 with an MEng in Electrical & Electronic Engineering. Following a brief stint as a laboratory technician he is now in the first year of a PhD in Computer Science, researching applied Machine Learning in the context of Robotic Prostheses. Michael sat on the committee of the Aston University Music Society for two years, and was a Student Representative for three; he hopes to draw on this range of experiences to bring a unique student perspective to the Board, ensuring that the Union is always acting in the best interests of its students.

Mariam Solhail – Student Trustee

Bio on its way.

Saskia Loer Hansen – University-Appointed Trustee

Saskia Loer Hansen is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Engagement) at Aston University with responsibility for business and civic engagement, international and marketing, development and alumni relations, and for the University’s student support functions. Prior to this appointment, Saskia held the role of Pro-Vice-Chancellor International at Aston for two years, and maintains a strong interest in the University’s internationalisation agenda.

Katy Baker – Alumni Trustee

Katy holds the role of Director of Services at Oaks Consultancy, helping organisations of all shapes and sizes across the sport, education, public and third sectors