AYY handed out acknowledgements and awards at its ninth Annual Ball

Press release

Aalto University Student Union

Free for release on 18 May 2019 at 9.00 pm

Aalto University Student Union AYY celebrated its ninth Annual Ball on Saturday 18 May 2019 at Helsinki’s Kaivohuone. At the Annual Ball, AYY rewarded distinguished members and associations of the Aalto community and revealed the new artworks acquired for its art collection. AYY handed out awards for the Learning Promotion Deed of 2019 and the International Deed of 2019 as well as the Student Union’s official acknowledgements. For the first time, the AYY Master of Ceremonies’ staff, designed and executed by Aino Hautala, was also in use at the Annual Ball.

The award for the Learning Promotion Deed of 2019 was given to the studyfication of volunteer operations. The award was accepted by University Lecturer Jari Ylitalo, who is the leading teacher of the ‘Influencing in a community’ and ‘Growing into an influential leader’ courses and the father of the whole idea. The courses enable the success, growth and development of many of the hundreds of volunteers of the Aalto community. Both courses are also excellent platforms for the internal networking of student actives.

The International Deed award for 2019 went to Junction. They were awarded on the strength of an inspiring and proactive level of internationality both within the Aalto community and abroad. Through their activities and events, the people at Junction have encouraged international students to join the volunteer operations, enabled many kinds of multicultural encounters and made our community’s ‘can-do’ attitude known around the world. In addition to this, an honorary mention for an International Deed was given to Kamil Marwat, who has been actively involved in advocacy work on behalf of tuition-fee-paying students both at Aalto and nationally.

In 2017, AYY started to accumulate its own art collection. This year, AYY’s Steering Group of Artistic Activities decided to add two sculptures to the art collection. The first piece is ‘Bubblegum’ by artist Veera Krouglov, and the second is artist Siiri Levonoja’s sculpture ‘Brownie.’

AYY awarded its highest acknowledgement, the badge of honour, to the Student Union’s first Financial Director Reija Väätäinen as well as the long-standing AYY active Jari Isaksson.

AYY also awarded two hero badges, received by Radiodiodi and Campus Development.

In addition, 10 badges of merit and 20 community badges were awarded, and these are listed below.

Aalto University Student Union congratulates all acknowledgement recipients and thanks them for the good and important work they have done for the Aalto community.