University Affairs

Students' Society of McGill University

Category: Blog

  • Senate Caucus Biweekly Report: Sept 5th – 25th 2017

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    Welcome back to the Senator’s Corner! This is where we will be posting biweekly senator reports. These reports will include:

    1. Senate/Faculty Committee Updates
    2. Highlights from Senate Caucus Meetings
    3. Projects the Senators are working on
    4. Highlights from SSMU Legislative Council
    5. and MORE!

    Check out the highlights from those meetings here in their latest biweekly report!

    A few highlights:

    • Chris Buddle, Dean of Students gave a presentation on the McGill Context, and his work to update the McGill Code of Conduct
    • Suzanne Fortier (Principal of McGill), and Ollivier Dyens (Deputy Provost of Student Life and Learning) attend caucus for the first hour and shared some institutional on Senate and the role of student senators.
    • Discussed the Know Your Rights Campaign, and possible changes for next semester.

    Minutes of each Senate Caucus meeting is available upon request via email.

    If you’re interested in attending a Senate Caucus meeting to learn more about what the Senators do, feel free to email me (the UA Secretary) to get more information. Senate Caucus meetings are held every Monday at 6:30 PM in the SSMU Office.

  • University Affairs Final Report 2016-2017

    Change at McGill University is most often defined by incremental progress rather than overnight transformation. During the 2016-2017 year, the SSMU University Affairs portfolio has successfully pushed forward numerous initiatives to address critical academic, equity, and support issues facing undergraduate students. The University Affairs Final Report highlights some of these collective achievements in the areas of mental health, sexual violence, student rights, accessibility, and more.

    Thank you to the many staff, senators, committee members, councillors, and volunteers who have made this work possible!

  • Apply to Sit on a McGill Committee: April 6th Council Report

    Have you ever wanted to see how McGill works behind the scenes? Are you passionate about campus issues like student services, academic programs, or equity? Do you have a great idea to improve student life? Then apply to sit as a student representative on a university committee! This is your opportunity to get involved on campus and work with the McGill administration and SSMU. Apply by Monday, April 17th at 5:00pm.

    This week also marks the final Report of the VP University Affairs to the Legislative Council. However, the current executive term runs until May 31st, so stay tuned for a year-end report! In the meantime, check out some recent UA portfolio highlights:

    • Student working group released open letter regarding issues with campus mental health services
    • McGill’s Provost is holding drop-in hour at Gert’s this Thursday, April 6th from 4-5pm
    • Student senators are submitting April Senate questions on campus Islamophobia & student diversity
    • Library Improvement Fund Committee made final allocations & is reporting to Council
    • Nominations for AVEQ executive elections are open now until Friday, April 7th
    • Open forum on Tuesday, April 11th regarding improved reporting for complaints of sexual violence
    • We are preparing to train the incoming executive team in May!

    Winter goals completed to-date (italics = since last report):

    • Launched 2017-18 university committee recruitment
    • Equity Policy revisions approved
    • Made final Library Improvement Fund allocations
    • Sent monthly UA listservs
    • Submitted charter case on academic accommodations
    • Launched sexual violence policy committees & campus study
    • Formed working group on academic accommodation policies
    • Prepared May executive training schedule
    • Released first generation students research report
    • Create Indigenous course content advocacy plan
    • Developed long-term student staffing plan
    • Organized Student Senator Info Session
    • Hosted Add-Drop “Know Your Student Rights” campaign
    • Released foster care students research report
    • Launched University Affairs staff hiring
    • Policy against Unpaid Internships approved
    • Indigenous Solidarity Policy revisions approved
    • Internal Regulations for Board of Directors approved

  • Senate Caucus Biweekly Report for Mar 13-27, 2017

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    Almost the end of the year, and the Senators are still advocating for some things, as seen here in their latest biweekly report! You can also find our previous biweekly reports here, or in the Senators’ blog.

    A few highlights:

    • Discussed the potential plans for the Fall Reading Break Policy.
    • Discussed the shortcomings of mental health service provisions on campus, which will culminate in an open letter directed to the Deputy Provost for Student Life and Learning (Ollivier Dyens).
    • Discussed how we plan to keep the Administration accountable in following through with the upcoming recommendations from the Provost’s Taskforce on Indigenous Education (coming out in June 2017).

    Minutes of each Senate Caucus meeting is available upon request via email.

    If you’re interested in attending a Senate Caucus meeting to learn more about what the Senators do, feel free to email me (the UA Secretary) to get more information. Senate Caucus meetings are held every Monday at 6:30 PM in the SSMU Office.

  • Spring Soon? March 23rd Council Report

    Spring is (technically) almost here! We hope that the longer daytime hours are helping you make it through that midterm-paper grind. Just a reminder that we’re currently hiring for a University Affairs Secretary General and two Equity Commissioners. Apply by March 31st!

    Highlights from this week’s Report of the VP University Affairs to Legislative Council include:

    • SSMU Equity is hosting a Comedy Night with Hari Kondabalu this Monday, March 20th at 6:00pm
    • Our Students from Care Researcher is organizing a Cafe Collab consultation session with the Social Equity & Diversity Education (SEDE) Office this Tuesday, March 21st at 4:00pm
    • McGill Senate will be discussing the university budget, proposed revisions to Policy on Intellectual Property, strategic enrolment management & student aid this week
    • The Library Improvement Fund Committee is reviewing project proposals for final allocation decisions
    • Nominations for AVEQ executive elections open on Monday, April 3rd

    Winter goals completed to-date (italics = since last report):

    • Policy against Unpaid Internships approved
    • Indigenous Solidarity Policy revisions approved
    • Internal Regulations for Board of Directors approved
    • Released first generation students research report
    • Create Indigenous course content advocacy plan
    • Developed long-term student staffing plan
    • Organized Student Senator Info Session
    • Hosted Add-Drop “Know Your Student Rights” campaign
    • Released foster care students research report
    • Launched University Affairs staff hiring

  • Senate Caucus Biweekly Report for Feb 20-Mar 13, 2017

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    School seems to be on full speed these weeks, and the Senators seem to be seeing a slow week as well, as seen here in their latest biweekly report! You can also find our previous biweekly reports here, or in the Senators’ blog.

    A few highlights:

    • The McGill Non-Smoking Policy is ready to be presented to the highest admins, before it is brought to the McGill Senate. The plan is to implement it by September 2017.
    • Discussed the implications of the report from Scholarship and Student Aid Office (SSAO) that there is a huge surge in bursary applications this year, especially from international students.
    • Most of the new Student Senators for 2017-2018 has been elected!

    Minutes of each Senate Caucus meeting is available upon request via email.

    If you’re interested in attending a Senate Caucus meeting to learn more about what the Senators do, feel free to email me (the UA Secretary) to get more information. Senate Caucus meetings are held every Monday at 6:30 PM in the SSMU Office.