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AMS Assembly
Thursday, November 21st, 2013
Wallace Hall
------------------------------------------7:00pm-----------------------------------------
Agenda
1. Approval of Agenda of the meeting of November 21st 2013 [Motion 1]
2. Approval of the Minutes of the meeting of November 7th 2013 [Motion 2]
3. Speaker’s Business
4. Guest Speaker
a. Jill Scott- Vice-Provost of Teaching and Learning
5. President’s Report - President Eril Berkok
6. Vice President’s Report
a. Operations - Vice-President Nicola Plummer
b. University Affairs - Vice-President Thomas Pritchard
7. Board of Director’s Report - Chairman Rico Garcia
8. Student Senator’s Report - Senator Isabelle Duchaine
9. Rector’s Report - Rector Nicholas Francis
10. Student Trustee’s Report - Undergraduate Trustee Andrew Aulthouse
11. Statements by Members
12. Question Period
13. Business Arising from the Minutes
a. That AMS Assembly approve the second reading of amendments to the AMS
Constitution, as seen in Appendix A: Harry Potter [Motion 3]
14. New Business
a. That AMS Assembly extends heartfelt gratitude to the Sydenham District Association,
Kevin Wiener (Law 2014), and all of the witnesses and participants who acted in support
of the Alma Mater Society’s appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board for effective
representation of post-secondary students in the City of Kingston [Motion 4]
b. That AMS Assembly ratify Erin Maguire as Orientation Roundtable Coordinator for
2013-2014 [Motion 5]
c. That AMS Assembly appoint ______ to Nominating Committee for the Winter 2014 term
[Motion 6]
d. That AMS Assembly approve the amendments to Policy Manual 2 Section 6: Part E as
seen in Appendix B: Pre$ident’s Caucus [Motion 7]
e. That AMS Assembly approve the amendments to Policy Manual 1 Section 3 Parts A & B
as seen in Appendix C: Go Vote on January 28th/29th [Motion 8]
f. That AMS Assembly reconsider Motion 5 from the AMS Assembly meeting of
September 26th 2013, as seen in Appendix D: Woo Referenda! [Motion 9]
i. That AMS Assembly approve an alternative date after reading week for the
Rector Election.
g. That AMS Assembly approve the amendments to Policy Manual 1, Section 6, Part F as
seen in Appendix E: Awards [Motion 10]
15. Discussion Period
a. International Representative to the AMS
b. Innovation PCRs for Assembly – Open Session
c. Innovation PCRs for Assembly – Closed Session
AMS Assembly
Thursday, November 21st, 2013
Wallace Hall
-------------------------------------------7:00pm-----------------------------------------
Motion Sheet
1. Moved by: Kristen Olver
Seconded by: Thomas Pritchard
That AMS Assembly approve the agenda for the Assembly meeting of November 21st, 2013.
2. Moved by: Kristen Olver
Seconded by: Thomas Pritchard
That AMS Assembly approve the minutes for the Assembly meeting of November 7th, 2013
3. Moved by: Kristen Olver
Seconded by: Thomas Pritchard
That AMS Assembly approve the second reading of amendments to the AMS Constitution, as seen in
Appendix A: Harry Potter.
4. Moved by: Eril Berkok
Seconded by: Thomas Pritchard
That AMS Assembly extends heartfelt gratitude to the Sydenham District Association, Kevin Wiener
(Law 2014), and all of the witnesses and participants who acted in support of the Alma Mater Society’s
appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board for effective representation of post-secondary students in the City
of Kingston.
5. Moved by: Gareth Savage
Seconded by: Thomas Pritchard
That AMS Assembly ratify Erin Maguire as Orientation Roundtable Coordinator for 2013-2014.
6. Moved by: Kristen Olver
Seconded by: Nicola Plummer
That AMS Assembly appoint ______ to Nominating Committee for the winter 2014 term.
7. Moved by: Eril Berkok
Seconded by: Nicholas Francis
That AMS Assembly approve the amendments to Policy Manual 2 Section 6: Part E as seen in Appendix
B: Pre$ident’s Caucus.
8. Moved by: Kristen Olver
Seconded by: Thomas Pritchard
That AMS Assembly approve the amendments to Policy Manual 1 Section 3 Parts A & B as seen in
Appendix C: Go Vote on January 28th/29th .
9. Moved by: Member at Large Leo Erlikhman
Seconded by: Kristen Olver
That AMS Assembly reconsider Motion 5 from the AMS Assembly meeting of September 26th 2013, as
seen in Appendix D: Woo Referenda!
10. Moved by: Thomas Pritchard
Seconded by: Eril Berkok
That AMS Assembly approve the amendments to Policy Manual 1, Section 6, Part F as seen in
Appendix E: Awards.
The President of the Alma Mater Society
Eril Berkok
November 21st, 2013
Hello members of Assembly,
OMB Appeal
Market Research
You may have already noticed brand awareness surveys mentioned on receipts at Common Ground,
The Brew, Queen`s Pub, and P&CC. We are also releasing surveys within the week on campus
innovation and student voting patterns. This highlights the continued transition of the Marketing
Office to a full market research department. The Marketing Officer has been hard at work at
automating data collection and reporting processes to make the information as simple to assemble and
interpret as possible. Expect to see a physical presence of the market research team soon as they work
to further engage the student population on this data collection.
Values and Strategic Planning
Over the next few months I along with the Executive, our Information Officer, the Board Chair, and
others will be working on clarifying, reorganizing, or proposing edits to many of our guiding
philosophies and values both society-wide and specific to the corporation. This includes work on our
operating statements, mission statement, corporate guiding philosophies, and long-term society
visioning. More to come!
Campus Master Plan
The plan that will oversee the next 10+ years of physical infrastructure development – the Campus
Master Plan – is marching quickly to the release of its first draft. Over the winter holiday will come a
plethora of edits as we move towards approval later next semester at the Board of Trustees. In the
meanwhile, an open house for the progress to date will be taking place December 6th from 2-6pm at the
Biosciences Atrium, which I highly encourage everyone to attend as it will be a key time to provide
input. I am also continuing to request that the consulting team come to AMS Assembly to give a
presentation on the plan much in the same way that was done for the Library & Archives Master Plan.
I will, of course, inform Assembly if that is possible and when it will take place.
Transitioning Review
I have been working with the Human Resources Officer looking into what can and must be updated in
terms of processes for transitioning, potentially moving away from the one-size-fits-all approach that
has been taken in the past. Among other techniques, we have been canvassing student governments at
other institutions to understand their content, time frame, and incentive structure and seeing how we
can apply it to our own. Everything is under the microscope and we hope to have new processes in
place in time for the new team to transition in. Further to this undertaking down the road will be a
review of our training processes.
Cheers,
Eril Berkok
Vice-President (Operations) Report to Assembly
Nicola Plummer
November 21st, 2013
Hello Assembly Members!
The following are a few brief updates from me.
Budgeting Policy | I will be working with the Commissioner of Internal Affairs and the Information
Officer on overhauling policy pertaining to the budget, and I look forward to bringing those changes to
you in the new year.
2014-2015 Budget | I have begun working with our Executive Director to transition on the budget and
have started creating files for next year’s team to work off with regard to the budget. This will allow
them to focus less on the tactical elements of this process and more on the high-level strategic thinking
with respect to the budgets.
AMS Operations, Financial & Administrative Manual | With the help of my intern, I am updating
this manual which has not been put into practice internally for a number of years. I am working to
ensure any changes in our internal operations are reflected in this document. This will be given to the
team to distribute as they please to employees to ensure a smoother transition.
Recruitment | A necessary emphasis has been placed on full-time recruitment this year and I have
been working with our Human Resources team to ensure that their projects can be supported to the
best of our ability. Applicants for full-time positions in the AMS have been steadily decreasing and we
are hoping to address this problem moving forward.
Student Fees | This is just another reminder to everyone that student fee cheques have been cut so
please come to the AMS Front Desk to pick up this funding. In addition, a reminder that the following
groups are being audited and need to get in contact with me: Helen Tufts Child Outreach Program,
CUSEN, The Health and HR Conference, Queen’s Red Cross, Students for Accessible Education,
Students for Corporate Social Responsibility, Keep A Child Alive, the COR, Sexual Assault Crisis
Centre, Students Taking Action Now: Darfur, and the Queen’s Social Investment Initiative.
That’s all from me for now. Please feel free to email/phone/text me or stop by my office should you
have any questions or require any additional information. I look forward to taking questions at
Assembly.
VPopsicle,
Nicola
Vice-President (University Affairs) Report to Assembly
Thomas Pritchard
November 21st, 2013
Hello members of assembly,
I hope you are looking forward to the final assembly of the year! Please find bellow my report.
Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance
Allison and I are preparing to attend this year’s Lobby Conference. It is taking place the first week of
December. During this time we will be in Toronto, meeting alongside the other OUSA members and
their delegates with as many Members of Provincial Parliament as we can in order to make asks based
in our policy stances. We will report back next semester how this event went.
Last Monday I travelled to Toronto for the Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health knowledge
exchange event. At it, the universities and colleges who received provincial funding for their mental
health based initiatives. Queen’s was there with Mike Condra, as we currently have two projects on the
go. It was really interesting to see what the other universities have been doing, as some of their
programming is extremely innovative , such as at Guelph, where they are developing a for credit
course, where if you have been diagnosed with a mental health issue, you can explore that issue and
complete essays and projects on that topic.
OMB Appeal
I am very pleased that we received a positive outcome from the OMB appeal. If you have not already, I
encourage you to read the full report ( available here
http://www.omb.gov.on.ca/english/eStatus/eStatus.html) as it is quite compelling. I and the entire AMS
are extremely appreciative of the hard work of everyone involved in the process!
Grants
It is that time of year where we are approving our grant applications. I have been working with the
Club Grants committee, as well as the Sustainability Action Fund committee to give out the grants. We
had a very high number of clubs grants applicants, as well as several to the SAF fund. I have also met
with the Board VPUA special projects committee. We had six applicants to that pool of money and I
will be contacting the student groups who were successful this week. Equity grants are up next!
General
The Student Learning Experience Task Force is getting ready to release our final draft and in general I
am quite pleased with the recommendations overall. That report will be public.
We are almost finished implementing Project Accounting for the government side. This morning we
had a tutorial from our Controller, Lyn Parry who showed us all how to use the new reporting tool.
Myself and commissioners will now be able to view up to date reports and transactions on our own
computers, from this year and years past. I am very excited at how much easier this will make tracking
spending, budgets and generally being more accountable.
There is a lot more going on, and I encourage you to ask questions! Hope all is well.
Cha Gheill,
Thomas Pritchard
Vice President (University Affairs)
AAC Report to Assembly
Allison Williams
November 21st, 2013
Hello members of Assembly,
Before I jump into my AAC updates, I just wanted to give a huge shout-out to all those involved in the
OMB win. I couldn’t be happier to see students effectively represented in Kingston, and I’m so grateful
to everyone who pushed to make our city a pioneer in this regard.
Now, onto the task at hand:
General AAC
Innovation Policy | The first round of consultation for this document has wrapped up, having gone
through Academic Caucus, Presidents’ Caucus, KEDCO, QIC1, Innovation Park, and members of the
innovation community at Queen’s. The first draft of the Principles, Concerns, and Recommendations
that will be guiding the document will come forward tonight. Please take these to your members for
further consultation; I would like as much faculty society involvement as possible as I finalize the first
draft of the policy itself. This will come forward for ratification at our next Assembly.
Startup Kingston |Last week, I attended a meeting of a group of (mostly) students looking to extend
the Startup Canada network to Kingston. This idea is reflected in the Innovation document you will be
reviewing this week; in my opinion, it represents a strong, student-driven opportunity to coalesce all
the innovation initiatives occurring at Queen’s and within the city.
LAMP Video | This week, I was able to be a part of an informational video surrounding the Library
and Archives Master Plan (for which I was a Steering Committee member). This video will go out to
donors in the hopes of making the plan a reality, and it gave me the opportunity to speak about the
importance of resources and space for students at Queen’s.
Jennifer Grass | Jennifer Grass, the Senior Director of Communications and Public Affairs for the
Council of Ontario Universities (read: university version of OUSA) visited campus last week. In our
meeting, we spoke about the Strategic Mandate Agreement process, Career Services at universities
across Ontario, and the funding structures and incentives across the sector. It was a very interesting
meeting, and if anyone would be interested in learning more, I’d be happy to chat about it!
Whatswhat App | As per the Executive’s campaign platform and the slight enhancements contained in
my goal plan, this comprehensive guiding app for students is underway. I am excited to be working on
a Project Requirement document with IT after several meetings with university stakeholders.
1 This is a little pre-emptive; I’ll actually be having this meeting right after the next meeting of Assembly.
Boston Trip Follow-Up |Following the Boston trip at the end of October, members who were in
attendance will have the opportunity to submit their remarks and feedback. This information will be
consolidated and brought to Assembly shortly!
Internal Commission
Committees| With nominations closed for this semester’s Teaching Awards, we have seen a record
number of participants. I would like to congratulate the Teaching Awards Committee, and thank them
pre-emptively for all the time it will take them to sort through the results!
The University Issues Committee is working away on an informational campaign to be rolled out
shortly, and will be coming to present it to Assembly soon.
Last Lecture on Earth | Last week, the first installment of the Last Lecture Series took place with Dr.
Newstead, a professor in Chemical Engineering, and drew in an unprecented 400+ attendees. I’d like to
extend a huge congratulations to the Student Faculty Relations Committee for their hard work, and
look forward to next semester’s event in Grant Hall. Finally, none of this would’ve been possible
without the incomparable Dr. Newstead, who generously offered his time and wisdom to the project.
The Academic Grievance Centre | The AGC is reviewing post-midterms to ensure they are equipped
to take on an increased volume over exams, and will be undergoing ongoing training related to peer
support soon!
Please take the time to educate your members on the Centre; it is well prepared to take on an expanded
number of cases this year, and the volunteers consistently impress me with their knowledge and
professionalism. If you would like to stop by, we are located in Room 26 of the bunker in the JDUC,
directly next to the Peer Support Centre. We can also be e-mailed at [email protected]!
The Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance
LobbyCon |OUSA has formally decided on its 3 topics for its lobby conference at Queen’s Park in
December; we will be pushing for increased investment and policy solutions on the topics of student
financial aid, youth jobs, and cost pressures and incentives in the sector. Bring on the chats about
pensions!
System Growth/Vision Paper | This weekend, I will be committing some time to hosting Thomas’s
counterpart from Western to do a little work on next Semester’s System Growth/Vision paper that we
will be co-authoring for OUSA. This paper will address a vision and a funding framework for higher
education in Ontario, and I’m very excited to be taking on such a comprehensive project. If you have
any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask – this may be my very favourite thing to talk about.
Survey | The OUSA survey went live last week! You should all have received it, and I hope that you
will all take the time to fill it out; this is the main venue for OUSA’s primary research, and not only
provides valuable insight into the needs of our students, but also offers a powerful lobbying tool to the
organization as it works towards enhancing the higher education system in Ontario.
Finally, my trip up to Western to watch the Yates Cup did not have the positive outcome I had
anticipated. That being said, I’d like to commend our Golden Gaels for a great season, and, as always,
some foxy uniforms. Luckily this job has bought me a fifth year at Queen’s, so here’s hoping they go all
the way.
Cheers,
Allison Williams
CAC Report to Assembly Gareth Savage
November 21st, 2013
Hello members of Assembly!
I hope everyone has had a great couple weeks since we last met. Without further ado, here are the
goings-ons in the CAC recently:
Queen’s Model Court: Post-Event Report
The 4th annual QMC was held this past weekend at the Frontenac County courthouse and was a great
success! The conference has seen tremendous growth in interest over the past 4 years and is becoming a
great Queen’s tradition, alongside QMUN and QMP. Guest judges and speakers, including John
Gerretsen, heard from passionate and eloquent delegates on 5 separate cases: criminal law,
international law, Non-Academic Discipline, corporate law, and environmental law. Congratulations to
QMC Co-Chairs Thuy-Dan Dang and Brittany Shales and their fantastic committee for a job well done!
Upcoming CAC Events (That you should definitely come to!)
Capture the Faculty (Nov 23) @ All over campus!
We need ALL FACULTIES to sign up for this otherwise it just doesn’t work! For more info, ask me how
your faculty can get involved in an awesome tradition.
Queen’s Model Parliament
The people have spoken and exercised their democratic right to elect a Green Party minority
government for QMP 2014, with the NDP playing the role of Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition.
Congratulations to the Right Honourable Prime Minister Taylor Mann!
Orientation Roundtable Hiring
Congratulations and welcome to the new ORT Coordinator Erin Maguire! She will be ratified at this
week’s Assembly and is more than happy to answer any questions you may have for her. Her ORT
Directors will be hired by the end of the week.
Until next time,
Gareth Savage
Campus Activities Commissioner
CIA Report to Assembly
Kristen Olver
November 21st, 2013
Welcome to the last Assembly meeting of 2013. It’s been an absolute pleasure getting to know you all
this term; I look forward to meeting again in 2014!
AMS Assembly
This week is ‘bring a friend to Assembly’ Assembly! For those that missed the update last Assembly,
this is how it works:
Invite and bring a friend (who is preferably not involved with student government) to the
meeting
Check in with the Assembly Volunteer, who will enter both of your names into a draw
Name will be drawn at the end of Assembly (friend doesn’t have to stay the full time)
Winner gets line-skip to Underground and $40 to Queen’s Pub (wooo friend dates!)
Also, prior to the meeting we will be convening at 6PM at CFRC (62 fifth company lane) for a tour of
their studio and free pizza! Thank you to Ayanda for inviting us all to learn more about CFRC. See
you all there!
Elections (If you read nothing else in my report, please read this)
On the agenda for this Assembly are updates to the elections policy, in response to concerns raised
throughout the fall referendum. One important area to discuss is ratifying student fees, and what is
Assembly’s role. The Elections Team initially drafted policy to submit on this, however we feel it
would be best to ask this question first of Assembly. As Assembly has created the entire policy and
process by which referendum operates, it is Assembly’s duty to uphold policy/constitution. However,
it needs to be discussed whether we are additionally debating the merits of a fee, or approving that it
has met all the requirements of nomination as determined by the Commissioner of Internal Affairs and
the Vice-President of Operations. I look forward to this discussion!
We are gearing up for January and the coming AMS Executive & Rector election, as well as the winter
referendum and multiple faculty society elections. Our marketing campaign is in the works. If you
have any questions please connect with the Elections team through [email protected] or
[email protected], as the cro account is still facing technical difficulties.
Clubs Office
On October 28th applications for fall club grants were released, due November 4th.This term we
received 85 applications totalling just over $92,000. The fall and winter granting periods both have
$15,000 to allocate. In considering which clubs would be allocated funds, the granting committee
considered the following criteria:
clubs whose event/activity under consideration presents tangible benefits to the Queen’s
community. This includes Queen’s associated charitable organizations that require money to
cover operating expenses
clubs which have made a significant effort to raise other funds to help offset costs. In no
situation should any applicant rely solely on an AMS Clubs Grant for operational money.
The granting committee additionally decided to not fund food for social events, as well as travel
expenses of students to other schools/conferences.
A list of all applicants and recipients will be distributed to Assembly members in the form of a report
prior to this week’s meeting.
Non-Academic Discipline
The Judicial Affairs Office is in the process of reviewing and updating all forms, specifically for Group
Discipline. Nothing to report from JCOMM. If anyone has any questions I encourage you to stop by the
CIA/JAO! The Judicial Affairs Office is located in the lower Caileigh, room 038.
Archives
Mackenzie (the Archive Assistant) found an article today that Principal Woolf wrote for the Journal in
1976 about Star Trek, so that’s pretty cool. Nothing new to report!
CIAo,
Kristen Olver
CES Report to Assembly
Colin Robinson
November 21st, 2013
The CES always has a number of projects on the go. The following are selected highlights:
Sustainability Action Fund
SAF Committee has approved 5 grants, and is still in the process of considering 4 more. I’ve
included the most recent SAF committee meeting summary with more detailed notes as an
appendix in this agenda, but here is an overview of the grants so far:
o Queen’s Debating Union: $750 to cover funding of sustainability initiatives (waste
reduction, organics education) at on campus High School tournament
o Oxfam Hunger Banquet: $1000 to fund extra costs of local organic free trade food, and
accommodation for speaker at this year’s banquet, which is focusing on sustainable food
systems
o Project Community Garden: $1720 to fund materials for a large student-run community
garden on the property of Sydenham United Church
o CUCOH: $537.00 to fun the difference in cost for compostable plates, cutlery, cups, etc. from
the Tea Room
o QGIC: $83.00 to cover funding difference for a speaker on the impact of climate change on
agriculture at the conference (there
We’re still in the consideration process for applications from the Tea Room, the Food Centre,
ResSoc, and TEDx
Bikes and Boards
Consistently generating revenue despite the colder weather
o Total combined sales to date: $1937.55; we will exceed budgeted total revenues this year,
which means we can start infusing more money into the shop (EXCITING!)
Working on a winter engagement strategy to ensure the space is still used effectively and students,
staff and faculty who bike are still being served during the winter months
Use of the debit terminal at the AMS front desk (vs. cash exchange in-shop) is increasing, and very
useful for patrons, particularly for large purchases (complete bikes, longboards)
Fine Art students will be painting Queen’s related art on boards for a series of one-of-a-kind
“Queen’s Cruisers”
Now that shop operations, we’re starting to re-develop the sustainability components of the shop:
planning workshops for the winter months
SLC Energy Management Board
SGPS, AMS, SLC, and PPS have been working together to draft Energy Management Directive to be
included in SLC Policy
CES has secured ~$35 000 in funding from Provincial Government (via Utilities Kingston) for
energy-efficient upgrades to JDUC lighting- currently negotiating logistics with PPS
We’re currently performing JDUC water audit as well: SLC pays over $30K/year for water (most is
for washroom use)- current toilets use ~20 liters/flush, new ones use ~6. Rough calculations show a
bathroom renovation project would have an ROI of only 3 years!
Committees
Greenovations completed first round of retrofits, servicing 7 houses last weekend (this is more than
they did all year last year!)
o 2nd round is happening on Saturday November 23rd
o They will also be heat-wrapping all exterior JDUC windows, which will stop offices from
being cold, and reduce the heinously expensive SLC utility bills this winter
Youth Mentoring Youth gave their first lessons last week; this is momentous as last year the
committee did not deliver any programming due to the School Board strike
STRIVE has been actively promoting the new SLC ORGANICS program, and will be hosting a film
screening on waste-reduction at Common Ground on Wednesday November 20th
Speaker Series
Confirmed Mike Gerbis of the Delphi Group (Ottawa) for a January engagement date
Partnering with Sustainable Kingston speaker at Portsmouth Olympic Harbour
o Thursday November 28th, 6:45 pm- Tom Rand, MaRS Cleantech advisor, Sustainable
Venture Capitalist, and author of Kicking the Fossil Fuel Habit
Speaking on the economic opportunities afforded by the global transformation to a
low-carbon economy
Financial Ethics Research Committee
We have created “screens” based off of AMS values to analyze our portfolio for investments that
make blatant violations. There are 3 screen categories:
Social Human Rights Environmental
Armaments
Fraudulent Practice
Tobacco
Gambling
Lacks Community
Consultation
Operation without
consent on First
Nations’ Land
Violates Ontario
Human Rights Code
Sweatshop Labour
Racist Practice
Sexist Practice
Oppressive Policy
Child Labour
Reckless
Environmental
Destruction
Poor or non-existent
environmental
policy
Unsustainable
Farming
Poor effort to reduce
GHG emissions
FERC members have been assigned sections of the portfolio to research, and are taking a
pragmatic approach, knowing that there are very few “perfectly ethical” investments
Our funds manager has agreed to accept a “blacklist” of companies we wish not to be invested
in; this will be composed of only companies that severely violate multiple principles outlined
above.
The portfolio adjustments will not drastically alter its structure, and serve as tangible
modifications that will accompany AMS BoD investment policy changes
The CES has to continually justify its existence: sustainability doesn’t get the reputation it deserves
in terms of its value-adding capacity. The CES leverages success from “mutually reinforcing gains,”
where a sustainable development helps stakeholders achieve other goals. I invite any member of
Assembly to come chat with me about the commission, and about how it can add value for the AMS,
and for Queen’s at large.
All the best,
Colin
MAC Report to Assembly
Catherine Wright
November 21st, 2013
Hello members of Assembly! Here’s what’s going on in the MAC:
Municipal Electoral Boundaries – Ontario Municipal Board makes a decision!
As you may have heard, the Ontario Municipal Board made the decision last week to order the City of
Kingston to use ward boundaries that include post-secondary student populations. They specifically
directed the City to use staff’s original preferred option that the majority of councillors had voted to
ignore, and additionally ordered that this option be further revised to include a section of the original
Sydenham ward. This decision has not only restored effective representation for students in Kingston,
it will very importantly be precedent-setting for other Ontario municipalities in the future. We must
thank our community partners for their unwavering support in the appeal process: Thank you to the
Queen’s University Faculty Association, Society of Graduate & Professional Students, Sydenham
District Association, St. Lawrence College Student Association, and all others who filed as participants.
To celebrate, we will be hosting a reception on Thurs. Nov. 28th which all students are encouraged to
attend. More details will be available on the website shortly.
To read the appeal decision (I really encourage you to - lots of fun & sass!) Click here:
http://myams.org/media/148866/omb_appeal.pdf
Kaleidoscope Craft Day
This past Saturday, the Kaleidoscope committee hosted approximately 40 little buddies & families on
campus to participate in our annual Craft Day. Thanks to the committee for their hard work in
planning and executing the event. It was a fun day that is sure to be remembered by all!
United Way Awareness Week
This week is the United Way committee’s annual Awareness Week. They have been putting on events
all week, including a movie screening of “Three Voices,” a documentary on mental illness. If you’ve
missed the events until tonight, watch out for them outside of Stauffer Library tomorrow where they
will be providing information on homelessness in Kingston, and giving out hot chocolate and raffle
prizes.
Housing Grievance Centre
Our Housing Grievance Centre is now open. Last week was our “soft” opening, and we now have
regular office hours posted on our Facebook page (search “AMS Housing Grievance Centre”). Housing
questions or concerns? Problems with your landlord or roommates? Drop by the HGC for peer
advising on your rights as a tenant.
University District Re-Naming
On Wed. Nov. 13 the Near-Campus Neighbourhoods Advisory Committee held a public consultation
on the University District concept. We are extremely pleased with how the evening went, and grateful
for the support of former Kingston City Councillor Don Rogers, who spoke positively to the idea of re-
naming the area. This input will be used to form a report to go to another meeting of NCNAC in
December, where the group may vote to pass a recommendation for signage in the area. Stay tuned for
the results of that meeting!
Your MuniciPAL,
Catherine Wright
SIC Report to Assembly
Michelle Williams
November 21st, 2013
Hello Assembly,
Hope everyone has been able to take time for themselves during this very busy time of year! Without
further ado this is what has been happening in the SIC
Peer Support Centre
The Peer Support Centre’s Queen’s TALKs week was a success! We had a lot of interest in the week –
with a huge influx of traffic to the PSC Facebook page. Check out the photos from the booths they had
up throughout the week! The rally was during the last assembly, so was unable to personally attend –
but it had a great turnout and was a success. There will be another Queen’s TALKs week in the winter
semester – the PSC team has great ideas, so stay tuned for another successful week!
The PSC received $1700 grant from the Jack Project to create a phone application for the PSC, including
steps from Queen’s TALKs on how to help a friends and mental health resources.
Food Centre
The Food Centre was this year’s recipient of proceeds from Walkhome’s Walk-a-Thon! At the time of
writing this I do not have details on how much money was raised, but will be sure to update in a
member’s statement if I have that information by Thursday.
Committees
MHAC had their first speaker’s series on Anxiety Disorders last week in Common Ground. As well,
this Wednesday they had a Yoga and Mental Health Event. The MHAC residence outreach team has
done one (or two?) workshops in residence – and are expecting to be busy with workshops next
semester as they have gotten a ton of interest.
The Community Outreach Co-ordinators of MHAC received a $3000 grant from the Jack Project. With
that they have partnered with HCDS to subsidize the cost of Mental Health First Aid (from $150 to
$10, impressive right?). The November 23 + 30th session is the one that has been subsidized – in order to
receive certification you must attend both full days. You can sign up here – there is room for 50 people
at this session, so may have filled up already. They are hoping to have another subsidized session next
semester as well.
The Education on Gender Issues Committee and Education on Queer Issues Project worked with the
Kingston community to run Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR) on November 20th for the vigil
remembering the 238* individuals who lost their lives due to transphobic hate crimes this year (* # up
to November 1st). They also co-sponsored the film screening of Valentine Road with Reelout.
The EQuIP office redo has taken longer than anticipated, but we’ve made incredible progress in the last
couple of weeks – and hope to have the space open during the exam period.
Publications
The submission deadline for Collective Reflections (the combined publication for Able, CultureShock,
HeadsUp, OutWrite and Queen's Feminist Review) is NOV. 29!! We are looking for all sorts of written
and visual pieces on the topics of: disability, racism, mental health/illness, queer issues and feminist
issues. Please send submissions to [email protected] We accept poetry, short stories,
flash fiction, essays, photos, paintings, sketches – you name it! We also accept anonymous submissions.
Grants
Applications for Equity Grants (Due Nov. 22th) and Accessibility Queen’s Grants (Due January 10th)
can be found here
Equitably yours,
Michelle Williams
Hospitality & Safety Services Report to Assembly
Justin Reekie
November 21st, 2013
1. The Cogro Loyalty Promo is back in business; buy a $30 gift card for $25.
2. Make sure you all try our new holiday drinks with whipped cream!
3. Other than that, business as usual.
1. We have reworked the rest of the semester at The Underground. Every Friday for the rest of
the semester will be Throwback, and Wednesdays will include other theme nights such as Hip
Pop, Classic Rock and Top 40.
2. An Underground feedback survey has just been completed and will be pushed by TAPS and
the Marketing Office heavily next week. Check it out here:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/UndergroundFeedback
3. The Underground had a great first Throwback of the month with approximately $4722 in net
sales.
4. The Queen’s Pub Holiday Drinks are now available! Make sure you try our new Ron Burgundy
drink; for every Ron Burgundy bought, a $1 goes toward Movember!
1. Business as usual.
1. Walkhome had a successful 25 hour Walk-A-Thon celebrating the 25th anniversary of
Walkhome. There were a total of 1006 walks!
Retail Services Report to Assembly
Dan Bone
November 21st, 2013
In celebration of the P&CC’s 25th anniversary, this Wednesday is Paperfest! Visit the Facebook
page for more details!
The Tricolour Express exam schedule is out! Book your ticket before they’re all gone!
An error with our Point of Sales system has resulted in many students mistakenly being
notified of a consignment payout. If you have received a notification that doesn’t have any
sold books listed, it was an error and can be disregarded.
A variety of event tickets are being sold at Tricolour now, including Queen’s Players tickets,
which are selling fast!
As the regular lawn maintenance season comes to a close, SMART is looking for new
properties to begin servicing in May. If you aren’t satisfied with how your property is being
maintained, I encourage you to make your landlords aware of what SMART can offer.
Media Services Report to Assembly
Devin McDonald
November 21st, 2013
Assembly Report November 21st, 2013
Queen’s Journal
Though significantly off budget for September and October, the Journal is should be much
closer to category targets for November. As Sales Representatives are producing are now
fully up to speed, Free Media is placing more ads, and our online ad placement issues are
now worked out. This coming weekend the Journal Policy Committee will meet to make recommendations on
changes to Journal Policy.
Queen’s TV
Despite some significant setbacks, QTV is back on track to rebuilding their website. We have readjusted our sales strategy and hope generate a have some more success selling
our new vehicles.
Yearbook and Design Services
We are looking to make some strategic investments in camera and computer equipment.
Currently YDS only has two fully operational camera kits since their third body broke. We
will be looking to make investments in two additional bodies and mid range zoom lenses. Now that our External Design Manger is a little less busy with contract work for the
Marketing Office, we will be looking into the website.
Convocation Services
- The Fall Ceremonies will take place this Wednesday and Thursday.
- Eleven students were hired to staff the ceremonies.
CFRC
- VPOC has agreed to support CFRC in the form of free rent for a three year period, and
assistance in negotiating tower space with Rogers. However, this is contingent on CFRC
acquiring a fee increase either through AGM or by referendum. It is not clear what exactly
would happen lest such an increase fails to pass, nor what size of fee increase would be
sufficient, nor, for that matter, the administration’s reasoning in stipulating this caveat. Nicola
and I will endeavor to clarify these questions.
AMS Board of Directors Report to Assembly
Rico Garcia
November 21st, 2013
Hello everyone and I hope those of you who went to John Orr had a great time! The Board of Directors
had a brief meeting this past Thursday. There were no motions passed at this meeting, and only a
handful of discussions during closed session.
Since there is not much to report from Board since the CSGM, I will let you know the progress that has
been done in the committees:
Finance and Audit: We met and reviewed September statements and have begun to
address some of the trends that we’ve noticed in services such as The Underground.
Permanent Staff: We will be reviewing all of the job descriptions for our permanent
staff in the next couple of weeks.
Personnel Committee: The new Salary Grid will be completed by the December 3rd
meeting of the Board. I will be reporting on this at the first Assembly of the new
semester.
Governance: Changes and updates to the Board Policy Manual will be brought to the
Board for approval in January.
Strategic Planning: We have met to continue discussions on the main topics. Majority
of the draft writing will be taking place in December.
This is all for now. Our next meeting (and last of the semester) is scheduled for December 3rd at 5:30pm
at the Queen’s Centre Rm. 505.
Thank you for reading this report and do not hesitate to contact me at the information below, or in
person, in case you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Rico Garcia
Chair
Board of Directors
Alma Mater Society of Queen’s University Inc.
Cell: (613) 888-9832
Undergraduate Student Trustee Report
Andrew Aulthouse
November 21st, 2013
Hello Assembly,
I hope the final weeks of class are treating you well. There are just a few things I want to update you
on:
Consultation Period
In advance of the December Board of Trustees meeting I am doing my best to consult with students. I
am speaking at faculty society assemblies and have set up meetings with a number of student leaders.
If I haven’t arranged a meeting with you or your society, please get in contact with me! You can email
me at [email protected]
December 6th Board of Trustees Meeting
The Board of Trustees will be having their December meeting in the evening of Friday, December 6th.
Should you wish to attend the open session, please email [email protected] to reserve your spot.
Buddy Bio
For this “Bring a friend to AMS Assembly” Assembly, I have brought my oldest buddy, my brother
Brendan. Brendan is a second year life science major, and is the athlete in the family, being a member of
both the Ontario Sailing Team, and the Queen’s Sailing Team. He’s entirely foreign to the world of
student government (beyond what I tell him), so I thought I would give him a real introduction.
Our younger days:
Trustfully yours,
Andrew Aulthouse,
Undergraduate Student Trustee
Student Senate Caucus Chair Report to Assembly
Isabelle Duchaine
November 21st, 2013
Student Senators’ Report:
Happy last Assembly of the year, everybody! Although Senate meets in the beginning of December,
Student Senators have been especially busy for the past couple of weeks so I thought I’d fill you in.
Research Centres and Institutes Task Force:
Senator Chishti and I sit as the sole student representatives on the RCI task force, which evaluates the
place of research centres at Queen’s. This is my first major foray into the role of University research
centres, which under the new(ish) budget model will see a fluctuation of funding; Senator Chishti and I
have learned quite a bit about the incredible contributions our 14 University-based research centres
have played in solving some of the world’s most critical issues. The committee’s recommendations will
go to SARC (Senate on Research) before heading to Senate.
Course Variants:
Last year, Senators Jones and Morelli raised the issues of course variants to Senate. Course variants are
understood as courses taught in a variety of formats – online, blended, traditional lecture models, at
the BISC, or through Queen’s-Blythe. I am delighted to report that after working on Arts and Science
Curriculum Committee’s Sub-Committee on Course Variants for the past ten months, our proposal will
be sent to Faculty Board this month. It my eyes, it effectively balances a desire for innovation while
ensuring a proper degree of oversight. Highlights from the report include that departments MUST
have their own curriculum committees with mandatory student representation to overview changes
and creation of course submissions. This is something I have championed within Arts and Science for
quite some time, and I’m delighted that it will (hopefully) be approved by Faculty Board.
Program Closures:
As the student representative (feat special guests President Reeve and Commissioner Williams) on the
SCAD Sub-Committee on Program Closures, the next few months will give us a lot of opportunity for
soul-searching about the University’s academic mission and purpose. Although the procedures to
establish a program are quite extensive, currently we have no policy for the closure of programs. We’ll
be meeting for the first time as a subcommittee in December.
Naming Policy for Funding and Chairs:
As the University climate shifts away from increased government funding, I’d suspect that we’ll be
relying increasingly on tuition and private donations; both from individuals and corporations. The
Senate Committee on Academic Development (SCAD) reviewed an update procedure document for
reviewing the establishment of funded chairs. I’m proud to report that our document will require
clarification of funding courses and a rational for why a certain name was selected; this kind of
transparent fact-checking between departments and Senate is crucial to make sure research integrity is
not compromised.
Policy for Inclement Weather Closure (Exams):
The Senate Committee on Academic Procedures Sub-Committee on Exams is looking to improve policy
regarding the effects of University closure on the exam schedule. Allison Williams and Nick Francis are
both student representatives on this committee, so I’m sure they’ll update us if anything drastic occurs!
Minimum GPA Threshold:
VP Tahiri alerted me to a situation occurring within Arts and Science where students coming off of a
year of Academic Probation are struggling to ensure that their GPA hits a cumulative cut-off. Although
some students show a remarkable improvement over a year’s time, it can be incredibly difficult for a
student going from a GPA of let’s say, 0.8 to make the minimum cumulative cut-off of 1.6 the following
year, as currently the GPA requirement still factors in the students previous low grades. We’ll be
looking at the situation in Arts and Sciences in more detail over the winter break.
Orientation Week:
The Senate Orientation Activity Review Board (SOARB) has been meeting regularly to discuss issues
facing orientation week, and recent discussions have focused specifically on hazing. Reports of hazing
should be taken incredibly seriously by the AMS, Faculty Societies, and University, but it should also
be noted that hazy definitions of what constitutes hazing may lead to an over-reporting of certain
behaviours that have traditionally occurred in the past, thereby distracting everybody from dangerous
instances of behaviour counter to the student code of contact. Students on SOARB include
Commissioner Savage, Senator Townshend, and Troy Sherman; ask them for further information if
you’re interested. They should all be commended for their hard work in pushing for a SOARB Policy
manual, which’d do well to inform future committee members and OWeek executives. Additionally,
faculty society executives and orientation week leaders should familiarize themselves with the Jackson
Report, obtained by Senator Smolej, which details the challenges facing Orientation in the early 90s:
Part 1:
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Part 2:
https://attachment.fbsbx.com/file_download.php?id=1435100006709148&eid=ASuvqxWZzyYNkOMJsD
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Non-Academic Discipline:
I cannot stress the importance of the non-academic discipline system, which intersects into the student
autonomy I’ve highlighted in various parts within the report. Although these changes corresponded
most specifically to Orientation Week, student autonomy and responsibility are crucial components of
our ability to self-represent as knowledgeable, legitimate members of the Queen’s community. If the
University adopts a dismissive and paternalistic attitude to students within NAD, that attitude
translates into our representation on bodies across the University – on hiring panels, on appointment
committees, within departments, and throughout Senate. Constant vigilance, errybody.
University Governance:
I met with the University Secretariat early last week to discuss some of my thoughts on administrative
changes to Senate. One aspect of University governance that I am excited tor eform is the selection
process of Faculty Senators, many of whom must be coerced/begged/cajoled into applying. Sectratariat
Knox commended students for our involvement both on Senate and through Committees, which was
great to hear. One thing he asked a couple of questions about was the relationship between Student
Senators and their faculty societies; as per Senate policy, faculty societies manage the elections of
student senator as per the number they are allocated by Senate. Example: Within Arts and Science, we
have five Senators (3 two year terms, two one year terms), but it’s within our authority to change the
lengths of the terms as we see fit. Additionally, we hold the authority for questions such as
impeachment, appointment, and interim representation. With the University looking to systematize
governance models in the future, we discussed the role of the Senate in managing the Senator elections
separately from Faculty Societies, which would have an impact on our representation at Faculty
Assemblies and Councils. This is very much still in the works, and fits into a larger conversation about
what the role of Senators should be within Faculty Societies. Furthermore, the ex-officio non-voting
status of myself and trustee Aulthouse on AMS Assembly was also clarified.
Interim Senator Application:
If all of this sounds look cool beans (and you’re in arts and science), apply for the interim Senator
position! You’ll hold the role until June 1st, and would still be eligible to run in the Winter elections for
the following years. Please email a 300 word statement of interest to President Mason at
[email protected] and include your class schedule and phone number. Applications close on
Thursday! If you’re not an Arts and Science student BUT you’re looking for an awesome way to get
involved next year, talk to myself or your faculty Senator about running. It’s a really great opportunity
that doesn’t require a lot of time, but allows you to make a sizeable impact.
I think that’s about it for now, but I’ll be sure to provide some updates if anything cray-cray develops
over the next few days.
Isabelle
University Rector Report to Assembly
Nicholas Francis
November 21st, 2013
Couldn’t submit due to technical difficulties; will be distributed on Thursday prior to Assembly.
ASUS President Report to Assembly
Scott Mason
November 21st, 2013
John Orr Award Dinner
ASUS Council made the trip down to Toronto for the John Orr Dinner. Beyond having a really fun
road trip, council had a meaningful experience meeting university alum.
Isabelle Duchaine was kind of enough to introduce me to a Princeton graduate sitting at her table. The
gentlemen told me about his experience in a seminar with Professor Pentland, a current professor of
mine. The Conversation really meant a lot to me.
Assembly Composition Changes
At the request of Undergraduate Student Trustee Aulthouse, ASUS has voted to remove his position
from ASUS Assembly. Andrew felt that it didn’t make much sense for him to sit on only one FacSoc
Society Assembly.
For the record, Andrew had a perfect attendance at ASUS. In case you felt he was up to fishy business!
His motion was well received by the society and we’ll be missing him for the coming sessions!
Some have suggested that we re-evaluate the composition of ASUS Assembly. As a result, early next
year we’ll likely have a look at each position on Assembly and make sure it ought to be there. At this
time, the only position to have been removed from Assembly have been the Undergrad Trustee and the
Rector.
International Student Representation
James Pang, our International Student Representative and I will be sitting down with Principal Woolf
in the next two weeks to talk about International Students at Queen’s. James will be releasing a survey
to try and ascertain the unique needs of international students at Queen’s and felt that the Principals
input in this survey would be valuable.
I think it would be valuable for us to discuss the way we represent international students in the AMS.
Perhaps we could do more considering their unique needs.
Best,
Scott Mason, [email protected]
Hello Assembly!
Where did the year go? I hope you are all looking forward to the holidays and getting exams over with!
I cannot believe that 2014 is just around the corner… anyways, awkward introduction aside: here is my
final report of 2013!
EngSoc Restructure
Last Thursday at EngSoc Council we approved some major restructure changes for the Society. The
changes result in a global management role for the executive and more detail oriented directorships
underneath. Our executive is currently 5 people, but in the new structure they are consolidated based
on oversight to an executive of 3. As a result we have expanded our directorships to accommodate the
day-day work that must get done in the Society. We hope to see better turn out to our executive
elections as a result of the change, and will accommodate more strong applicants for directorships.
Society Archiving
For years EngSoc has wanted to put a focus on internal archiving but it has never been seen to
completion. We have finally started up with an archiving team that has two mandates: to archive
current information (what happens in the Society, who is in what position), and to look for interesting
historical facts from the Society and Faculty. If you do something similar in your Society, please let me
know how you do it and what makes it successful!
John Orr
The Exec, Directors and Senators went to John Orr last weekend. It was a blast – so nice to see many of
you there! Hope everyone who attended had a great time; it was some good team bonding for us.
Upcoming Info
We have a few events upcoming in the Society that I will not have another chance to announce to
Assembly. We will be hosting the December 6th Memorial to remember the massacre at Ecole
Polytechnique in 1989 resulting in the deaths of 14 young women. We also will be hosting a Carol
Service in Grant Hall in December, so please let me know if you are interested in attending.
That’s if for me this week. Happy Holidays and see you all soon!
Cheers,
Emily Fleck
R E N O W N E D S P I R I T , U N R I V A L E D E X C E L L E N C E
Tyler Hennick
President, Queen’s Commerce Society
Dear Assembly Members,
I hope everyone is having a great week!
Special General Assembly | This Sunday we will be holding a Special General Assembly in which all Commerce students can
come out and vote!
Conferences | We’ve held five conferences over the last two weekends: Queen’s Leadership and Development Conference
(QLEAD) and Queen’s Women in Leadership (QWIL) taking place the weekend of the 8th and the Queen’s Business Forum
on the Fashion Industry (QBFFI), the Queen’s Finance Association Conference (QFAC) and DECA Queen’s taking place the
weekend of the 15th. Thank you to the all students that have been working year-round to ensure the success of these five
conferences! This wraps up our fall conference season, so a big thank you to all delegates and sponsors that made these
possible! For more information, please contact Charlie Prussky at [email protected].
Commerce Has Heart & Holiday Hope | Our Outreach Commissioners successfully put together the first of three planned
“Commerce Has Heart” events which sends our students to local charities to provide some support. Their next event will be
the annual Holiday Hope campaign, in which our students buy holiday gifts for underprivileged families in the Kingston
community.
November Hiring & Elections | With students leaving for exchange, we are happy to report that students have been
selected for the following positions for the Winter semester: Human Resources Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Policy
& Returning Officer, Outreach Commissioner, Vendor & Supplier Relations Officer, External University Relations Officer,
Upper AMS Representative, Senator, External Representative, and Academics Commissioner. Congratulations to all new
position-holders!
QSB Appreciation Day | On November 26th
, we will be celebrating our annual QSB Appreciation Day. We have arranged to
have a reception in the Goodes Commons from 4:00 – 6:00 PM to recognize and congratulate all of the QSB staff for their
support of ComSoc and Commerce students in their work both inside and outside of the classroom.
If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to reach out to me at any time.
Best,
Tyler Hennick
President, Commerce Society
Hello Assembly!
It was great to see many of you at John Orr – I hope you all enjoyed the evening! Below are some updates
from the world of CESA:
B.Ed Program Change Town Hall Meeting:
The date has been set for the Town Hall Meeting. It will be taking place on November 27th at 7:30 pm in
Duncan MacArthur Auditorium. If you are at all interested in voicing concerns or posing questions
regarding the new two-year B.Ed program, I encourage you to come. If you have any questions, please
don’t hesitate to ask.
Queen’s Conference on Education:
QCE set a record for registration by filling every internal spot in under a day and a half. Congrats to our
incredible Conference team!
ORT Coordinator - Erin Maguire:
Congratulations to AMS Representative and Con-Ed’s very own Erin Maguire on being selected as ORT
Coordinator. I have the utmost confidence you will do an outstanding job. Frosh Week 2014 is in capable
hands : )
Tailored Mental Health Program:
CESA has begun assembling a team to investigate a tailored approach to mental health initiatives for the
Con-Ed program. Thank you to Rector Nick Francis for supplying some key resources!
CESA Tent:
CESA’s very own tent has almost be delivered! Be on the lookout for it at CESA events.
Alex Marshall
President
Concurrent Education Students’ Association
(613) 532 7756
PHEKSA Report to Assembly
November 21st, 2013
Hello assembly,
It’s the final countdown. PHE and Kin students are busy preparing for the end of the semester as I’m
sure you all are. We are wrapping our semester with several events for our students.
Pizza with Profs: PHEKSA is hosting our annual Pizza with Profs Tuesday, November 19th. A great
chance for students to interact with profs outside of the classroom!
PHEKSA does Yoga: Our Equity and Wellness Officer has created an event for PHE/Kin students to
stretch and destress! Yoga (taught by an instructor from studio 330) will be held during the last week of
class.
Formal: Friday, November 22 is our semi-formal dance at the Harbor. We are all looking forward to a
fun night to celebrate the end of the semester before the whirlwind of exams get started.
All the best,
PHEKSA EXEC
Savannah Silva
PHEKSA President
Victoria Law Sarah McLean
Vice President University Affairs PHEKSA Vice President Operations
Congratulations to the CAPE’S 2014
On November 11th the NOC of orientation week 2014 hired their team of 30 CAPE’s! The NOC have
already started planning fundraisers for next semester.
Queens Nursing Student Conference
The conference was held on Saturday November 16th 2013, and this year’s theme was Oncology. The
conference was well attended and so far we have only received positive reviews. I would like to
personally thank everyone who sat on QNSC for making it another outstanding conference hosted by
the NSS.
Nursing Career Fair
The Nursing Career fair was held on Saturday November 9th 2013. We had over 150 nurses show up to
meet and discuss career opportunities from 12 different hospitals from across the country.
NSS Clothing Line
The Nursing Science Society has teamed up with CEO from the Engineering Society to create a clothing
line. The clothing line launch is scheduled for this Saturday at Clark Hall Pub 9pm.
I would also like to thank assembly for the wonderful opportunity of sitting on this body for the past
year. It was an extreme pleasure to work with all of you.
Cha Gheill,
Jessica Searle
Nursing Science Society President of 2013
Queen’s Computing Students Association
Queen’s School of Computing
Goodwin Hall | Union Street Kingston,
ON | K7L 3N6
www.compsa.queensu.ca None submitted.
MBA PRESIDENT: KYLE R.J. DREVER
[email protected] AMS Assembly November 21st Report
MBA Does Movember
The gentlemen of the MBA program have got together and decided it is their solemn duty to promote prostate cancer
awareness, raise money for prostate cancer awareness and grow those dirty, greasy mustaches everyone knows and loves.
Tentatively; there is talk of having a Movember fundraising social at the Underground on November 28th
with a chance to
help support this worthy cause and a chance to vote on a few best mustache categories (prizes to the winners). If you
and/or anyone in your constituency is interested, or have any ideas for the social, please get a hold of me at the email
above.
2014-2015 Transition Night
The MBA class does not get to have a Frosh Week due to the nature of the program, but this year the program is changing
and the 2014 MBA class has the pleasure of being the unique class to have a four month overlap with the next incoming
class. This will provide many mentoring opportunities and builds a great learning environment and blah, blah, blah. What it
really gives us a chance to do is have our own Frosh Week, or in this case: Transition Night. At the moment, our proposed
idea for Transition Night is to have the new class compete in a Scavenger Hunt/Amazing Race event across Queen’s
Campus. Each team of 2015 MBA students will be escorted by a 2014 MBA student who will not be allowed to help them in
any fashion unless they have completely lost themselves on campus, or have a threat of exposure to the elements (some
2015 students will be coming directly from India in January). Each “transition” point will have an activity for the students to
do related to the MBA program, but with a fun twist so as to not make it feel they are in a classroom. Each “transition”
point will be run by an association/organization/club of the MBA program, such as Women in Leadership.
If you have any ideas for this evening, such as destinations on campus, or events for the participants to compete in, please
do not hesitate to bring them to my attention.
101st Grey Cup
GO RIDERS! (guess where I am from).
Sincerely,
Kyle Drever
Residence Society President Report to Assembly
Hasina Daya
November 21st, 2013
Grant Proposals:
ResSoc will be receiving funding from the AMS Sustainability Action Fund to use in purchasing drying
racks for the ResRacks program. Dons who indicate interest for obtaining the sustainable alternative to
dryers, will be given drying racks to share amongst their floors. We are currently waiting to hear back
from the AMS concerning two more applications that were submitted.
Events:
This past November 8th, ResSoc organized a trip to the K-Rock Center, to attend the Frontenac’s Game.
We had a wonderful turn out and residents were very excited to experience the Kingston community.
The ResWide Clothing Swap will take place throughout this week. Residents can bring in their used
clothing Monday to Wednesday, receive a swap ticket redeemable for the amount of clothes they
dropped off, and return Thursday to swap their ticket for “new” clothing. Residents and staff have all
expressed great excitement for this sustainability event.
This Saturday, ResSoc will be hosting Winter Wonderland, a semi-formal dance located in Ban Righ.
ResSoc is proud to announce the presence of the Think Before You Drink (TBYD) program at this year’s
semi-formal. TBYD will be offering alcohol harm reduction programming in the form of educational
and fun activities and demonstrations. In partnership with Peer Health Educators and COR volunteers,
we hope to challenge the drinking culture that suggests alcohol is a necessity at social functions.
Finance:
The Fine Revenue Allocation Committee (FRAC) has received approval of the proposed charter at
General Assembly. Grant applications will soon be distributed to the Queen’s and Kingston
community.
Regards,
Hasina Shain Daya
President & CEO
Appendix A: Harry Potter
Part 7: EXTRACURRICULAR ORGANIZATIONS/CLUBS
Section 7.01 Ratification and Guidelines
7.01.01 All extracurricular student organizations at the University, whether traditional student clubs or other forms of student
groups or associations, shall be under the jurisdiction of the Society with the exception of those extracurricular groups which fall
under the jurisdiction of the Society of Graduate and Professional Students and Athletics & Recreation.
7.01.02 Any student organization wishing to become affiliated with the Society and/or enjoy the use of University facilities for
meetings and publicity, shall obtain recognition from the Society in the form of ratification of its constitution by the Commission
of Internal Affairs. The organization shall submit its constitution and a financial plan to the Commissioner of Internal Affairs, who
in consultation with the Clubs Manager shall consider the constitution based on guidelines set out in this section or otherwise
established by the Assembly.
7.01.06. Once recognized, a student organization need only submit a re-ratification form to the Commission of Internal Affairs
each year. However, any organization that amends its constitution Each year all student clubs and extra-curricular organizations
shall submit a revised constitution to the Commission of Internal Affairs at its annual re-ratification for approval.
7.02.08 Where a student organization ratified by the Society has ceased to operate or otherwise become defunct, any funds
remaining in the group’s account(s) shall be transferred to AMS Clubs Grants. Any such transfer shall not serve to replace
existing AMS grant allocations but rather shall serve to augment such allocations. The VPUA shall notify the AMS
Assembly of all such transfers.
7.02.03 Where a student organization is jointly ratified by a Faculty Society and the AMS, both societies shall reach an
agreement as to where the funds shall be allocated.
Appendix B: Pre$ident’s Caucus
Section 6, Part E: Presidents’ Caucus Section 1: Mandate
The Presidents’ Caucus will act as a forum for discussion between the student societies and the Alma Mater Society,
to allow for the sharing of resources and information, and to offer support in lobbying on university-wide issues.
What is outlined in this policy shall serve only as the bare minimum mandate; members ought to seek to go above
and beyond what is mandated in this policy.
Section 2: Membership
Presidents’ Caucus shall consist of the following members:
President of the Alma Mater Society
President of the Aesculapian Society
President of the Arts and Science Undergraduate Society
President of the Commerce Society
President of the Computing Students’ Association
President of the Concurrent Education Students’ Association
President of the Engineering Society
President of the Masters of Business Administration Student SocietyExecutive Council
President of the Nursing Science Society
President of the Physical and Health Education & Kinesiology Students’ Association
President of the Main Campus Residents’ Council
President of the Jean-Royce Hall Council
President of the Residence Society
Undergraduate Student Trustee
Student Senate Caucus Chair*
University Rector*
The chair of Presidents’ Caucus shall be the President of the Alma Mater Society. Guests may be allowed at the chair’s
discretion.
*Where the incumbent is not a member of the Alma Mater Society, membership shall be at the discretion of the chair.
Section 3: Duties and Responsibilities
The President of the Alma Mater Society shall be responsible for:
a) The preparation of an agenda. and the taking of minutes for all meetings.
b) Updating members of the Caucus on the activities of meetings they miss.
c) Ensuring that the Caucus meets once before each Assembly.
d) Reporting to the Caucus all relevant information on the activities of the Alma Mater Society.
e) The completion of all action items, unless delegated to another member.
Each President of the Caucus shall be responsible for:
a) Attending meetings, or sending a proxy representative if unable to attend
b) Reporting to the Caucus all relevant information on the activities of his or her student society and any changes
related to the environment in his or her area of jurisdiction.
The Undergraduate Student Trustee shall be responsible for:
a) Reporting to the Caucus all relevant information on the activities of the Board of Trustees.
The Student Senate Caucus Chair shall be responsible for:
a) Reporting to the Caucus all relevant information on the activities of the Senate.
The University Rector shall be responsible for:
a)Reporting to the Caucus all relevant information on the duties of the Rector.
Appendix C: Go Vote on January 28th
/29th
Section 4, Part A: EXECUTIVE ELECTIONS
1. ASSEMBLY
1.01 Assembly shall, before the end of classes of the Fall Term, ratify dates for the AMS Executive Elections.
1.02 The number of signatures required for nomination to positions contested in an AMS election shall be ratified by Assembly
prior to the commencement of the nomination period.
1.03 The spending limit for the AMS elections shall be ratified by Assembly prior to the commencement of the nomination
period.
1.04 Assembly will act as a neutral body with respect to all elections questions.
1.05 Assembly shall ratify all candidates on validation day to appear on the election ballot, upon receipt of written confirmation
from the Elections Team that the candidates have complied with AMS nomination requirements.
3. CHIEF RETURNING OFFICER (CRO) AND DEPUTY RETURNING OFFICER (DRO) STATEMENT OF
RESPONSIBILITIES
3.01 It is the responsibility of the CRO to enforce the contents of this policy, as well as the decisions of the CEO.
3.02 The CRO shall identify policy infractions and notify the offending party and the CEO. The CRO shall ensure that all
allegations of campaign violations are officially recorded and signed by the complainant. Any subsequent dispute or imposition of
penalties shall fall under the purview of the CEO.
3.03 In the case of questions that can be answered by an explicit reference to policy, the CRO may offer a decision. Where this is
not the case and interpretation is required, or the decision is not satisfactory to the complainant, written documentation signed by
the complainant should be given to the CRO and then served to the CEO.
3.04 The CRO shall have a Deputy Returning Officer(s) to assist with his/her responsibilities. In the event that the CRO is unable
to complete his/her duties, those responsibilities shall be assumed by the DRO responsible for logistics, unless the CRO specifies
otherwise.
3.05 The CRO and Deputy Returning Officer(s) shall conduct a marketing campaign to promote the election period in a manner
designed to increase voter turnout.
3.06 The CRO shall contact appropriate University organizations (Queen's Physical Services and Residence Councils) to inform
them of upcoming AMS elections and to determine regulations concerning campaigning on campus. These regulations shall be
enforced by the CRO.
3.07 The CRO shall make available on the first day of the nomination period the following material:
i) AMS Policy on Elections,
ii) relevant sections of the AMS Constitution,
iii) dates of the election set by Assembly,
iv) AMS Elections Team contact information,
v) Residence campaign policies,
vi) Physical Plant Services policies,
vii) any other information that may be deemed pertinent.
3.08 The CRO shall publish on the first day of the nomination period any rules pertaining to the election period not already
established by this policy. This shall include all official opening/closing times and dates of the election.
3.09 The CRO shall prepare the online ballot for the Elections followings procedures and deadlines in accordance to the online
voting system.
3.10 The CRO must ensure that there is notification of an election in the Queen’s Journal at least one (1) week prior to the first
day of voting. The CRO shall negotiate a signed agreement with the editor(s)-in-chief of the Journal each year to secure free space
for the advertisement of a campaign statement submitted by each candidate or team of candidates at least once during the election
period.
3.11 The CRO is responsible for the organization, format and publicity of moderated forums between candidates. These shall
occur during the campaign period. The purpose of these forums shall be to provide an opportunity for AMS members to ask
questions of the candidates.
3.12 The CRO shall compile a recording of the results of the election to be made available to Assembly and retained in the
Commission of Internal Affairs.
3.13 The CRO and all DROs shall declare any potential personal conflict of interest to the Commissioner of Internal Affairs and
the CEO prior to validation day.
3.14 Where a conflict of interest has been determined to exist for any member of the Elections Team, either by the Commissioner
of Internal Affairs or by the AMS Assembly, that person shall be required to appropriately alter their responsibilities, take a leave
of absence or resign.
ELECTION EXPENSES
7.05 An itemized list of all expenditures must be submitted to the CEO or his/her appointed delegate by 5:00pm on the first day of
voting. These accounts shall include:
i) a numbered budget accounting for all expenses incurred for the purposes of campaigning by a team during the campaign period,
and including the hypothetical costs, as determined by the CEO, for all materials or services for which no expense was incurred,
ii) written receipts or bills identifying each item for which an expense was incurred. Candidates who fail to submit an itemized list
of all expenditures by the established deadline shall not be eligible for reimbursement, and may be subject to a loss of bond.
Section 4, Part B: REFERENDA POLICY
3. CHIEF RETURNING OFFICER (CRO) AND DEPUTY RETURNING OFFICER (DRO) STATEMENT OF
RESPONSIBILITIES
3.01 It is the responsibility of the CRO to enforce the contents of this policy, as well as the decisions of the CEO.
3.02 The CRO shall identify policy infractions and notify the offending party and the CEO. The CRO shall ensure that all
allegations of campaign violations are officially recorded and signed by the complainant. Any subsequent dispute or imposition of
penalties shall fall under the purview of the CEO.
3.03 In the case of questions that can be answered by an explicit reference to policy, the CRO may offer a decision. Where this is
not the case and interpretation is required, or the decision is not satisfactory to the complainant, written documentation signed by
the complainant should be given to the CRO and then served to the CEO.
3.04 The CRO shall have a Deputy Returning Officer(s) to assist with his/her responsibilities. In the event that the CRO is unable
to complete his/her duties, those responsibilities shall be assumed by the DRO responsible for logistics, unless the CRO specifies
otherwise.
3.05 The CRO and Deputy Returning Officer(s) shall conduct a marketing campaign to promote the election period in a manner
designed to increase voter turnout.
3.06 The CRO shall contact appropriate University organizations (Queen's Physical Services and Residence Councils) to inform
them of upcoming AMS referenda and to determine regulations concerning campaigning on campus. These regulations shall be
enforced by the CRO.
3.07 The CRO shall make available on the first day of the nomination period the following material:
i) AMS Policy on Referenda,
ii) relevant sections of the AMS Constitution,
iii) dates of the referenda set by Assembly,
iv) AMS Elections Team contact information,
v) Residence campaign policies,
vi) Physical Plant Services policies,
vii) any other information that may be deemed pertinent.
3.08 The CRO shall publish on the first day of the nomination period any rules pertaining to the election period not already
established by this policy. This shall include all official opening/closing times and dates of the election.
3.09 The CRO shall prepare the online ballot for the Elections followings procedures and deadlines in accordance to the online
voting system.
3.10 The CRO must ensure that there is notification of the referendum period in the Queen’s Journal at least one (1) week prior to
the first day of voting. The CRO shall negotiate a signed agreement with the editor(s)-in-chief of the Journal each year to secure
free space for the advertisement of a campaign statement submitted by each campaign organization at least once during the
election period.
3.11 The CRO shall compile a recording of the results of the referenda to be made available to Assembly and retained in the
Commission of Internal Affairs.
3.12 The CRO and all DROs shall declare any potential personal conflict of interest to the Commissioner of Internal Affairs and
the CEO prior to validation day.
3.13 Where a conflict of interest has been determined to exist for any member of the Elections Team, either by the Commissioner
of Internal Affairs or by the AMS Assembly, that person shall be required to appropriately alter their responsibilities, take a leave
of absence or resign.
Appendix D: Woo Referenda!
Fall 2013 Elections:
September 30th Nominations Open
October 9th Nominations Close
October 10th Validation by Assembly
October 11th Campaign Period Opens
October 21st Campaign Period Closes
October 22nd/23rd Voting Days
Winter 2014 Elections:
January 6th Nominations Open
January 15th Nominations Close
January 16th Validation by Assembly
January 17th Campaign Period Opens
January 27th Campaign Period Closes
January 28th/29th Voting Days
2. The spending cap for the Fall and Winter 2013/2014 AMS referendum, subject to reimbursement
from the Commission of Internal Affairs, shall be $50.
3. The number of signatures required for nomination for establishing a student activity fee to the
Fall 2013 AMS referendum shall be 750.
Appendix E: Awards
Section 6, Part F: The AMS Letter Award
The AMS Letter Award shall be awarded annually to students who make an outstanding contribution to the
Alma Mater Society and to Queen’s University in the year that the award is granted, and who hold positions that
otherwise receive little appreciation or recognition.
The award is granted in conjunction with the Norman, Ian and Lorna Rogers Scholarship of $300. This amount is
to be divided the selected recipients.
The selection committee shall consist of the Vice-president (University Affairs), one Commissioner to be
appointed by the VPUA, and the AMS Honorary President.
The award shall be advertised in the Queen’s Journal and the nomination period shall be at least two weeks.
The nomination process should begin no later than the first week in March. The award shall be presented at the
annual AMS Volunteer Appreciation dinner by the VPUA. The names of recipients shall be added to a plaque to
be displayed in the AMS office.
