GSA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING PART 1 - oise.utoronto.ca · APHD DSA Rep Mariam Ayoub CTL DSA Rep Wales Wong LHAE DSA Rep Osholene Oshobugie LHAE DSA Rep Desiree Sylvestre MT PSA Rep

GSA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING PART 1

Meeting Graduate Students’ Association GSA AGM (Part 1) March 15, 2017 4:00pm

Present President Christopher Cully (Chair) VP Academic Gurkiran Kaur

VP Finance Suleyman Demi VP Internal Shakina Rajendram APHD DSA Rep Stephanie Buono APHD DSA Rep Mariam Ayoub CTL DSA Rep Wales Wong LHAE DSA Rep Osholene Oshobugie LHAE DSA Rep Desiree Sylvestre MT PSA Rep Matthew Colquhoun

Members Caitlin Campisi Joyce Zhu Adrian Aziz

Cindy Sinclair

Agenda Item GSA AGM

March 15th, 2017 at 4:00pm RM: 11-164

1 Call to Order GSA President, Chris Cully, called the meeting to order at 4:15pm.

2 Approval of the Agenda Caitlin asked to clarify the number for quorum in this meeting. GSA executive clarified that the number for quorum was 15, and that including the people on the conference call, we had enough attendees to meet quorum. Caitlin also asked if the motion to approve the budget would be under the Finance Committee report. Suleyman clarified that the budget had already been approved at the first Council meeting of the year. Moved by Wales Wong Seconded by Gurkiran Kaur Approved

3 Approval of the AGM 2016 Minutes (see attached) Moved by Gurkiran Kaur Seconded by Osholene Oshobugie Approved

4 Chairperson’s Word Chris welcomed everyone to Part 1 of the GSA Annual General Meeting and explained that Part 2 would be held in April with a regular council meeting to follow. Chris explained to Council that the AGM had to be split into two parts due to some exceptionality in the timeline, where the constitutional review was taking longer than expected with substantial amendments to be reviewed. Chris did not receive the proposed amendments 30 days in advance and therefore could not send them out to Council with due notice. Chris will be sending the proposed constitutional amendments out this week after putting them in a format that is accessible. Council members will vote on these amendments in Part 2 of the AGM. At today’s meeting, we will talk about the elections cycle and the election of the CRO(s) under Item 10 of the agenda. Chris also informed attendees that everyone present in the room, online, and on the conference call can vote at the AGM, and their votes would count towards decisions made in this meeting.

5 Introductions Everyone present at the AGM took turns to introduce themselves.

6

Executive Reports

● President As President, Chris has been involved in ongoing projects for the past few months, the biggest project being the OISE Academic Planning Process. He has helped to organize a series of student-led townhalls. The GSA was asked by the Dean’s Office to compile a report on the feedback gathered by students at the townhalls. This report is being written by one of the facilitators of the townhalls (Jeannie Larson) and will be completed very soon. Chris has also been working closely with the GSRC co-chairs and the conference is well underway, with many logistical decisions made in the past few weeks. The GSRC website will be going live shortly. Over 100 submissions were received, and all of them have been accepted. Apart from this, Chris has been fulfilling his usual duties such as responding to emails and holding office hours. He has been having some trouble with GSA digest and has been in touch with Ed Commons about that. Chris has also been working with an SJE student to organize the #TakeonIslamaphobia event which will be happening on April 4th in the Nexus Lounge. There will be a good panel of speakers for the event. Chris has also been a part of Internal Advisory Group with the Academic Planning Process.

● VP Academic As VP Academic, Gurkiran has held regular office hours, responded to student emails, and processed conference funding applications. She has also sent out the call for nominations for the Muriel Fung award and is looking into forming a committee for that. She has also been a part of Awards selection committee for OISE faculty and staff, and has been helping with the organization of the GSRC. She is also currently organizing a tree-planting event on April 23rd (10,000 trees for the Rouge) for the Sustainability committee.

● VP Finance As VP Finance, Suleyman has held regular office hours and responded to student inquiries. He has also reviewed and prepared cheques for conference funding applications, and updated the GSA financial account. Suleyman then proceeded to present the income and expenditure account from September 1st 2016 to March 15th 2017(see attached statement).

● VP Internal As VP Internal, Shakina has kept office hours as outlined in the GSA constitution, updated the GSA website, Facebook and Twitter accounts, responded to student inquiries and concerns through email, Facebook messages, and in person in a timely and consistent manner; attended regular Executive meetings, and assisted in planning the AGM meeting. Shakina is also representing the GSA on the OISE Safety and Security committee. She has also worked with the GSA Accessibility committee to continue writing the Student Experience survey report. Shakina also facilitated the formation of 5 new PSAs (CIDESA, MTSA, LHAE – Students on Seven, Leadership & Policy, and Student Affairs Society), worked on constitutional amendments with the Constitution Review Committee, and participated in Finance Committee discussions via email. Following the Executive reports, Caitlin thanked the GSA for all the time and effort that went into organizing the four student-led townhalls, and emphasized how important it was that the GSA took on this initiative. Caitlin also thanked Shakina for working towards the formation of the 5 new PSAs. Suleyman explained that because we only budgeted for 3 PSAs at the beginning of the year, Council approved making financial adjustments to the budget line in the February council meeting, and following this, $2000 was moved from the Special Event & Campaigns budget line to the PSA Head Grant budget line to fund the additional 5 PSAs. Matthew enquired about where students could find information regarding OISE’s Academic Planning Process. Chris informed Matthew that if he Googled “OISE Academic Planning Process”, the website would come up on top of the search and all the documents related to the process can be downloaded from the website. Following questions by attendees about some of the themes that came up in the townhalls, Chris explained that one important area that came up related to decolonization and Indigenous education at OISE, what that process would look like and what it would mean for OISE. So far, some great work has been done around that with student consultation. In addition, an issue that was brought up in the townhalls related to creating more teaching opportunities for OISE students, and pathway partnerships between OISE and other colleges. Chris and a facilitator have talked about meeting with the Dean to discuss how OISE can partner with colleges around the city to create opportunities for OISE students to TA in college certificate

and diploma programs. Other issues that came up in the townhalls related to funding, student experience etc. All these issues will be covered in the report which will be circulated to students before being submitted to the Dean’s Office. BIRT all Executive Reports are approved for receipt.

Moved by Osholene Oshobugie Seconded by Caitlin Campisi Approved

7 Committee Updates: Finance – The Finance committee has reviewed and approved new special projects applications. Equity – The Equity committee just held a successful #BlackonCampus panel addressing anti-Black racism at OISE last month. The committee is planning to organize a few more panels addressing the representation of women of colour in leadership positions in academia, and racism in student unions. Constitution – One of the Constitution committee members has made substantial amendments to the constitution. The committee is still awaiting the final amendments, and hope to distribute these to students this week. Accessibility The Accessibility Committee has been meeting regularly to analyze the results of the OISE: What’s It Like For You survey. The final report is almost ready, and it will be sent to Dr. Ruth Childs and Dr. Carly Manion for their review before it is submitted to the Dean’s Office. The committee has also secured funding from OISE’s Student Experience Committee and each volunteer who worked on the survey report has received between $200-$500 depending on the number of hours they put into the work. Shakina will be speaking on a panel in the Canadian Society for the Study of Higher Education (CSSHE) conference in May to talk about this project. Sustainability – The Sustainability committee is planning to attend the tree planting at the Markham Rouge Valley on Sunday April 23rd 2017. They will get a bus from OISE to the Rouge Valley, but students can also drive there if they have their own transportation. The committee is also working on getting a banner for the event. Mental Health – The ad-hoc Mental Health committee has been very active. They have held a Safe Talk training, suicide prevention

workshops, activities with therapy dogs, etc. They have also partnered with Active Minds Canada and are planning more events. Chris will get a full update from them and inform Council soon. Joyce enquired about where she could get more information about the Mental Health Committee. Chris informed Joyce that he would give her Toula’s email address, and Toula would be able to give her more details about what the committee is working on. Osholene enquired about who she could get in touch with if she was interested in the Equity committee. Chris informed Osholene that she could talk to him about this committee.

8 Update: OISE Graduate Student Research Conference (GSRC) Chris informed attendees that the GSRC co-chairs were informed about the AGM, but unfortunately could not be present. The organization of the GSRC is going well, and the biggest task that is still outstanding is organizing volunteers for the conference. Chris has sent out a call for volunteers via email and Facebook with a Google Doc with shifts that volunteers can sign up for. A group of students have volunteered for the GSRC, but most of them want to do the proposal reviews. Gurkiran informed attendees that she works at a college and the students at the college have been looking for opportunities to volunteer. Gurkiran plans to go into one of their classes next week to inform them about the opportunity to volunteer at the GSRC. Osholene asked to clarify when the GSRC is. Gurkiran confirmed that it would be held on April 7th and 8th. Several council members stated that they did not receive the e-mail about volunteering for the conference. Shakina informed Council that she would forward the email to the list of everyone who has attended today’s meeting. Osholene enquired about what time the conference would begin, and Chris informed her that the earliest it would began was at 8am. Stephanie informed Council that there are many undergraduate RAs in her department who would like to volunteer. Chris informed Stephanie that all volunteers were welcome, and that she could forward the call for volunteers to them. Matthew added that he can send the call for volunteers to students in his department as well once he receives the link to the Google Doc. Cindy asked Chris how many abstracts had been received. Chris answered that close to 150 abstracts had been received and approved. Chris informed attendees that there would be social at the Duke of York at the end of the conference.

Chris also added that he and Gurkiran would be attending the McGill Graduate Student Conference and will look out for ideas that can be implemented in the GSRC. Cindy asked whether this conference was organized by the faculty of education, and how Chris and Gurkiran got involved in the conference. Chris explained that the organizers sent him an email to advertise the conference to OISE students. Chris sent the email out, and also applied to present at it. Suleyman suggested that we should open the GSRC up to students from other institutions next year.

9 Update: Constitution Review Refer to Committee Updates (number 7 on the agenda) for the report on the constitution review.

10 Elections Committee/CRO(s) Chris informed attendees that the elections cycle would be starting next week, and encouraged everyone who is interested in running for an Executive position to complete the nomination package. Chris put out the call for CRO for 2 weeks, and received two applications from Adrian Aziz and Desiree Sylvestre, who are both present at the current meeting. Chris then handed the chairing role to Gurkiran as he would be presenting a motion. Chris explained that the budget line for elections is $1500. This whole amount was spent last year because of exceptionalities to the elections process that necessitated hiring a deputy CRO and increasing the honorarium. Chris has a lot of confidence in both applicants for the CRO position this year and thus proposes hiring both of them to be co-CROs and paying each of them $500. As two of the four Executive members are running in the elections and cannot be a part of this process, having 2 CROs would help with the workload and ensure that the elections run in a timely and smooth manner. Osholene enquired whether the $500 honorarium was for the entire duration of the election period, and when the elections would start. Chris explained that no exact date has been set yet, and that the CROs would usually have to put in about 30 hours of work over a period of one month. Osholene asked why only $1000 would be given to the CROs, and not the full $1500 budgeted for elections. Chris explained that we budgeted $1500 because of the extra costs that were incurred for the elections last year. If things are dealt with smoothly this year with 2 CROs, we will not need to incur those extra costs. The GSA also had to pay for an election system two

years ago. Although we do not foresee it happening again, it is safer to budget the extra $500 in case the need arises. Matthew informed Chris that the MTSA was hoping to use the OISE online voting system for their election process, but they were informed by Ed Commons (EC) that their online system could not be used for this purpose. Chris informed Matthew that there is no reason for EC not to let them use their elections system, and advised Matthew to consult with the GSA if they face any difficulties. Stephanie added that when creating a survey using the EC system, they could select elections in the dropdown survey menu. Stephanie enquired whether the $1500 budgeted for Elections expenses last year was solely the cost of hiring a CRO. Chris explained that someone was hired as a CRO last year but did not get back in contact with the Executive. The next CRO who was elected also dropped out and could not be reached, thus the President had to take up the role of CRO. But because of a heavy workload and issues with the elections, a deputy CRO had to be elected and Council approved an increase in the honorarium. Chris does not expect the same issues to happen this year, but has budgeted the same amount so that we are prepared in case any unexpected expenses arise. Suleyman and Cindy stated their support of two CROs sharing the workload. Caitlin also supported the idea and added that it is quite common across student associations to have a chief CRO and a few deputy CROs. Caitlin also liked the idea of distributing the CRO role in a non-hierarchical way. Caitlin explained that she had been president when Ed Commons refused to finance the GSA elections, and they were unable to resolve this issue because there was a different Dean in leadership at that time, and the decision not to fund the GSA elections appeared to be coming directly from her. Caitlin believes that it is a smart decision to have the extra money built into the budget in case something unexpected happens with elections. Caitlin is also in favour of paying students for their work. If the budget line has set aside an honorarium for students, Caitlin believes that is the best use of student money as the money will be given back to students to value their time and effort. BIRT we hire both Adrian Aziz and Desiree Sylvestre as CROs for the 2016-2017 OISE GSA Elections with an honorarium of $500 each.

Moved by Chris Cully Seconded by Osholene Oshobugie Approved Following the approval of the motion, Desiree, the newly elected CRO, stated her appreciation for being given the opportunity to serve in this capacity and to be serving with Adrian, the co-CRO.

11 Muriel Fung Award Chris explained what this award is, and informed attendees that the call for nominations for this award is usually supposed to go out 6 weeks before the GSRC, but this time, it has gone out 4 weeks before due to some delays. Chris asked everyone present to help circulate information about the award in their respective SA networks. The nomination form can be downloaded by clicking on the Google Drive link that was sent in the email, and the deadline for applications is Friday March 31st, and Gurkiran will be taking the applications and working with the committee. Chris went on to explain that a committee needs to be formed in order to review the nominations and select two winners. Gurkiran will be working with this committee. Chris asked attendees if anyone was interested in being on this committee. Cindy, Osholene and Desiree stated their interest. BIRT Cindy, Osholene and Desiree be elected into the Muriel Fung Award committee. Moved by Caitlin Campisi Seconded by Gurkiran Kaur Approved

11 Department/Program Updates CTL – Wales, who presented the CTL report, informed attendees that CTLSA had a meeting today to plan their Spring Social which will take place on March 30th. They are also holding an informal get-together at Snakes & Lattes, and another year-end social on April 6th tentatively in the Nexus Lounge. They would like to talk to the MTSA about joining the social. CTLSA elections will be held from April 6-April 14, and the new executive will be announced on April 17. For the elections to be more equitable, they suggest that the GSA could work with all SAs to organize anti-oppressive workshops. CTLSA is also still looking into gaining direct access to the room booking system. Chris informed Wales that there is a certain pin number that is needed for the online booking system. Osholene added that LHAE’s office manager takes care of the room bookings for the LHAE DSA very easily because they have a good face-to-face relationship with the manager. Chris assured Wales that the GSA can help them to book rooms through Student Services if needed. Cindy informed Wales that there is an online link which indicates whether certain rooms are available, and this link does not require a pin number. Cindy suggested that before the CTLSA makes a room booking request, they can check this link first to see which room is available, and then mention in their email that the specific room they are requesting for is available. Cindy also suggested that if CTLSA completes the room booking form, the room booking personnel can usually process and approve it right away. LHAE – Osholene, who presented the LHAE report, informed attendees that the LHAE SA is trying to run its elections in April so that the term of office for the new executives will be consistent with the GSA (May 1-April 30). They are trying to make constitutional changes to support this idea. Suleyman suggested that all DSAs have their elections at the same time, but Gurkiran pointed out that if all elections are held in April, students who join their program in September will be automatically excluded in their first year. She suggested that next year the GSA could work on setting a date by which executive members in each SA should be elected. Osholene also explained that before she took office, there had been a complex situation where the three programs in the department were not working together. Osholene thanked the GSA for investing their time into establishing three new PSAs, one for each of the three programs, as they are now all working very well as a team.

The programs in the department are being well managed, and student participation is increasing. Osholene believes that with a more organized student body, they are able to leverage and negotiate on behalf of the students in the department more effectively. APHD – Stephanie, who presented the APHD report, informed attendees that the APHD SA has been heavily focused on academic planning. Their next event will showcase the applied work that is going on in the department (e.g., the work of faculty members who are doing applied work in community mental health, policy etc.). DPE SA recently hosted a workshop on non-academic jobs, and one of the speakers donated their honorarium back so that they could facilitate a workshop for students. DPE SA is now working on planning another event with the donation. The Counselling program students recently hosted a mindfulness workshop in the Nexus Lounge with two speakers. There was some trouble with attendance, so they will put more effort into advertising future events more widely. SJE – The SJE Student Caucus executives are currently working on selecting winners for the student excellence award, which the 2015-2016 executive started as a way to recognize students with excellent academic and community contribution. The prize for this award is $250 for each of 3 students, and the funding comes from the SJE Student Caucus budget. This award is only open to SJE students, but they are looking for people from external departments to join the award committee. MT – The MTSA has organized a variety of events throughout the year, for example, academic workshops (e.g., preparation for practicum), blood drives, and bake sales. They have also done a lot of work this year to raise funds for their end of year celebration. The MTSA is also working towards getting their elections online. In terms of their end-of-year social, they have not decided what the event will be but are currently looking into different options for this event. The President of the MTSA has suggested that they organize two smaller events to be more inclusive of the 1st year MT students and also the 2nd year students who are at the end of the program.

12 Next Meeting The first part of the next meeting will be a continuation of the AGM, focusing on the constitutional review. The second part of the meeting will be a regular Council meeting.

13 Other Business No other business was reported.

14 Adjournment Moved by Gurkiran Kaur Seconded by Wales Wong Approved

AGENDA

Item GSA Annual General Meeting

January 28th

, 2016 @ 6:00pm

Room 11-164

1 Call to Order

2 Approval of the Agenda

Moved by Caitlin Campisi

Seconded by Shawna Carroll

Approved

3 Approval of the Minutes – March 2015 AGM (Appendix 1)

Moved by Chris Cully

Seconded by Mimi Masson

Approved

4 Chairperson's Word

5 Exec Reports

- President

Attended UTAA Alumni/Student Group Collaborative Event as OISE representative, wrote a letter

of support for bicycle lanes on Bloor Street, attended and assisted in organizing OISE Review

meeting with external reviewers, Chaired Executive meeting, attended OISE Safety and Security

Committee meeting, attended Young Alumni Council committee meeting, attended Alumni

Association meeting, met with OGSRC Co-Chairs, met with Dean Jones, attended UTGSU AGM.

- VP Academic

Met with Accessibility Committee, attended and assisted with Free Market, attended UTGSU

AGM, met with Elizabeth Broccoli regarding washing accessibility, created accessible form for

Summer GA applicants for administration, created updated call for Muriel Fung applications, met

with Dean Jones.

- VP Internal

Kept regular office hours, updated GSA website, attended GSA Executive meeting, tracked DSA

Representative attendance for Spring Head Grant, assisted MT students with program concerns,

assisted MT students with receiving Edvantage memberships.

- VP Finance

Processed and distributed conference funding cheques, balanced the budget document for the GSA

AGM, reviewed Special Projects Funding applications.

BIRT all December and January Executive Reports are approved for receipt.


Seconded by Harriet Akanmori

Approved

6 OISE Graduate Student Research Conference (OGSRC) Update and Motions

- Overall planning committee met as a group to decide on the title of the conference

- Proceeded to get a number of teams to reach out to departments

- Over 120 attendees have registered so far

- Received $5000 from the Dean’s Office

- Certain activities were planned but with the budget, could no longer be supported

- International speaker has been taken out of the budget for now until funds can be raised

- Next step in the planning process is to provide a brief orientation

- In terms of the budget, it is important to do our best to maintain the $5000 funding from

the Dean’s Office in the future

- Planning for a fundraising event is in progress to have a group of African dancers perform

in the auditorium

Questions/Comments Raised:

- Why get sponsorships for a fundraiser, when sponsorships could go directly to the

conference?

- The budget looks complete – this is a much larger budget than Co-Chairs have worked

with previously

- A lot of time and effort could be saved by getting local speakers

- Inviting a local speaker could also help with making local connections

- Concern regarding $4000 going towards food for the conference

- There are likely way to cut down food costs and use the extra money for another aspect of

the conference (perhaps an international speaker)

- Co-Chairs could also consider a closer international speaker from the United States

perhaps

- Perhaps local social enterprises could be used to support local groups to provide meals for

the conference

From the Co-Chairs:

- The international speaker has a lot of appeal and is now Plan B

- There will be a local panel - the international speaker would be in addition to the local

panel

- With regards to food, it is a 2 day even, and the budget has been approved

BIRT the GSA support any student that cannot afford to attend the OISE Graduate Student

Research Conference.

BIFRT all committee members shall attend the conference for free

BIFRT these funds are allocated from a one-time expenditure from the surplus, up to the amount of

$1000.


Seconded by Mimi Masson

Approved

7 Elections Committee Update

The GSA Elections Committee has prepared a call for the GSA CRO and distributed the call to all

graduate students through departmental list-servs, the Dean’s Office as well as the GSA Digest. No

applicantions or nominations have been received to date. The Elections Committee will revise the

Call to mention the $500 compensation the CRO position earns. The deadline will be extended from

February 1 2015 to February 7 2016. The Call for the CRO will be distributed again through all

outlets.

8 Elections for Elections Committee

BIRT Michele Irwin, Fatima Rizwan, Marc Verbrugge, Laura Mckenzie are elected as members of

the OISE elections committee for the executive election that will take place in the spring of 2016.

Moved by Harriet Akanmori

Seconded by Shakina Rajendram

Approved

Note: Shawna Carroll will resign from the Appeals committee so no executive is on either elections

or appeals committee

9 Muriel Fung Award Selection Committee Election

Applications for the Muriel Fung Award are due February 26 2016. All applicants will be submitted

electronically this year. Muriel Fung Committee will have one meeting to determine the recipients

of the reward.

BIRT Shawna Carroll, Rebecca Banfied, Lynne Alexandrova, and Christina Mitas are elected as

members of the Muriel Fung Award selection committee for the 2016 year.

Moved by Caitlin Campisi

Seconded by Alimamy Bangura

Approved

10 Finance Update

2015-2016 Financial Statement (Appendix 2)

BIRT the 2015-2016 budget-to-date be approved for receipt.

Moved by Alimamy Bangura

Seconded by Shakina Rajendram

Approved

11 Proposed Constitutional Amendments

BIRT all proposed constitutional amendments are accepted and will come into effect as of May 1st,

2016.

- GSA Constitution Review Committee members will present the proposed amendments by

Article

- Article III: Executive Officers

o Executives should be accountable for their office hours

o Suggestion: This could be dealt with at the Executive level

o Amendment: “Art. III Sec 5 […] they shall include this absence in their Council

report”

o Amendment: “Art. III Sec 5 […] cancellation two or more times…”

- Article IV: GSA Council

o Includes UTGSU Representatives as ex-officio members to GSA Council

o Suggestion: UTGSU Council is not the only committee GSA Council members sit

on. Structure and number of members should not change year to year.

o Amendment: “Art IV Sec 2.1.5 […] if any of the four elected UTGSU

representatives are not already elected representatives of Council, they shall be

ex-officio non-voting members of Council.”

- Article VI: Finances

o Preference for Special Projects Funding is given to first time applicants

- Article VII: Elections

o Mandate for the Elections Committee outlined in one area

o Elections Committee shall be composed of three GSA members

o Eligibility requirements for the CRO removed

o Removed the procedure for voting by paper ballots in its entirety

o Suggestion: Section 9.3 is important to keep in the Constitution. Having a

transparent document document does not necessarily lead to a dishonest

campaign. Removing this section from the Constitution would provide the

Elections Committee with all the power.


Seconded by Caitlin Campisi

Approved

12 Update on all Standing and Ad-hoc Committees

- Finance

- Most work is completed via email

- When special project funding requests come in the committee meets

- Sustainability

- Creating a survey to be sent out so the committee next year has more information to work

off of

- Will have a sustainability event where free water bottles will be given away to the first 40

people

- Equity

- Has been on hold recently

- Will be holding a meeting soon to discuss future plans

- Hoping to get events up and running next month

- Accessibility

- Recently submitted a funding request for Student Experience at OISE survey

- Will be completing the survey along with the OISE Equity Committee

- Looking to create safety kits which may include whistles, pocket cards, among other things

- Interested in holding a self-defense workshop and are currently looking to get contacts for

that

13 Update from GSA and student representatives:

- UTGSU

- Last UTGSU meeting went very well

- Elections for UTGSU positions are coming up with a 2 week nominations period

- Nomination period closes on February 19th

2016

- OISE Alumni Association

- Spring reunion is currently a big focus

- This year is the 50th

anniversary

- Looking to see if OISE could host a Syrian refugee dinner

- $50 is a lot for students, hoping it can be less

- OISE Faculty Council

- Equity committee faculty council - the new Chair is very involved and is open to feedback

- Other OISE Committees

14 Dean Selection Committee Feedback Event Update – January 29th

15 Free Market – March 31st

16 Department and Program Updates

LHAE

- Have a few scheduled activities coming up

- February has a series of workshops related to employment

- Supporting the department book launch

CTL

- Graduate seminar student series

- Seminars on collaborative research, writing academia, OISE graduate funding

structure/funding packages

APHD

- Put together a survey for students

- Professional development was an area that was lacking

- Trying to get professors out for a professional development

- Monday Munchies

DPE

- OGS writing session

- Added an M.Ed rep

- Working on Qualifying Research Paper information sessions

- Workshops on research writing

17 Other Business

18 Next Meeting – February 25th

at 6pm

19 Adjournment

Moved by Harriet Akanmori

Seconded by Shawna Carroll

Approved

Appendix A: GSA Financial Report

OISEGraduateStudentsAssociation

IncomeStatement

September1,2015toJanuary21,2016

Approved Amount Actual Remainder

Starting Balance 59,183.82

Income

GSU First Head Grant $42,000.00 47,503.32 0.00

GSU Second Head Grant $33,000.00 0.00 33,000.00

OISE Administration $4,000.00 0.00 4,000.00

GSU Conference Grant 600.00 0.00 600.00

Interest Income $30.00 12.34 17.66

Uncashed Cheques 0.00 0.00 0.00

Total Income 79,630.00 47,515.66 37,617.66

Expense

Bank Charges 200.00 4.00 196.00

Council and Executive

Executive Honoraria 28,800.00 9,600.00 19,200.00

Meeting Expenses $2,400.00 834.89 1,565.11

Elections Expenses * 500.00 0.00 500.00

Total Council and Executive 31,700.00 10,438.89 21,265.11

Grants and Programs

Conference Support $35,000.00 6,080.00 28,920.00

DSA Head Grant $6,000.00 4,000.00 2,000.00

PSA Head Grant 1,000.00 1,000.00 0.00

Special Projects 2,000.00 600.00 1,400.00

Special Events/Campaigns 1,000.00 448.73 551.27

Murial Fung Award 600.00 0.00 600.00

Total Grants and Programs 45,600.00 12,128.73 33,471.27

Office Expenses

Office Supplies 1,600.00 79.12 1,520.88

Total Office Expenses 1,600.00 79.12 1,520.88

Total Expense 79,100.00 22,650.74 56,453.26

Net Income 530.00 24,864.92

Ending Balance 84,048.74

Muna-UdbiAli

VPFinance2015-2016

January21,2016

Appendix B: GSA Constitution Review Committee – Proposed Amendments

Article III: Executive Officers

Section 5

Original Statement New Statement Each Executive member shall hold office hours and be

accessible to members of the GSA. Add: Should an Executive member fail to give one week

notice of office hour re-scheduling or cancellation two

or more times in one month, they shall include this

absence in their Council report, and Council will

determine the best course of action.

Rationale These reps provide reports at each meeting and speak on behalf of the GSA so they should have voting rights.

Article IV: GSA Council

Section 2.1.5

Original Statement New Statement Non-existent If any of the four elected UofT GSU representatives are

not already elected Representatives of Council, they

shall be ex-officio non-voting members of Council.

Rationale These reps provide reports at each meeting and speak on behalf of the GSA so they should have voting rights.

Article VI: Finances

Section 5.5

Original Statement New Statement Non-existent Preference will be given to those who are applying for

funding for the first time and events that cater to a wide

audience.

Rationale Provide greater clarity for the purpose of the special project grant.

Article VII: Elections

SECTION 1

Section 1.1

Original Statement New Statement

The Elections Committee is neither a standing The Elections Committee is appointed for one

committee nor an ad hoc committee and will be

subject to rules in this section.

election, and is not a standing committee. The

Elections Committee is entrusted in facilitating a

free and fair election. The Election Committee is

responsible for addressing any grievances and to

make rulings that are within the spirit of the GSA

policy.

Rationale

Instead of having it scattered throughout the elections section, we want the general mandate outlined in

one spot

Section 1.2.1


The Elections Committee shall be composed of

four GSA members appointed by Council, one of

whom shall be appointed chair of the Committee.

In addition, the Chief Returning Officer (CRO),

once appointed, will become a member of the

Election Committee.

The Elections Committee shall be composed of

three GSA members appointed by Council, one of

whom shall be appointed chair of the Committee.

In addition, the Chief Returning Officer (CRO),

once appointed, will become a member of the

Election Committee.

Rationale

We want to make it clear that the Elections Committee nominates their own chair and be prepared in the

event of a tie

Section 1.5


Any member who does not notify the Chief

Returning Officer of their intent to be absent before

the meeting is officially called to order will be

immediately dismissed from the committee.

Remove.

Rationale

This is overly harsh and limiting.

Section 1.6


The Chief Returning Officer may solely determine

the validity of all requests to be excused from a

meeting.

Remove.

Rationale

This is overly harsh and limiting.

Section 1.7


Quorum shall consist of a majority of Elections

Committee members

Add: ...one of which must be the Chair

Rationale

The Chair should be at all meetings to ensure that all meetings run effectively and efficiently and any

major questions/concerns can be addressed immediately.

Section 1.9


The Elections Committee shall be appointed for

one election.

Remove and include in 1.1 (see statement above)

Rationale

In order to make the document easier to read, group all relevant points together

SECTION 2

Section 2


Non-Existent The Appeals Committee shall meet in the event that

a complainant is unsatisfied with the ruling made

by the Elections Committee. The Appeals

Committee does not serve to second guess the

judgement of the Elections Committee, rather will

only hear cases when there is sufficient evidence to

believe that the Elections Committee failed to

follow appropriate procedure that would

sufficiently have altered their decision.

Rationale

There is nothing that outlines the mandate of the Appeals Committee

Section 2.1


The Appeals Committee shall be composed of three

GSA members appointed by Council, one of whom

shall be appointed chair of the Committee.

Add: The Appeals Committee shall self-nominate a

chair through a majority vote.

Rationale

We want to make it clear that the Appeals Committee nominates their own chair and be prepared in the

event of a tie

Section 2.2.1


The Appeals Committee shall be struck by GSA

Council at the same meeting by the last Council

meeting of the Fall term.

The Appeals Committee shall be struck by GSA

Council by the last Council meeting of the Fall

term.

Rationale

The original statement is too limiting

Section 2.4


Quorum shall consist of a majority of Appeals

Committee members.

Add: ...one of which must be the Chair

Rationale

The Chair should be at all meetings to ensure that all meetings run effectively and efficiently and any

major questions/concerns can be addressed immediately.

Section 2.5


The Appeals Committee is responsible for hearing

election-related grievances that have not been

resolved at the Elections Committee level.

Remove and include in section 2

Rationale

Not comprehensive, now repetitive and confusing with new addition.

SECTION 3

Section 3.2


The Chief Returning Officer will be appointed by

the GSA council by simple majority of members

present, on the recommendation of the Elections

Committee, and is answerable to the GSA council

only.

The Chief Returning Officer will be appointed by

the GSA council by simple majority of members

present, on the recommendation of the Elections

Committee by the first Council meeting of the

Winter term.

Rationale

Remove "and is answerable to the GSA council only" (seems obvious) and add "by the first Council

meeting of the Winter term (to add a time frame)

Section 3.7


The Chief Returning Officer can be removed by the

GSA Council for any reason by a 2/3 vote of the

Council members present at an official GSA

Council meeting.

The Chief Returning Officer can be removed by the

GSA Council for not fulfilling their outlined duties

by a 2/3 vote of the Council members present at an

official GSA Council meeting.

Rationale

“Any” reason is too vague

SECTION 4

Section 4.1


The criteria for Chief Returning Officer shall

include:

4.1, 4.2, & 4.5 become 3.5.1, 2.5.2, & 3.5.3.

4.1. Must not be running for an executive position

during the year in which they are organizing the

elections, and must not be part of the current

executive.

4.2. Must be a registered OISE graduate student.

4.3. Must have good organizational, interpersonal,

conflict resolution and communication skills.

4.4. Shall have a record of maintaining objectivity

and confidentiality.

4.5. Must be physically present at OISE during the

tenure of the position of the Chief Returning

Officer. Any deviation of this article must be

approved by the GSA Council during their

selection of the Chief Returning Officer.

4.3 & 4.4 are removed.

Rationale

There is no need to have a separate section the constitution detailing the eligibility requirements of the

CRO.

The ideal qualities for the successful applicant shall not be limited to the ones currently listed, nor should

they be outlined explicitly in the constitution. These shall be qualities that the Council is entitled to

consider when selecting the CRO.

SECTION 5

Section 5.6


Ensure that recommendations for the position be

made no later than the February meeting of

Council.

Ensure that recommendations for the position be

made no later than the first Winter term meeting of

Council.

Rationale

Best if done earlier, changed to reflect new change in 3.2 as well.

SECTION 6

Section 6.6


Provide an interpretation of Article IX of the GSA

Constitution (“Elections”) at an all-candidates

meeting following the close of nominations and at

least two days before the election period.

Will hold an all-candidates meeting following the

close of nominations and at least two days before

the election period.

Rationale

Split the original statement in order to have greater clarity. The “interpretation” responsibility will be a

new point outlined below.

Section 6.17


Non-existent The Elections Committee shall have the authority

to make additional rules or stipulations not

contained within the policy in accordance with the

spirit of GSA policy. The Elections Committee

shall have the authority to interpret policy and has

the final ruling.

Rationale

See rationale for 6.6

Section 6.14


Respond in a timely manner to all inquiries related

to the election, that being in less than 48 hours.

Respond in a timely manner to all inquiries related

to the election, that being in less than 24 hours.

Rationale

Given the tight timelines, stress, and level of preparation required by candidates, we decided that a

maximum 48 hour response time was too long.

SECTION 7

Section 7.1


The CRO position shall be a paid position up to a

total of 30 hours of work. The 30 hours of work

shall include the four days of paper ballot or five

days of electronic election period where there are

two or more contestants for the specific GSA

Executive positions.

The CRO position shall require up to a total of 40

hours of work, and they will receive an honoraria

for this work. The 40 hours of work shall include

the five days of electronic election period.

Rationale

Added ten hours here, rather than in a separate clause, put honoraria in here so we could take out 7.4.

Section 7.2


The CRO position shall be a paid position of not

more than a maximum of 20 hours of work in the

situation where there is only one contestant for

each of the specific GSA Executive positions.

Removed.

Rationale

Due to changes to 7.1

Section 7.3


Furthermore, where the need arises for additional

hours of work to be granted it shall not exceed 10

Removed.

hours, and this is subject to GSA Council approval

or the approval of the Executive acting on behalf of

the Council.

Rationale


Section 7.4


The CRO shall be paid a rate that is consistent with

Executive honoraria and approved by Council in

the GSA budget.

Removed.

Rationale


Section 7.5


The CRO shall not be paid the honorarium until a

report is delivered to Council, both orally and in

writing. The report must first be open to the

elections committee for approval, then delivered to

Council. Once Council has approved the Election

Report, the CRO will receive payment

The CRO shall not receive an honorarium until a

written report is approved by Council. The report

must first be open to the Elections Committee for

feedback and approval before it is delivered to

Council. Should there be disagreement within the

Elections Committee, that must be noted within the

report. Once Council has approved the election

report, the CRO will be eligible to receive the

honorarium.

Rationale

Clarified that it is an honoraria and payment are not the same thing.

SECTION 9

Section 9.2.1


Any candidate or slate may be considered guilty of

a violation of the Elections Article of the

Constitution committed by their agent.

Any candidate or slate may be considered guilty of

a violation of the Elections Article of the

Constitution committed by a member of their

campaign team.

Rationale

Changed agent to member of campaign team given the obscurity of the word “agent”

Section 9.2.4


A candidate or slate may deny the actions of any

individual who violates the Elections and

Referenda Article in favour of some candidate or

slate by stating that the person is not an agent of the

candidate, party, or slate within twenty-four hours

Remove

after the violation has been disclosed without

prejudice. The Elections Committee will decide if

the person is indeed an agent of the candidate or

slate

Rationale

Redundant. The Elections Committee will investigate the legitimacy of the allegation before finding the

individual/slate guilty of a violation.

Section 9.4.4


9.4.4. In cases where a retail price cannot be

determined, the Elections Committee shall establish

an assessment to be used for the purpose of the

financial report.

Remove.

Rationale

Unnecessary. A retail price should always be determined.

SECTION 10

Section 10.2.2


Polls will be conducted either electronically or by

paper ballots. This decision will be made by the

GSA council at the Council Meeting at which the

Elections Committee is selected. If polls are by

paper ballots, then Article VII Section 10.3.3. and

its subsections will apply; if they are conducted

electronically, Article VII Section 10.2.4. and its

subsections will apply.

Polls will be conducted electronically, unless

extraordinary circumstances arise, in which case it

will be up to the discretion of the CRO and

Elections Committee to decide whether paper

ballots will be used.

Rationale

We have used electronic ballots for some time, paper ballots section is long and unnecessary.

Section 10.2.3


<Procedure for voting by paper ballot> Remove in its entirety.

Rationale

Paper ballots are not used. In the even that they need to be, the Election Committee can refer to this

information in a separate document.

Section 10.2.4.4


Non existent Accommodations for online voting procedures will

be provided on a case-by-case basis, and will go

through the CRO.

Rationale

We want to meet the needs of students who require accommodations

Section 10.2.5.1


All ballots will be held by the Elections Committee

in a place specified by the Elections Committee for

ten business days following the close of polls, at

which time they will be destroyed unless an appeal,

recount, or re-election is pending, in which case

they shall be held until the dispute is resolved. In

the case of electronic balloting, the database

containing election results will be deleted.

The database containing election results will be

deleted within ten business days follwing the close

of polls.

Rationale

No more paper ballots.

Section 10.2.5.3


Both the Elections Committee and the Appeals

Committee may honour an appeal, or may request a

recount or re-election up to one day before the

ballots are destroyed.

Both the Elections Committee and the Appeals

Committee may request a recount or re-election up

to one day before the election results are deleted.

Rationale

Provide greater clarity

Section 10.2.5.1


A decision of the Elections Committee under

10.2.5.2 may be appealed by a candidate, slate or

GSA member to the Appeals Committee up to 24

hours after the decision is published. An appeal or

recount may be authorized by the Appeals

Committee after hearing the case. A re-election

must be jointly authorized by both the Elections

Committee and Appeals Committee.

Change to 48 hours.

Rationale

Gives more time to think and reflect.

Section 10.2.5.5


The number of "no-votes" cast for an elective

office shall not be considered by the Elections

Committee, only reported in their final report.

Remove.

Rationale

This is obvious.

Section 10.2.5.6


A re-election may be authorized by the Appeals

Committee if a majority decision is reached by both

the Elections Committee and Appeals Committee.

Remove.

Rationale

This is repetitive.

Section 10.2.5.9


Newly elected GSA Executives shall report to the

CRO any additional elected positions they hold

within OISE, so that Council may determine the

potential for conflict of interest; in the event of

conflict of interest, Council reserves the option to

request timely resignation from their conflicting

roles.

Remove.

Rationale

This is already mentioned in section 8.1.3.

OISE Graduate Students Association

Income and Expenditure Account

Sept. 1st, 2016 to March 15th 2017

Approved Amount Actual Remainder

Starting Balance 15,884.35

Income

GSU First Head Grant 47503.32 52,633.92 5,130.60

GSU Second Head Grant 40226.86 0.00 40,226.86

OISE Administration 4000.00 0.00 4,000.00

GSU Conference Grant 600.00 0.00 600.00

Interest Income 30.00 14.12 15.88

Uncashed Cheques 0.00 1,300.00 -1,300.00

Total Income 92360.18 53,948.04 48,673.34

Expense

Bank Charges 200.00 5.00 195.00

Council and Executive

Executive Honoraria 28,800.00 16,800.00 12,000.00

Meeting Expenses 3,000.00 857.49 2,142.51

1. Anti-Racism Intensive Workshop 1,000.00 0.00 1,000.00

2. Elections Expenses 1,500.00 0.00 1,500.00

Total Council and Executive 34,500.00 17,662.49 16,837.51

Grants and Programs

Conference Support 35,000.00 15,215.00 19,785.00

3. Restricted Surplus – Additional Conference Funding15,000.00 0.00 15,000.00

DSA Head Grant 6,000.00 6,000.00 0.00

PSA Head Grant 3,500.00 2,500.00 1,000.00

Special Projects 3,000.00 2,000.00 1,000.00

Special Events/Campaigns 1,500.00 188.57 1,311.43

Murial Fung Award 1,000.00 0.00 1,000.00

Total Grants and Programs 65,000.00 25,903.57 39,096.43

Office Expenses

Office Supplies 1,600.00 1,231.51 368.49

Donations 1,000.00 0.00 1,000.00

Recognitions and awards 2,500.00 0.00 2,500.00

Conference Fund GSRC 600.00 0.00 0.00

Total Office Expenses 5,700.00 1,231.51 3,868.49

Total Expense 105,400.00 44,802.57 59,997.43

Net Income -13,039.82 9,145.47

Ending Balance 25,029.82

1. Nov 22, GSA council aproved donation of $500 to standing rock

2. Nov. 22 GSA council approved adding $100 to special project applied byy Mental Health Committee of GSA$100 to special project applied by Mental Health Committee of GSAhealth committeee of GSA cheque issued

3. Nov 22, 2016. GSA council a donation of $100 to Mohawk Women Indidegous grooupapproved a donation of $100 to Mohawk Women Indigenous group

4. Nov 22, 2016 GSA council approved moved to deffer reosultion 3 of FC (i.e GSA account to be audited annually) to constitutional committee

5. Nov. 22, 2016, GSA council moved to deffer FC proposal to change cheque pick up deadline from 6 to 3 months.

6. Feb.28, council passed a resolution to move an amount $2000 from special events and compaigns to PSA Head Grant

and $1000 from donations to special projects cheque issued

4. Nov 22, 2016 GSA council approved moved to deffer reosultion 3 of FC (i.e GSA account to be audited annually) to constitutional committee

Documents

GSA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING PART 1 - oise.utoronto.ca · APHD DSA Rep Mariam Ayoub CTL DSA Rep Wales Wong LHAE DSA Rep Osholene Oshobugie LHAE DSA Rep Desiree Sylvestre MT PSA Rep