MASU Students’ Administrative Council
Meeting Minutes
November 1st, 2020
1. Call to order: 6:03pm
2. Land acknowledgement
3. Approval of the Agenda
BE IT RESOLVED (moved by Councillor Nolan, seconded by Councillor Minocha-McKenney) that the Sunday, November 1st, 2020 Agenda of the Students’ Administrative Council be approved
· Motion to add Councillor Davy’s report to the Agenda (moved by Councillor Davy, seconded by Councillor Thorburn).
· ALL IN FAVOUR of agenda, AGENDA APPROVED.
4. Approval of the Minutes
BE IT RESOLVED (moved by Councillor Tobin, seconded by Councillor Thorburn) that the Minutes from the October 19th, 2020 meeting of the Students’ Administrative Council be approved
· Motion to amend Minutes to include Councillor Minocha-McKenney’s question during Open Forum (moved by Councillor Minocha-McKenney, seconded by Councillor Thorburn).
· ALL IN FAVOUR of minutes, MINUTES APPROVED.
5. Reports & presentations
a. Councillor Davy (VP Communications)
i. Councillor Davy gave an update on her work to date, including hours, social media promotions, the OER campaign with Councillor Burke and work on the website as well as her goals for the remainder of her term.
ii. The website is in the second stage of their 3-step plan, they are currently waiting to hear back from the company Revolve, that is helping them in the transition.
b. Councillor Ferguson (President)
i. Councillor Ferguson gave an update on his current projects as well as personal/group goas for the remainder of his term.
ii. Currently working on…
- The Who to Talk to document
- Continuing coordination with Elections NB to investigate the voter suppression, updates to come regarding this issue
- Website
- VPISA Search Committee
iii. Councillor Ferguson outlined his personal goals and goals for the executive team through to May 2021.
Questions/Comments
· Councillor Mittal: Can I help to liaison with you with the Who to Talk to document because I am doing a similar document for international students?
o Councillor Ferguson: We will be sending out the first draft after it is completed, and all are welcome to give feedback!
· Councillor Blakney: Is there a plan for revisions to be made annually?
o Councillor Ferguson: There will be a template document made first which includes any possible questions someone might ask, and this will be available on the MASU executive Google drive. The idea is that the questions will stay there, and they can make updates to the resources as they see fit.
o Councillor Blakney: Would this be important to be a part of an executive member’s mandate (like VP Communications)?
o Councillor Ferguson: Whoever is responsible for updating the website will probably be responsible for updating this document.
c. Councillor Burke (VP Academic Affairs)
i. Councillor Burke updated us on current projects as well as outlined her priorities and events/campaigns that are coming up.
ii. She will be working with Councillor Davy to promote the upcoming MOCK LSAT/MCAT tests coming up on November 7th and 14th.
iii. Councillor Burke had a successful first meeting with her Academic Affairs committee in which they introduced the tone for the meetings. Next meeting, they will discuss strategy and goals.
iv. Councillor Burke continues her committee/senate work, meeting about faculty hires, program changes/proposals, the new library and improving the first-year experience.
v. Attached October Academic Newsletter!
Questions/Comments
· Councillor Mittal: What can MASU do in terms of changing the scholarship process?
o Councillor Burke: We have been meeting with Elizabeth Fullerton and there is a scholarships/bursaries committee within the Senate. Hopefully by sitting in on those meetings will start the process of making changes.
d. Councillor Thorburn (VP External Affairs)
i. Councillor Thorburn gave an update on her work with NBSA, CASA and the Mount A-Town Working Group.
ii. Reminder that advocacy season is coming up and she is very excited to get to work!
iii. Next order for Community Food Smart coming up on Tuesday, November 3rd. Planning to look into how the delivery will work for students returning from winter break who are in isolation (January).
iv. She had met with her External Affairs committee for introductions, the work will begin at the next meeting.
v. Airport shuttle to be starting again for students at the end of exam period in December and upon their return in January,
vi. Councillor Thorburn outlines her goals and priorities.
Questions/Comments
· Councillor Bidder: In the case that some students decide to go home before the end of exam period and need a way to the airport, would you consider extending the shuttle service?
o Councillor Thorburn: This was discussed but have decided to stick to these dates for consistency. However, if the need is there, they can look back into it or work to accommodate those students.
e. Councillor Nolan (VP Finance and Operations)
i. Councillor Nolan gave an update on his committee work and other projects such as work with RBC, and the Campus Trust.
ii. Councillor Nolan then outlines his priority for the remainder of his term.
f. Councillor Penney (VP Student Life)
i. Councillor Penney gave an update on work done with clubs & societies, EDI, health & wellbeing, residence and committees.
ii. Hosted a Q&A session to review Risk Assessment Form for clubs & societies, planned a Quo Vadimus on EDI for Nov. 16th (4:30pm-6pm), created a post about cultural appropriation & Halloween, held first pride committee meeting, went to Mental Health Access meeting, met with Social Chairs and House Presidents, met with new International Student Affairs Coordinator and hosted first committee meeting.
g. Councillor Minocha-McKenney (Councillor-at-Large)
i. Councillor Minocha-McKenney outlined priorities and goals for the year. This included main priority, three central goals and six sub-goals.
ii. These goals surrounded advocacy, education and student engagement.
h. Councillor Rawling (Entertainment Director)
i. Councillor Rawling gave a report on Hall-o-week (it went really well!) as well as laid out a proposed schedule of social events for the year.
ii. If anyone needs Councillor Rawling’s help with any clubs & societies, reach out!
i. Councillor Robinson (Arts Senator)
i. Councillor Robinson shared her goals/plans for how she will support and advocate for students this year.
ii. This includes working with co Arts Senator, liaising between students and Senate, making her position known and working with Councillor Burke and the rest of the Senators,
j. Councillor Solomon (Indigenous Student Representative)
i. Councillor Solomon provided a variety of goals for the year in order to be a strong advocate for the Indigenous students at our school.
ii. This includes decolonizing council, increasing Indigenous faculty hiring and student recruitment, reviewing Indigenous Studies Major/Minor along with many other goals.
k. Councillor Whiteway (Science Senator)
i. Councillor Whiteway gave a list of three main goals for the year.
ii. The goals surround communication, advocacy for students and to represent students pursuing cross-disciplines or self-directed/created degrees.
l. Councillor Blakney (Board of Regents Representative)
i. Councillor Blakney laid out goals for the year for the SAC, Board of Regents and for committee involvement.
ii. This includes continuing past work, reviewing SAC honorariums, push for a new SAC position (disability councillor position/voting member).
m. Councillor Wood (Gender and Sexual Diversity Representative)
i. Councillor Wood gave list of goals and general areas of focus for the year.
ii. These goals surround education, support and advocacy.
n. Councillor Moradi (Ethnic Diversity Representative)
i. Councillor Moradi laid out goals for the year and how they plan on advocating for students’ concerns and interests.
ii. Five goals surrounding listening to students, increasing awareness about position, working on committees and improving RA training and RA mental health support.
o. Councillor MacLean (First Year Councillor)
i. Councillor MacLean gave an update on what they have been up to for their position and for committees as well as their main goals for the year.
ii. The goals surround promotion of on campus resources and inclusivity.
6. Business arising from the Minutes (no items)
7. New business
a. Councillor Nolan: Draft Financial Statements
a. Councillor Nolan took council through a brief overview of the MASU Financial Statements draft for the year as well as explained the process.
b. Council must approve the draft and then auditors will come present. Audit is external.
c. Report gives information about cash flows, internal controls, fund accounting, depreciation, restricted and unrestricted cash, etc.
· Motion to approve the Mount Allison Students’ Union Financial Statements draft (moved by Councillor Nolan, seconded by Councillor Minocha-McKenney).
· ALL APPROVED of MASU Financial Statements draft, MOTION PASSES.
8. Open forum
a. Councillor Mittal: Free Counselling Services for International Students
i. Councillor Mittal brings up the issue that international students are unable to access mental health services at Mount Allison.
Questions/Comments/Discussion
· Councillor Penney comments that this is an issue for even Canadian students studying outside of the province are having trouble with this. She believes there is a legal issue with professionals providing services outside of their jurisdiction.
· Councillor Mittal suggests that those interested could try to work something out with Maggie Brewer (Mental Health and Harms Reduction) to find immediate solutions. The solution given initially was an online counselling service that is very expensive. Suggests creating an avenue for people to talk to, even if not a licensed individual.
· Councillor Ferguson: Have you reached out to health administer Lindsay?
o Councillor Mittal: No.
o Councillor Ferguson: Lindsay Murray (masuhealth@mta.ca) has been working on this in terms of MASU health insurance plans so I suggest you also reach out to her about this issue. If these services are not available through Mount Allison, it might be available through MASU health insurance.
· Councillor Nolan noted that MASU health insurance covers up to $1000.00 for mental health services however he is unsure how this will work for international students. They get the international student insurance through a separate insurance company.
· Councillor Mittal comments on how most international students have most likely opted out of health insurance given they have insurance in their countries where they are studying.
· Councillor Blakney: Is there any way that we could file the receipts with the university for an allowance for online mental health services for these students?
o Councillor Nolan: I can get Lindsay to look into this. With insurance there are a variety of factors that influence everything. Unsure what can be done through the legal front.
b. Anas Iqelan
i. Councillor Mittal introduces student-at-large Anas Iqelan who wanted to discuss B.Sc. students struggling with their course load.
Questions/Comments/Concerns
· Anas brings up the issue that lectures are posted at weird times so people are struggling to keep up with the course, some even have dropped some of their courses. He is feeling really isolated from people given the workload. It is really hard to grasp the questions through online delivery. Sometimes professors will make a mistake in the video and so off-campus students will learn something wrong. People are losing scholarships and their grades are not as they should be.
· Councillor Burke gives a few resources for those struggling/needed to drop classes (Moodle Academic Support/Academic Advisors). If you are looking to submit a complaint about the course, you can email Councillor Burke to discuss options with ombuds people as well as talk to the Deans and Directors of these departments.
· Councillor Bubar agrees that the online course load this year is much more difficult and they can tell that students are having a very hard time.
· Councillor Mittal emailed the Dean of Arts regarding one of their courses and the Dean was very open to listening to the problems. It is definitely going in the right direction so far. Group of students along with Anas are planning to send an email to the Dean of Science to outline the issue and get a solution, hoping for MASU involvement to ensure there is follow-up.
· Councillor Blakney reiterates that these classes are very challenging and that it is an even bigger issue for international students. Suggests bringing polling data to Dr. Amanda Cockshutt.
· Councillor Burke comments that we sent out a survey to all students about the student experience and believes they got over 600 responses. The responses were broken down into groups of students from each year and it asked whether students were studying on or off campus. This data is being analyzed and will be given to faculty and MASU. 84% of students felt that there was an increased course load. Faculty members committed to making changes for the next semester.
· Councillor Mittal commented that two of their philosophy professors received this feedback and made immediate changes to their course load. Wondering if this can be done for science courses as well as most negative feedback has come from science students.
· Councillor Blakney comments that as members of the MASU we have a lot of power to push for the necessary changes to make the student experience better for international students.
9. Reminders
a. Councillor Di Lonardo
i. Grad students have put together a Q&A session for upper-year undergraduate students looking to pursue a M.Sc. thesis-based program.
b. Councillor Thorburn
i. Food box orders are due Tuesday, November 3rd by 4:30pm.
ii. Another survey will be coming out for feedback on the Green Investment Fund.
10. In camera
· Motion to go in camera (moved by Councillor Nolan, seconded by Councillor Ferguson)
· Motion to approve first round of clubs and societies funding (moved by Councillor Nolan, seconded by Councillor Mittal)
o Motion passes with two abstentions.
· Motion to approve funding applications and to remove $1500 of the remaining balance of Academic Enrichment to the next round of clubs and Societies funding (moved by Councillor Nolan, seconded by Councillor Whiteway).
o ALL IN FAVOUR, motion passes.
· Motion to approve scholarship recipients (moved by Councillor Nolan, seconded by Councillor Penney).
o Motion passes with four abstentions.
11. Adjournment
· Motion to Adjourn the Students’ Administrative Council (moved by Councillor Nolan, seconded by Councillor Mittal) until the next meeting on Sunday, November 15th, 2020.
o Meeting adjourned at 8:08pm.