During my election for President, I campaigned on specific goals, long term projects, as well as a vision for the team I help lead. As an executive and a Students’ Union, there is always more work to do and we are always striving to grow. The following report is a high-level overview, if you would like a more detailed account of my work to date, please refer to my individual trimester report which can be found on my Facebook page. Thus far, I am very proud of the work our executive team has done and am honoured to work for University of Alberta students. 

Work to establish a student charter of rights

Establishing a charter of student rights is a multi-year goal that I have been working to launch this year. It is important we have a charter of student rights to ensure students understand the rights that are afforded to them while a student at the University of Alberta. Originally, my idea was to strike a committee this year that would start drafting the charter, and in future years the document would be put through governance to be established.  I realized that starting a committee without current research on the landscape of student rights at the University of Alberta would not lead to the best results. As a result, the Students’ Union did a survey with all students, which received an overwhelming number of responses, that asked them questions such as how familiar they were with their rights, if they had an issue where they would look for information, and what their experience with any disciplinary processes were. This survey illuminated the gaps that students’ perceived in their access to information regarding their rights on campus. The Students’ Union also did research on what charters other schools have as well as compiled all the current University of Alberta documents that have any mention of rights. The Students’ Union will be compiling the research as well as the survey findings into a report that will provide a precise analysis of where the University of Alberta is at and which direction we should move in. This is important because in future advocacy we can point to research and direct survey consultation on the needs of students.  

We also wanted to make sure there is an intern solution before the charter is established, so the Students’ Union will be creating a landing page on our website which will guide students to all the documents that currently exist that mention student rights. This is so students can easily find access to university legislation that outlines their rights as a student on campus. Moving forward, we will be launching this report and website which will serve as the guiding direction for this multi-year project. Similar to other long-term projects, like fall reading week, I hope future executives take this research and continue working to establish this much needed charter. 

End financial discrimination against students with disabilities

A large portion of the VP External and President’s porfilio is external advocacy. VP Larsen and I are members of the Canadian Alliance of Students’ Associations (CASA) which advocates to the federal government. With this organization, we fight for the rights of students across the country. This includes students with disabilities, where CASA recommends the federal government increase the Canada Student Grant for Students with Permanent Disabilities by 50%, at an estimated additional cost of $43 million per year. The current definition for a permanent disability is also quite narrow in scope and does not include many mental disabilities. As such CASA also advocates that the federal government review the definition of permanent disabilities to broaden the scope. Internally, VP Ushakov and I consistently meet with the Dean of Students to discuss how Student Accessibility Services (SAS) is functioning. In my two terms with the SU, I have received numerous complaints from students about the quality of service they receive from SAS and I am dedicated to working with the Dean of Students to improve the service. 

Promote inclusivity in student governance

Looking at the past 108 years of the Students’ Union, it is clear that there has been a systemic underrepresentation of women in executive positions. In fact, I am only the 10th female SU president ever. Years ago, female executives started to look into why this discrepancy took place. Research such as Project FU and the Identity Matters Report were completed, and these helped us understand why that underrepresentation was so rampant. At the beginning of my term as President, we came together with an ambitious goal of having creating a cohort program called STRIDE aimed at giving women and non-binary students the skills, confidence, and community to run in elections. STRIDE has had overwhelming success with our nearly 50 students over the two semesters and very positive feedback from the participants. These STRIDErs have informed us that their knowledge and confidence on governance and elections has increased significantly, and many participants are considering running in the executive elections. For years we have discussed how to increase the amount of women in governance and I am proud to have taken action on this issue by creating a program which has seen such meaningful success. 

Additional projects 

In addition to the goals I campaigned on, throughout the year there are always many challenges that need attention or new ideas that are brainstormed. I am pleased that the podcast which was started in my VP Academic term is still going strong and providing another method of outreach to students. In addition, the Students’ Union launched The Flame which is a site dedicated to news and opinion about the Students’ Union, similar to the Quad. This serves as another method to communicate important information with students. The executive and I have established regular meetings with university units such as Government Relations and University Relations to make sure we are working with eachothers goals in mind. 

I have taken my role as spokesperson of the Students’ Union seriously and have attended many conferences and media interviews to speak about University of Alberta students. This has been well received and helps promote a community understanding of the role of the Students’ Union as well as the experiences and perspectives of our students.  

As president, I have established regular meetings with the executives of the International Students’ Association as well as the Chinese Students and Scholars Society. I have also started a cultural group advisory committee, which although in its infancy, has been very well received by the members. This group meets with myself and other members of the executive to speak about the unique issues that their students face from a cultural and support framework. We also use this group to ask important questions about the Students’ Union external advocacy and internal strategy.  

Thank you very much for reading this report. I am honoured to serve as the 2017-2018 University of Alberta Students’ Union President and I will be hard at work over the next four months, working to better the experience for students.