Author: Marilla Steuter-Martin

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Presidential remarks: April

Photo by writer.
Photo by writer.

“I think the Concordia community itself wants to have the conversation about what makes Concordia special and what defines us,” said Concordia President Alan Shepard. “So what I’m hoping for next year is that we’ll have a strategic planning process. I’m hoping that much of the next academic year will be a series of organized reflections and conversations about ‘where is Concordia going’?”

Nearing the end of Shepard’s first year at Concordia, there is a lot for him to reflect on.

“It’s really important to know what’s going on and sitting in this office, you can get into a bubble. You can spend all day long having meetings and still not get the pulse,” said Shepard. “What’s the community feeling, thinking? How’s it doing? What’s its morale?”

Coming to Concordia as an outsider, Shepard had a lot to learn about the community and said he had his work cut out for him.

“It’s been extremely important coming from outside of Quebec, and outside of Concordia, to build relationships and I’ve devoted a lot of time to getting to know people. You can’t start proposing changes and doing stuff until you get the lay of the land,” he explained.

In his efforts to learn more about the Concordia community, Shepard discovered that “there is a hunger amongst Concordians for ‘how do we define ourselves and what makes us special and different’?”

While he doesn’t have a response to that question just yet, it certainly piqued his interest.

“One thing I have been preoccupied with this year and will continue to be preoccupied by probably for the whole time I’m here as president is Concordia’s reputation. To close the gap about what I know to be true about the high quality of the place and how we’re perceived, not only by others but by ourselves,” he said.

Shepard described his biggest challenge coming into the university as one of integration. Being “the new guy” is never easy and forming strong relationships and “building trust” was a major priority for him throughout the year.

Shepard isn’t quick to parade his accomplishments but he does feel positively about his experience at Concordia thus far.

“From where I sit, I think it’s been a successful year so far,” he said. “A lot of this job is an intuitive thing. [Numbers] are one set of gauges on the dashboard but there’s another which is this emotional intelligence meter, and I’m paying a lot of attention to that too.”

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Concordia digs into deficit

Photo by Madelayne Hajek
Photo by Madelayne Hajek

Concordia announced Jan. 23 that it will enter into a deficit of up to $7.5 million for the 2012-2013 fiscal year; one of the biggest deficits declared in the university’s history.

After the province announced a $124-million slash to university funding across Quebec in December, Concordia administrators were scrambling to find a way to end the winter semester as planned with a loss of $13.2 million.

Concordia President Alan Shepard explained that the cut accounts for approximately five per cent of Concordia’s operating budget and that the interest rate on the deficit will be a standard 2.5 per cent. Shepard went on to say that since provincial funding is dispensed incrementally throughout the school year in the form of an operating grant, Concordia will never see the $13.2 million it had been banking on.

Board of Governors Chair Norman Hébert stated in an interview that “we don’t have a history of running deficits,” and that “both the financial committee and the Board took this extremely seriously.”

University spokesperson Chris Mota confirmed that prior to the government cuts, “this would have been the third year with absolutely no deficit.”

Mota also explained that deficits in the past usually ran between $20,000 to $30,000 and were “not anywhere near what we’re dealing with now.”

As Shepard explained, deficits are a “short-term solution,” and not something the university is eager to enter into. He went on to emphasize that his priority moving forward would be to avoid making any changes which would negatively affect academics, research and student financial aid.

Concordia’s budget has been revised four times since the beginning of the academic year. The university had originally planned for a $600,000 surplus in an earlier draft of the budget, but now the money will go towards covering the $13.2-million loss. The university will also be cutting costs by closing positions which are currently vacant and have been vacant for some time.

Looking to the future, Shepard said that it is still unclear whether or not this government cut will be a one-time occurrence and that “all eyes are on the [education] summit” which is set for Feb. 25 and 26.

Shepard also explained that Concordia will likely not be alone in declaring a deficit.

“It will surprise me if, in the final quarter of the year, anybody has five per cent of the money sitting around and they can just absorb it no problem. We run closer to the bone than that,” he said.

When Quebec Premier Pauline Marois cancelled the tuition hike imposed by the former Liberal government in the fall, universities were promised additional funding to make up for the loss in revenue. As of yet, Concordia hasn’t received confirmation about the exact amount or when that money will be transferred.

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Concordia digs into debt

At the Jan. 22 Concordia Board of Governors meeting it was unanimously decided that the university would enter into a deficit of up to $7.5 million for the 2012-2013 fiscal year.

After the Quebec government announced a $124 million cut for universities across the province in December, Concordia administrators were scrambling to find a way to end the winter semester after taking a $13.2 million cut to their operating grant.

University President Alan Shepard explained that the $13.2 million accounts for approximately five per cent of Concordia’s operating budget. Provincial funding is dispensed incrementally throughout the school year and so Concordia will never see the $13.2 million it had been banking on.

The university will be cutting costs by closing positions which are currently vacant. As Shepard explained, deficits are a “short-term solution,” and not one which the university is eager to repeat. Shepard went on to emphasize that his priority moving forward would be to avoid making any changes which would negatively affect academics, research and student financial aid.

BoG Chair Norman Hébert stated that “we don’t have a history of running deficits,” and that “both the financial committee and the Board took this extremely seriously.”

Concordia’s budget has been revised four times since the beginning of the academic year. The university had budgeted a $600,000 surplus in an earlier draft and that money will also go towards covering the $13.2 million loss.

Looking to the future, Shepard said that it is still unclear whether or not this government cut will be a one-time occurrence and that “all eyes are on the [education] summit” which is set for Feb. 25 and 26.

When Premier Pauline Marois cancelled the tuition hike imposed by the old Liberal government, universities were promised additional funding to make up for the loss in revenue. As of yet, Concordia hasn’t received confirmation about the exact amount or when that money will be transferred.

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Concordia restructures Chinese recruitment

Concordia released a statement Jan. 11 concerning the university’s decision to restructure its Chinese student recruitment policy, making it a combination of in-house and third party approaches.

Following claims from a number of Chinese international students of negative experiences with the Concordia China Student Recruitment Partner Program that came up towards the end of 2012, the administration has created a plan to move forward.

Notably, the university will be severing ties with Orchard Consultants Ltd., a company contracted by Concordia to recruit prospective students in China. The company, which was mandated to represent the university overseas, has drawn criticism as allegations of mistreatment have continued to emerge regarding the head of Orchard Consultants Ltd. and director of the CCSRPP, Peter Low.

This information initially came to light in an article published in The Link on Sept. 25.

Concordia VP Services Roger Côté told The Concordian that the “university undertook a review of interactions” in order to better understand how to improve its practices.

Côté explained that the university’s contract with Orchard would be extended until Feb. 28 so that all open files can be completed and transferred to Concordia. Following that, Orchard will no longer represent Concordia nor will it be recruiting any new applicants.

According to Côté, the focus of the new plan will be to “engage early and immediately with students.” He explained that this change came about as a result of the university administration’s realization that they needed to be more directly involved in the process.

“Over the past few months we felt we had to work alongside students more closely,” said Côté.

The so-called “blended approach” will include both internal and external recruitment strategies. This combination of on-site as well as virtual recruitment efforts will mean an increase in resources such as communication materials and staff who will recruit on behalf of the university.

Côté explained that contact with international students will be made much earlier and that it will be a priority to ensure they have all the information necessary for their transition.

The university also plans to use existing assets to bring recruitment closer to Concordia.

“We are going to hire our own students to help us,” said Côté.

Part-time e-recruiter positions will be created in order for current students to establish contact with prospective ones and create an “opportunity for student-to-student interaction.”

Once Orchard Consultants Ltd. is out of the picture, the university intends to send out a request for proposals from other agencies. Before that, Côté explained, a new set of requirements would be created with the help of several groups within the community.

“I have indicated to student leaders that I would like their input,” said Côté, referring to representatives from the Concordia Student Union and the Graduate Student Association.

CSU President Schubert Laforest said he was happy to see the university taking charge of the situation, calling the move “a step in the right direction.”

He noted that his priority would be finding a company that will act in the best interests of students.

“We really appreciate being included in the making of request requirements,” said Laforest.

He went on to say that the idea of hiring Concordia students to facilitate peer-to-peer recruitment was a positive change and that “nothing really beats having another student who is dedicated to you. It’s a more personal touch.”

The university’s working group headed by Dean of Students Andrew Woodall, which focused specifically on the issue of homestay and off-campus housing for international students, presented a list of recommendations to university administration. Côté confirmed that some of the proposed changes on the list were already being adopted to ensure the most accessible and clear information be put forth.

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Presidential remarks: December

Photo by writer.
Photo by writer.

The Concordian sat down with Concordia President Alan Shepard to look back on the semester and discuss moving forward in the new year.

The Concordian: Has the university made any more efforts to contact Chinese students who have had negative experiences with Concordia’s foreign recruitment program?

A.S. We have been working with Chinese Family Services and we’re just about to go out and make contact with the students. We’ll be reaching out to the students who came through the China Recruitment program; there’s about 400 of those students this year. What we really want to ensure is that they are feeling safe, well looked after, that their circumstances are acceptable to them and they are having a good experience. If they are in any kind of distress, then they will be able to report that and we will hear back from Chinese Family Services. We will be getting feedback as soon as they have conducted those interviews.

Concordian: If Concordia does decide to bring foreign student recruitment in-house, what would that look like?

A.S. We’re getting pretty close to making a decision. Our choices are to continue to use a foreign recruiter, or build an Asia recruitment team inside our recruitment team. We’d probably have to add to staff and we want to make sure that we get people who have the language capabilities to recruit in Mandarin. We will be working on that right away if we go in that direction. [The decision] will be made by President’s Executive Group, on recommendation from Roger Côté.

Concordian: Why is bicameralism between the university Board of Governors and Senate so important to a university structure?

A.S. Universities, we’re not fundamentally businesses, we’re fundamentally societies or communities of people pursuing a common mission. We have a business element. I mean, we can’t be foolish with the funds. They’re taxpayer dollars, they’re student tuition dollars and they are gifts to the university. So you need to be scrupulously careful about what you do with the money. But beyond that we’re a society or community … and a key voice in that is the Senate, composed of student staff and faculty who are leaders in the academic community, so they need to have a voice. Particularly on academic matters.

Concordian: Have any other measures been put into place to facilitate bicameralism?

A.S. I think what you’re going to see now is the action, the practice of it. We’ve put all the framework in place and now what you want to be watching for is ultimately, ‘is it really happening?’. On both sides [there is] a willingness to work together and I’m certainly interested in bicameralism. The legislative pieces are done and it’s actually taking root. That’s good because you get a stronger, healthier university.

Concordian: Do you have a specific goal for the upcoming education summit?

A.S. I have a general goal which is that I want to ensure that the university’s voices are heard. I think there’s often a lot of confusion about what universities’ missions are, how they work, how they’re funded and so forth, so clarity is really good. Because I think we have nothing to hide … and I’m really interested in the mission getting through to the general public. It’s important that the people of Quebec understand that universities serve Quebec. We serve students, but we also serve the prosperity of Quebec; social, cultural and economic.

Concordian: After your first semester at Concordia, what have you learned?

A.S. So when you are being recruited for a job like this, you have some sense of what the job will be like, but it’s hard to have a really close sense. You can talk to people, you can read, but I think the key thing that I’ve learned is what a strong and fantastic place it is. And I mean that quite sincerely. I have visited many research centres on campus, I have talked to many students, many alumni, faculty, staff and people in the larger Quebec society. It’s a big, complex place, but it’s got enormous potential. I’ve made it my work in this first semester to get to know the people and the place and I feel like I’ve succeeded in doing that.

Concordian: What do you hope to accomplish next semester?

A.S. I want to dive deeply into the university’s academic plan and its structural framework and I want for the team to continue to push forward on new initiatives and ongoing ones. I’m working with the team, focusing closely on data; we have a lot of data on how the place works and … in areas where things are going well I want to continue to support those—and in areas where we need to make changes, if the data suggests that, then I want to start making those changes.

I also want to make sure that I’m representing Concordia externally. So one of my jobs is to be talking to friends of the university, talking to governments, talking to prospective donors, talking to prospective students, so I want to be out there working on Concordia’s reputation.

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Presidential remarks

Photo by writer.
Photo by writer.

Thursday Nov. 8, The Concordian sat down with Concordia President Alan Shepard to discuss the recent developments with the part-time faculty association, the tuition repeal and complaints concerning international student recruitment.

Faced with a 95 per cent strike vote from Concordia University’s Part-Time Faculty Association, Shepard says he is hopeful that negotiations will come to a positive conclusion.

“It’s a complex dance on both sides and I’m optimistic that both sides want to find a settlement and that we will,” he said.

He went on to say that the university is “actively discussing” with CUPFA and that “it’s really important that both sides work together to find a new collective agreement.”

Shepard emphasized that part-time faculty play a key role at Concordia and that “in strikes, I think everybody would say that nobody wins.”

As far as the tuition repeal goes, it was reported last week that while Concordia refunded each student the cost of the tuition hike — about $8.75 per credit — McGill University did not. McGill issued a press release Nov. 4 stating that for the time being the university would only be refunding students who pay Quebec resident rates.

Shepard explained that Concordia’s reading of the official directives received from the provincial government was that “for now, all students would be refunded.”

He went on to say that the government “left open the possibility that in the future they may adjust the [fees] for international students and students who are not from Quebec but are Canadian residents.”

University spokesperson Chris Mota confirmed Monday that the exact wording of the letter indicated that all students be refunded.

“At this point we are just following the letter of the law,” said Shepard. Carole Graveline, director of media relations at McGill, was unable to give comment by press time.

On the subject of issues coming to light regarding Concordia’s Chinese international students, Shepard told the The Concordian that “to have even a single student having trouble, that’s one too many.”

The concerns raised about the Concordia China Student Recruitment Partnership Program have become widespread since The Link first reported on the issue in September.

Students have begun to come forward with reports of being poorly treated in homestay programs, which are technically independent from the university, and having negative experiences with Peter Low, the director of the CCSRPP.

“We have had a relationship with this particular recruiter for a while, it had never come to our attention that there were any serious problems,” said Shepard.

The university has taken a number of actions regarding this issue including having pertinent documents translated into Mandarin and assembling a ‘working group’ composed of student and administrative representatives to address the topic further.

“I feel satisfied that we’ve gotten a very clear picture of what’s going on and if I didn’t think that, I’d be asking more questions.”

Concordia Student Union President Schubert Laforest says that the student-led ‘task force’ working parallel to the ‘working group’ has been “meeting around the clock” regarding the international students’ concerns.

Laforest says he feels that the university may be “under certain assumptions” and “what needs to be cleared up is that this is beyond miscommunication and [that] students were misled.”

While Shepard says that Concordia “[does] not have a system-wide problem,” and that he hasn’t heard anything alarming, Laforest disagrees.

He told The Concordian Monday that he had seen documents in which Low had misrepresented the homestay program to a student. Laforest confirmed that “in one case homestay was presented as the only option” by Low, when in reality it is completely optional.

Laforest said that he knew of about 10 – 15 students so far, predominantly Chinese, who had come forward to various groups with similar stories. Laforest says he is currently focused on the task force, whose goal is to come up with solutions and hopefully see them “directly implemented” by the university in the future.

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ConU addresses concerns over foreign recruitment

Concordia’s VP Services Roger Côté announced six new measures Monday afternoon, which will be taken to address concerns raised about the experience of international students at the university.

Côté sat down with student media to discuss initiatives the administration will enact, in response to an article published in The Link on Sept. 25. The article stated that some Chinese international students have had negative experiences with the Concordia China Student Recruitment Partnership Program and the Premier Homestay program.

“It came to light that some students were experiencing difficulty with the homestay program,” said Côté. He went on to explain that while the university administration was concerned about students who had bad experiences in a homestay, the program is not run by Concordia.

“Students elect to do that on their own,” he said. It is arranged “independently” from Concordia and Côté emphasized that it is a “private arrangement” which international students are in no way required to do.

Peter Low is the director of the CCSRPP via the university’s agreement with his company, Orchard Consultants Ltd. The company is authorized to represent ConU at educational fairs and presentations as well as accept tuition and fee payments from international students.

On Oct. 2, a letter was sent out to Concordia’s 5,200 international students encouraging anyone who had complaints or concerns to come forward.

“While some students may hesitate to launch complaints for fear of compromising their academic or immigration status. We assure you that is not the case,” read the letter. “We urge you to take advantage of Concordia’s student services or contact the Dean of Students office for immediate assistance.”

Members of the administration spent the next few weeks reviewing the situation and coming up with six measures to help clarify the CCSRPP’s information and investigate complaints further.

“Given the fact that there were few responses [to the letter], we wanted to proactively reach out,” said Côté.

One of the main focuses of the initiative was to call for the translation of all relevant documents into Mandarin as well as English. The pre-departure guides created by the International Students Office, the documentation provided by the CCSRPP and homestay applications will all be made available in Mandarin in the future.

University spokesperson, Chris Mota, explained that while the university can ask to have these changes made, it is not in the “parameters of the contract” with Orchard. Côté, however, said that he was optimistic these changes would be made nonetheless.

“It’s in the interest of all parties to be as helpful and supportive to students and make things as clear as possible,” he said. “We’re interested in working with individuals that have the best interests of our students at heart. Those are the kind of partners that we want to have.”

This fall, a survey will be created to gain a better understanding of “student needs relating to university residence with a focus on international students.” Student enrolment services will also conduct annual interviews with a random sampling of 15 per cent CCSRPP students.

“We’ll be asking students to come in and talk about their experiences,” said Côté. “We want to be responsive and supportive of the needs of students, especially those who travel halfway around the globe to get here.”

The last measures will be to establish an online orientation session for new international students in not only Mandarin, but Arabic and Farsi as well, and update all references to the CCSRPP on the Concordia website.

Earlier this week, at the Concordia Student Union meeting on Wednesday, a motion was passed to formally review the situation. Côté explained that he had already met with student representatives to discuss the issue and hoped to collaborate with them further.

According to Côté, the contract with Orchard is almost up and is currently under review.

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Student centre project reopened

The Concordia Student Union has a bank account with $9.5 million in it, set aside for the creation of a student centre.

This fund has been collecting dust, and interest, for more than a decade as the CSU and the university administration have struggled to come to a consensus as to where to spend the money.

Student space is something the downtown campus is pressed for, and with years of student dollars going towards this fund until 2011, CSU VP clubs Nadine Atallah wants to do something about it.

“This project has been lagging behind,” she told The Concordian in an interview. “In my opinion, our approach has been too reactive instead of proactive.”

Last year, the CSU rejected the Faubourg Ste-Catherine building as an option in a unanimous vote by council. Once it became clear that student opinion was not favourable towards turning the space into a student centre, the deal was killed and not much ground has been covered since.

“It became a contentious issue,” said Atallah. “The only way I see moving forward is by hiring a professional project management firm.”

According to Atallah, the first step will be to choose a company, and then study the existing student space on campus. An important factor will be to “consult student associations and faculty associations.”

“We can’t think about just stakeholders in the present,” she said, “but we have to think about the stakeholders in the future.”

Once a firm is chosen, by council, they will put together a financial feasibility study and eventually a project implementation plan which will include associated costs and risks.

When a plan is brought to the table, Atallah said she would rather take it directly to students than have council decide.

“I would prefer going to referendum and having students choose which way they want to move forward,” she said. “Going to referendum would ensure that the next executive has a clear mandate that they have to follow year in and year out.”

With student opinion factored into the plan, Atallah hopes to approach the university about renegotiating the existing student centre agreement.

“I wouldn’t be doing my due diligence not to leave behind a better plan than the one I came in with,” said Atallah.

She said that most likely, the student centre construction project, whether it’s renovating an old building, renting a space or building from scratch, is going to be a five to 10-year project.

An ad hoc committee was created by the CSU to review proposals for management firms and Atallah confirmed they will be meeting this week to make recommendations for the next regular meeting.

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A Q&A session with Concordia President, Alan Shepard

Photo courtesy of Concordia University.
Photo courtesy of Concordia University.

Concordian: What do you think of the recent external review of Concordia’s governance?

Shepard: The PricewaterhouseCoopers external review was the next and, I think, last chapter in this part of the university’s history. They seem like reasonable recommendations to me. The goal here is to bring more transparency to the governance process.

The external review is tied to something called the Shapiro Report, when the Board of Governors invited Bernard Shapiro and two colleagues in several years ago. That was an important move for Concordia. It took a lot of courage to invite someone else in and do an audit of governance. There were more than 40 recommendations made, virtually all of which have been adopted by Concordia.

Concordian: How is the university preparing for the loss of money from the tuition fee increase? What measures have been taken?

Shepard: No measures have been taken yet. The loss of the increase, in the short term, is only about 0.8 per cent of the total operating budget. We don’t know whether the government will be restoring that money to us in a different way. My pledge is that if we have to, we will make changes to the budget which will not affect teaching and learning. I don’t think that would be fair to do.

Concordian: Has the Parti Québécois contacted the university at all with regards to the repeal?

Shepard: We are, of course, in regular contact with the government, but no instructions about that have been sent yet.

Concordian: According to a recent news report done by The Link, some international students at Concordia are being treated poorly. What has been done to address this?

Shepard: There is an inquiry under way, being done by VP services Roger Côté. It shouldn’t be a long process of months and months. We don’t want to jump to conclusions, whether this is an isolated or widespread issue. I’ve asked [Côté] to report back to me in a few weeks.

Concordian: Do you have an overarching goal for the year?

Shepard: What I would like to restore to Concordia is its internal trust in itself. It’s a strong place. It’s a place where many things are going well. We are going to work with the community to unleash the potential of Concordia. There’s no reason why Concordia can’t be known as one of the best universities in Canada.

Concordian: What firm plans do you have in mind to make this happen?

Shepard: I’m really interested in helping Concordia figure out how we’re going to be a university for the next generation. I think our research side has really developed over the years. What hasn’t kept pace is how the teaching and learning technology has advanced.

This interview has been edited for length.

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Arts

“A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!”

William Shakespeare’s historical dramas aren’t known for their humour, but perhaps they should be. What’s funny about a man so evil he kills half his extended family to gain power? Nothing. But nonetheless it’s a bloody barrel of laughs.

Metachroma is a new theatre company in Montreal which seeks to transcend issues of race within the theatre. Mike Payette, a graduate of Concordia and one of Metachroma’s founders said that the company would provide “an opportunity for actors of colour to come together on the same stage, without needing a reason.”

For their debut, Metachroma put on a production of Shakespeare’s Richard III, directed by Concordia theatre professor Joel Miller, which runs until Sept. 30.

Historical dramas are not for everyone because they can be dense and hard to swallow even when performed by such a lively and engaging cast of actors. In this case, the team at Metachroma did admirably, tackling a challenging show, keeping it light-hearted, and managing to hold the audience’s attention for the majority of the two and a half hour production.

Richard III tells the story of a man, deformed at birth and in line for the throne of England, who uses devious means and unsavory underlings to eliminate those who stand between himself and the crown. Richard, it seems, is bad to the core and has zero problems ordering the violent murders of his brothers, his wife, his nephews and pretty much anyone else who challenges him.

Jamie Robinson, another Concordia graduate, was an absolute highlight as King Richard. He managed to be extremely likable even while scheming, plotting and murdering. His delivery was very funny and fast-paced, giving a refreshing twist to the complex language. He had an incredible energy about him which really helped the audience connect with him during his performance.

Lucinda Davis, who played – among other things – Lady Anne, was also a hit. She displayed a level of conviction which can be difficult to achieve with Shakespeare and displayed a remarkable range of emotions and characters from start to finish.

The overall feel of the play was positive though some of the design aspects could have used more attention to detail. The plain yellow-washed backdrop was at once conveniently neutral and overly plain. There was a beautiful golden wire sculpture of a castle suspended from the ceiling of the theatre, which I appreciated very much, but it would have been nice to see that level of creativity throughout the set.

The same applies to the costumes. King Richard’s multiple costumes, and the Duke of Buckingham’s clothing, were well-chosen and fitting for the part. Other costumes, however, such as those which appeared on more minor characters were ill-fitting. It felt like a hodge podge which lacked adequate funding and esthetic design overall.

In the end, Metachroma’s mission was to create a piece of theatre that would make the audience forget about issues of race and just take in the performance as it is. Payette said they wanted to put forward a “very honest portrayal of the play,” that would “challenge the perception of race onstage,” and that they did. The diversity of the cast proved only a strength in assembling such a talented group, and though the visuals may have been bare-bones, the quality of performance exceeded my expectations.

Richard III runs Sept. 19-30 at the Segal Centre with tickets starting at $18.

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Concordia Student Union News

A CSU in turmoil

Photo by Madelayne Hajek
Photo by Madelayne Hajek

Concordia Student Union VP academic and advocacy Lucia Gallardo released a statement Monday, Sept. 24 in response to a motion put forth by the CSU council asking for her resignation.

At the first regular CSU meeting of the year held Wednesday, it became clear that Gallardo was not in fact a registered student and was therefore unable to maintain her position as a member of the executive. Gallardo was not present at the meeting but CSU President Schubert Laforest explained that, because of “circumstances beyond her control,” she was unable to register in time for the fall semester.

In her statement, Gallardo explained that she is “an international student in financial need,” which makes her student status complicated. This is not the first time Gallardo experienced issues with her international status, for when she first submitted her candidacy for the CSU last year, she and Laforest were both rejected as ineligible due to registration.

“This has affected many aspects of my life and my academic career,” explained Gallardo. She went on to say that due to financial issues as well as challenges in her personal life, it was not possible for her to sort out her status.

“I have spent this summer trying to put together the money to afford to continue at Concordia, and the [Did Not Enter] deadline came too soon for me to succeed.”

At council, members made the decision not to allow Gallardo a 15-day period to try and resolve her student status. In the letter, however, she stated that she “may still be able to resolve the issue,” and she will continue to work toward a solution throughout this week.

“I wholeheartedly ask Concordia students to grant me the opportunity to work on this solution for the week, before giving up the portfolio I feel so passionate about,” she wrote.

A special council meeting will take place this Wednesday, which will cover appointments to various CSU bodies, as well as Gallardo’s resignation. She told The Concordian that she would be in attendance at that meeting and hopes to sway council with her statement on the particulars of her registration issues.

“If it cannot be resolved by Friday, of course I will step down,” she said. “I would be more than happy to help train my replacement if it comes to that.”

At the meeting on Wednesday which began at 6:30 p.m. and ended at 1:30 a.m, some councillors expressed concern over the information coming to light and the manner in which it was done.

Chad Walcott, CSU councillor and former VP external for the CSU, stated that he was “extremely disappointed with the events that [had] transpired.”

Following the decision regarding VP Gallardo, President Laforest made a statement in closed session addressing his own status issues and explaining privately to council why he is unable to sit on Concordia’s two major administrative bodies: Senate and the Board of Governors.

Laforest then explained that his issue was not of status but of an academic nature, and that VP loyola Stefan Faina would replace him on Senate. Councillors initially raised concerns when it became apparent that Faina had never attended a Senate meeting before. It was decided that VP external Simon-Pierre Lauzon, who already sits on Senate, would help to prepare Faina for the position.

As for the BoG, Laforest proposed that Lauzon be appointed to take his place on an interim basis until his eligibility can be dealt with. According to university by-laws, the reasons why a student would not be allowed to sit on the Board of Governors are that either they are not in good academic standing, or that they have violated the Academic Code of Conduct or the Code of Rights and Responsibilities within the last three years.

Walcott was quick to criticize the plan, saying that he was “not confident at all that [Lauzon] will be able to do any of his external work, while sitting on almost seven committees.”

Ultimately, council decided that alternate governor and former CSU president, Lex Gill, would be appointed primary governor until Laforest is able to reclaim his seat.

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Kiss the hike goodbye

After holding office for only one day, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois is following through on her campaign promise to cancel the university tuition hikes imposed by the outgoing Liberal government.

Students and accessible education activists are celebrating this highly anticipated move, after months spent protesting the controversial hikes implemented by former Premier Jean Charest.

Marois said Thursday that her Parti Québécois minority government plans to maintain the $39-million increase on student financial assistance set up by the Liberals prior to the election. She went on to say that tuition for the school year will be capped at $2,168.

“The increase is cancelled for this year, for 2012-13 and for the next years, we will have the discussion at a summit on education,” said Marois during a news conference.

This summit is expected to happen within the first 100 days of the PQ taking power.

Her second order of business upon taking office was to put an end to Law 78, another controversial piece of legislation which limited the legality of protests taking place almost nightly within the province. CBC Montreal reported that the law would officially “come off the books” Friday.

More to come.

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