Tag: Concordia Student Union

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Concordia Student Union News

CSU’s General Coordinator possible impeachment

The Concordia Student Union (CSU) held a meeting on March 1 for the potential impeachment of the General Coordinator, Christopher Kalafatidis.

The motion was brought forward by 10 CSU council members: Elizabeth Tasong, Hannah Jamet-Lange, Christiane Sakr, Naomi Barney Purdie, Esther Morand, Jarrad Haas, Maha Siddiqui, Leigh Kusaj, Victoria Pesce, and Lauren Perozek.

They claim that Kalafatidis has failed to address his mandate, by not appointing a Sustainability Coordinator, failing to have student representation on the Standing Committee on Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Violence, and not fulfilling his duties as chair on the Judicial Board, Sexual Violence Accountability Committee and the University Senate.

The members also claimed that Kalafatidis has ignored mandates given to him by council, which has affected the creation of Recovery and Wellness Centre (RAWCC)–a peer support group for people living with addiction.

“I was shocked to hear about this impeachment,” said Kalafatidis, who explained he wished people had given him a warning or asked for corrective behaviour before moving to impeachment. “It’s coming up for things that happened months ago and no one came to talk to me.”

On the issue of the Sustainability Coordinator failing to be appointed, Kalafatidis said that according to the CSU bylaws, it is up to the General Coordinator’s discretion to appoint a vacant position. Kalafatidis also stated that it is then the council’s job to approve of the candidate or not.

“In reality the council has been exercising an abuse of power, it is not in their right to interfere in this process,” said Kalafatidis, who explained as General Coordinator, it was to his discretion how many candidates he picked. “Even worse, they are undermining my rule in the bylaws by saying I should send them three candidates.”

In July 2019, councillors passed a motion asking Kalafatidis to present three candidates for the Sustainability Coordinator position.

Jamet-Lange, an Arts & Science CSU councilor, explained she understood the motion had been revoked by the judicial board, yet still asked Kalafatidis to have three candidates out of good faith.

“He did not bring up another candidate, he never mentioned anything in his December or January reports,” explained Jamet-Lange.“I believe that is going against his job as a General Coordinator.”

Jamet-Lange explained that over the summer, there were issues meeting quorum for appointments committee – which role is to appoint people to other committees – yet Kalafatidis was not communicating when meetings were.

“It really upsets me that I was hard at work in the summer, working with incredible restrictions,” Kalafatidis said, adding that one of the reasons he was unable to fill seats on various councils––such as the Standing Committee on Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Violence––is because there were not enough councillors to meet quorum on the appointments committee over the summer.

“Saying that only appointments committee wasn’t able to meet is skewing the facts a little bit,” said Jamet-Lange, who mentioned that Kalafatidis resigned from the appointments committee because he wasn’t getting the work done.

“He always brings up the argument that we should have come to him first, but that has proven to be difficult,” said Jamet-Lange, who explained that councillors had tried to reach out previously to talk to Kalafatidis about issues and he was not responsive.

Jamet-Lange said that after the CSU meeting when the impeachment email went out, Kalafatidis yelled at her, calling it a personal attack.

“That reaction proved to me that if we had gone to talk to him it would probably not have helped,” said Jamet-Lange.

In regards to the RAWCC, Kalafatidis said the previous executive team had approved a proposal for RAWCC that he deemed not ready to be implemented.

He stated the proposal was for a part-time student to facilitate support group meetings, and the training requirements were very low. Kalafatidis deemed this to be a legal liability, as this part-time student would have to serve over 30,000 Concordia students with little training.

Jamet-Lange stated the main reason they decided to motion for impeachment was because of various complaints about Kalafatidis they had received from students.

“We don’t want to negate at all that he has been doing work,” said Jamet-Lange. “But at the same time, while he did do work, he did not necessarily do the things he is mandated to do by the bylaws and standing regulations.”

Isaiah Joyner, External Affairs and Mobilization Coordinator of the CSU, felt the impeachment issue could have been dealt with in a better way.

“When I look at the impeachment, I see frustration,” said Joyner, who explained this was not the answer the executive team sought. “We had hoped people felt comfortable to seek us out before so we could have dealt with this.”

Joyner explained that he sees CSU members’––council or executive––personal conflict getting in the way of solving issues. He believes council should be a place where issues are solved, instead he sees them creating issues and having to fix them.

“This serves as a motivation for me, as this is not how it should be, this is not the type of issues we should be having, this is not the union that it could be for the students,” said Joyner.

 

Archive photo by Hanna Ewen

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Concordia Student Union News

CSU by-election results are in

After the three-day polling period from Tuesday to Thursday, here are the CSU referendum by-election results.

A total of 5167 students voted, representing 16.6 per cent of Concordia undergraduate students.

 

JMSB (first five are elected)
Mitchell Shecter 303 (19.6%)
Mathew Levitsky-Kaminski 256 (16.6%)
Howard Issley 254 (16.5%)
Lauren Perozek 194 (12.6%)
Jeremya Deneault 193 (12.5%)
Danielle Vandolder-Beaudin 185 (12.0%)
Samuel Century 90 (5.8%)
Alice IV. 67 (4.3%)
Gina Cody (all are elected)
Selena Mezher 443 (40.5%)
Sean Howard 387 (35.3%)
Tzvi Hersh Filler 265 (24.2%)
Fine Arts (elected by default)
Peter Zhuang 319 (100.0%)
Independent Students (first two are elected)
Hershey Blackman 50 (55.6%)
Menachem Israily 21 (23.3%)
Rawan Abbas 19 (21.1%)

 

Do you agree with the Concordia Student Union endorsing a Fall Reading Week proposal and pursuing its implementation at Concordia University?

The question passed at 86.6 per cent. The CSU and the University will look into two options to implement a Fall reading week. The university would either start the Fall semester a week in advance in August, or change the semester from 13 to 12 weeks.

Do you agree with the Concordia Student Union endorsing a university-wide food waste reduction proposal and pursuing its implementation at Concordia University?

The question passed at 97.1 per cent. The CSU will look into a program destined to reduce food waste by “[donating] either to the student body or to charitable organizations e.g. homeless shelters.”

Do you support Concordia University bringing the opt out process online for student fee levy organizations?

The question passed at 61.1 per cent. From now on, students will have the option to opt out of fee levy groups online. Before the referendum, students could opt out of those groups by signing a form. Fee levy groups, like the People’s Potato and Sustainable Concordia, are afraid that making the option easier will drastically reduce  their funding.

Do you agree to recommend to the Concordia Council on Student life (CCSL) to increase the Concordia Recreation & Athletics Department’s fee-levy to $5.00 per credit (an increase of $2.08 per credit from $2.92 per credit) annually adjusted to the Consumer Price Index of Canada to be implemented with registration for the September 2020 (2020/2) term, in accordance with the University’s tuition, refund and withdrawal policy? Agreeing to this question means you consent to increasing a mandatory institutional fee beyond the normally allowed rate as set out in the Règles Budgétaires of the Quebec Ministry of Education and Higher Education.

The question failed to pass with 55.3 per cent of students voting “no.” The $2.08 fee increase would have resulted in a decrease in membership fees for Le Gym all year long and the PERFORM center during Fall and Winter semesters. Stingers games would be free.

The Sports Shooting Association has requested to become a CSU club. Do you approve of the club being officially recognized as a CSU club.

The question failed to pass with 55.6 per cent of students voting “no.”

Do you support giving all faculties equal representation on the Council of Representatives by changing the structure to three Arts seats, three Science seats, three Gina Cody seats, three JMSB seats, three Fine Arts seats, and one Independent Student seat?

The question passed at 70.1 per cent. Before the referendum, 13 seats were allocated for Arts and Science students, seven for JMSB students, five Engineering and Computer Science students, three for Fine Arts students and two for independent students. The representation will be three councillors for every faculty plus one for independent students. Arts and Sciences will be divided into two separate faculties. However, the previous distribution of seats was proportional to the number of students in each faculty. Arts and Science had a bigger representation as they form almost 50 per cent of Concordia’s student body.

The last question was not disclosed online. The CSU was asking students if they agree to a $0.08 increase towards club funding.

The question passed at 54 per cent. During council meeting on Nov. 6, councillors explained that such increase would benefit the CSU by better funding clubs and reducing deficits. Furthermore, they would hold clubs accountable of their expenses by setting rules and regulations on spendings.

 

Graphic by Alexa Hawksworth

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Concordia Student Union News

Anonymous council members accuse CSU Executives of power grab

Misrepresentation, inter-faculty tension and lack of transparency in next by-elections according to anonymous council members.

In an anonymous statement to The Concordian, a group of Concordia Student Union (CSU) councillors is accusing some executive CSU members of trying to increase the executive team’s power while fostering a culture of inter-faculty tension with the referendum question titled Council Change as its tool.

According to the statement, not enough students chose to run for the CSU. However, instead of focusing on mass outreach on campus to promote involvement, the CSU implied that conflict between faculties is the source of that issue.

The question, previously named Faculty Equality, suggests a restructuring of the council by reducing the number of councillors from 30 to 16. At the moment, 13 seats are allocated for Arts and Science students, seven for JMSB students, five Engineering and Computer Science students, three for Fine Arts students and two for independent students as voted by the CSU on Oct. 23.

The new structure would allow only three councillors for every faculty plus one for independent students. Arts and Sciences will be divided into two separate faculties.

“More councillors just means more chaos. And chaos is inefficient,” wrote CSU President Chris Kalafatidis in a message to The Concordian. “Chaos means not being able to hold the Executive accountable.”

But the anonymous statement claimed that having fewer councillors translates to fewer opportunities for students to get involved in university politics, a lack of efficiency within the CSU and a lack of accountability on the Executive.

“Currently, the CSU has approximately 15 committees which all hold about four to five seats each. A reduction to 20 councillors may lead to a lack in quality, efficiency and impactful work,” read the statement. “This is immensely detrimental for students as these committees provide funding and services to the undergraduate body.”

As for accountability of the Executive team, the statement refers to this situation as “unfair distribution of power,” and says it would not properly represent the student’s interests. Kalafatidis thinks otherwise.

“The current council requires JMSB, Gina Cody, Fine Arts and independent students to strictly rely on the Arts and Science coalition to get anything done,” Kalafatidis said. “The current council only represents Arts and Science.”

However, seats are allocated proportionally to the number of students in each faculty. Arts and Science has a bigger representation as they form almost 50 per cent of Concordia’s student body.

The statement also accused the CSU president of trying to “gerrymander Council and make it seem socially acceptable by adding the word ‘equality’” in the question. The referendum question was renamed Council Change by the CSU.

Second chance for two by-election candidates

After the last CSU’s general elections, Danielle Vandolder-Beaudin was disqualified for asking students to vote for her slate, Cut the Crap. As a punishment, she could not run again in any CSU elections for a period of one year. However, the Judicial Board reversed that decision according to Kalafatidis.

A few months later during the summer, Selena Mezher, elected CSU Sustainable Coordinator last general elections, left the country which resulted in many reactions. One of the anonymous councillors said that Mezher failed to advise the CSU that she would be leaving and ignored everyone’s attempts to contact her which resulted in a defunct resignation. However, Kalafatidis said that Mezher committed no offences or violations, and never took any pay from the CSU.

A few months later, the two are running as CSU councillors in the by-elections which began on Nov. 12.

The anonymous councillors are requesting that previously disqualified or fired members wishing to run for CSU positions must include a disclosure on their ballots about the date and nature of the offence for all CSU elections.

“We believe that all students should have the right to participate in student life, however, being transparent and assuming responsibility for their actions is a good start towards accountability, something we value as councillors,” read the statement.

A motion will be voted at the CSU council meeting on Nov. 13 to set rules on penalties for candidates that previously committed offences. If passed, candidates will be forced to disclose those offences on ballots.

 

Graphic by Alexa Hawksworth

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Concordia Student Union Opinions

One CSU member explains the advantages of being able to vote online

Graphic by @spooky_soda

One CSU member explains the advantages of being able to vote online

Full disclosure: I work for the Vote YES to Online Voting campaign. I am chair of the Concordia Student Union elections and participation committee. Today, I am writing to tell you why I am for online voting at Concordia.

To save money

For the last four elections, the CSU has spent an average of $36,000. Last year, $53,000 was spent on an election that only saw 1,424 votes cast. That’s approximately four per cent of the student population. Each year, the money spent on elections goes toward paying for ballots, polling clerks, deputy electoral officers, ballot counters, the chief electoral officer and security. Last year, the CSU spent $14,000 on security alone. The amount of money spent on student elections at Concordia is excessive given the number of people who actually vote. A lot of money would be saved if voting was done online. One external company estimated that using their system would cost $7,500. Based on the CSU’s 2018 General Elections CEO Report, this would have saved the union nearly $22,000, which could have been reinvested in new electoral practices, such as new election positions and advertising.

To improve security

Although some people have concerns about the security of online voting, it’s important to recognize that the current CSU election procedure is not secure either. In October, ballot boxes from the CSU’s 2017 by-election were left unattended in the hallway on the fourth floor of the Hall building. Those boxes contained people’s names, their ballots and the ballot ID associated with them. This information could be used to identify who each person voted for. It’s also important to consider that security is about risk management. Before selecting a company to administer online voting, the CSU can do its due diligence by asking questions about security measures and ensuring certain standards are met.

To be more sustainable

Currently, the CSU uses paper ballots in their elections. The union’s sustainability policy defines sustainability as “the process and outcome of achieving social justice, economic equality and environmental health by reducing our economic footprint and empowering communities.” Switching to online voting would allow the CSU to further reduce its economic footprint and contribute to environmental health. The less paper used, the better.

To increase accessibility

As is, the CSU’s voting system is not accessible to people who have disabilities, such as hearing or vision impairments. Some online voting companies, such as the Montreal-based Simply Voting, offer accessibility features and are regularly audited by the Bureau of Internet Accessibility. By working with an online voting company, the CSU could make its elections inclusive for all Concordia students.

To increase convenience

The truth is, online voting is convenient. I live off island. It normally takes me an hour and a half to get to school by public transportation. The winter weather only makes this worse. A long commute, disruptions to public transit or bad weather can all contribute to a student’s decision to stay home and miss the opportunity to vote. Although the CSU voting period lasts three days, it’s not uncommon for students to wait until the last minute. Time is of the essence and casting a ballot online would be faster and easier.

At the end of the day, we all want what’s best for the CSU. Online voting has the potential to get more people to participate in student elections. I have seen a lot of apathy toward voting at Concordia. We need to do something to fix that, and this is a start. Let’s change how we do things at the CSU by saying “yes” to online voting from Nov. 27 to 29.

Graphic by @spooky_soda

 

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Opinions

Vote yes to support clubs, advocacy services

Graphic by Ana Bilokin

How students can improve the funding for CSU programs without paying more

From Nov. 27 to 29, Concordia undergraduate students will vote in their union’s by-election.

On the ballot, there will be a referendum question to reallocate Concordia Student Union’s (CSU) fees. Students will be asked if they agree to reduce the amount of fees they pay for a renovation fund and increase fees for student clubs, advocacy services and general operations by the same amount. As the CSU finance coordinator, I believe students should vote yes, because it will protect valuable student services without raising fees.

The CSU offers a wide range of services, campaigns for student rights and hosts fun events. It creates jobs for students and provides support for student-led projects and clubs. All of this is funded by six per-credit fees from students. Currently, for each credit, students pay $2.11 for general CSU operations, $0.24 for the advocacy services, $0.24 for the Off-Campus Housing and Job Resource Centre (HOJO), $0.17 for the Legal Information Clinic, $0.20 for clubs and $0.74 for the “Student Space, Accessible Education and Legal Contingency (SSAELC) Fund.”

All of this money is given to the CSU, however, it can only be used for its designated purpose. Money collected for HOJO, for example, can’t be used for orientation week events. This means that when the CSU council approves the budget, it’s actually approving five separate budgets.

In previous years, the CSU ran surpluses in a few departments, specifically for clubs and the advocacy services. As a non-profit organization, we’re not supposed to do that, so the executives ran referendums to reduce the fees. The advocacy services fee was reduced in 2015, and the fee for clubs was reduced in 2017. However, almost immediately after these referendums passed, demand for the services increased. More students were going to the Advocacy Centre, forming clubs and increasing club activity, but the CSU now had less money for those resources than before.

This has placed these departments in a structural deficit. Advocacy services are projected to run a deficit of roughly $30,000 this year, and clubs is $70,000 in the red. These deficits have been absorbed by CSU cash reserves from previous surpluses, but that can’t go on forever. This year, we have to choose between raising revenue or reducing student services.

Don’t panic. Despite these challenges, the CSU is in a good financial position overall. Its net value increased this year to over $13 million. However, much of that money is in the SSAELC Fund and, because fees have restricted use, the money has to stay there.

What is the SSAELC Fund? It’s a large reserve of funds that can be used to build or renovate student spaces, support student associations that vote to go on strike, and pay legal settlements if the union gets sued. The fund has roughly $10 million in it, and is invested in stock portfolios that help it grow from year to year. It was recently used to fund projects like the Woodnote Housing Cooperative and the CSU daycare—and even after those big projects, the fund is still growing strong.

The CSU has plenty of resources, but they’re not being allocated in the best way possible. To fix that, we’re proposing to reduce the fee levy for the SSAELC Fund by $0.36, while also implementing a fee increase of $0.06 for advocacy services, $0.10 for clubs and $0.20 for general operations. All the budgets will balance out, and students won’t have to pay anything more.

The SSAELC Fund will still grow by approximately $250,000 per year after this reform. By collecting a bit less for the renovations fund, which already has $10 million in it, we can increase funding for the many clubs that enrich student life and give us extracurricular experience. We will be able to maintain the advocacy services that protect student rights, and invest more in services, bursaries, programming and campaigns. All of this will be possible without students having to pay even one extra cent.

On the other hand, if this referendum fails to pass, we’ll be required to reduce funding for clubs and advocacy services. No student will benefit from that. The proposed new fee structure is a simple, responsible and effective way to manage our union’s finances. To support student clubs and the important services students depend on, without having to pay more, please vote “yes” on Nov. 27, 28 or 29.

Archive graphic by Ana Bilokin

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Student Life

Slice of life: Out with the old, in with the new-to-you

Trade used clothes for new (ish) ones at ConU’s Queer Clothing Swap

If you’re anything like me when it comes to clothes—meaning your closet is overflowing with unused items, yet you still find yourself sifting through thrift store racks on a weekly basis—then pay close attention. On Nov. 7, the Concordia Student Union (CSU) is hosting its annual Queer Clothing Swap on the seventh floor of the Hall building from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. All items are free, as long as you bring your own articles of clothing to replace what you take.

Camille Thompson-Marchand, the CSU’s external affairs and mobilization coordinator, is the project’s current manager. Although the Queer Clothing Swap started prior to Thompson’s involvement with the CSU, she has continued it every year since. “Last year’s clothing swap got very good feedback,” said Thompson. “People seem excited with the idea of having it again.” The swap aims to provide trans, non-binary and genderqueer folk with a safe space where they can explore an array of clothing that reflects their identity. The event lets them find stylish clothing while also meeting people from the queer community at Concordia.

Designated donation bins popped up on campus on Oct. 22, and will remain open until just before the clothing swap. Clean clothing, accessories and shoes can be left in blue donation bins in the lobbies of the EV, VA, MB, H and LB buildings downtown, and in the lobby of the SP building at the Loyola campus. This year, the CSU received a heaping supply of donations from the broader Concordia student body. “Piles and piles of them,” said Thompson. “And it takes days to sort it all out.”

In lieu of having received so many donations, Thompson highlighted that some donations were also left in the Art Nook and at reception desks, as opposed to in designated bins. “We don’t have the space to keep the clothes outside the donation period,” said Thompson. If you’re planning to donate clothes (which you should), please make sure they are clean, in relatively good condition, and placed in the appropriate donation bins.

All of the donated clothes that aren’t included in the swap are sent off to Fripe-Prix Renaissance, a non-profit organization whose mission is to facilitate the reintegration of people experiencing difficulty entering the workforce. “This event is also a great way to address overconsumption, a fun way to recycle clothes, and [a way to acquire] new outfits without having to buy them,” said Thompson. “It gives the opportunity for people to explore and define their identity without having to spend an excessive amount of money.”

Feature graphic by @spooky_soda

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Student Life

Slice of Life: Growing sustainability

Graphic by @spooky_soda.

Check out Concordia’s Farmers Market for all things organic and local

Did you know Concordia has a farmers’ market? I didn’t until just last week. Crazy, right? I literally could not believe that locally-sourced, organic veggies, snacks and so many other handmade products were being sold right at school. The Concordia Farmers’ Market (CFM) takes place every Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the second floor mezzanine of the Hall building.

An Instagram post made by the CFM on Aug. 7 indicates that their location moved to the corner of Mackay St. and de Maisonneuve Blvd. that week, so it would be wise to follow them on social media in case of any future location changes (see below). The CFM is supported by many on-campus organizations such as the Concordia Greenhouse, Concordia Food Coalition (CFA), Sustainable Concordia, Concordia Student Union (CSU) and Sustainable Action Fund (SAF).

According to an article from November 2014 on the university’s website, the idea of an on-campus farmer’s market started with two anthropology students. After an inspirational trip through the Costa Rican countryside, Kasha Paprocki and Alejandra Melian-Morse decided to start a recurring farmers’ market with the help of some volunteers “as part of an internship course on social economy, supervised by Satoshi Ikeda,” said the same article. During their first market on Oct. 29, 2014, 500 people came by. Melian-Morse is still the CFM’s project leader.

On the CFM’s Facebook page, you can find all kinds of affordable, organic veggies that cycle out depending on the harvest season. Other goodies from urban farms and greenhouses such as the Concordia Greenhouse, the City Farm School at Loyola, and Jardins Autonomnes can be found at the market as well. “It is also a great place to get gifts and lunch from,” the same page reads. They have everything from herbal teas to chemical-free, zero-waste shampoos, handmade beaded jewelry to a range of honey bee products—all offered at relatively affordable prices.

I don’t know about you guys, but I’ll definitely be checking out what’s in season over the next few weeks at the CFM. The best part about doing even a portion of your shopping there—aside from the convenience of it being on campus—is that you’d be supporting small businesses and local food distribution networks in Montreal. This ultimately contributes to a more sustainable economy, something I think all of us can get behind.

Follow the CFM on Instagram @concordiafarmersmarket

Feature graphic by @spooky_soda

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Concordia Student Union News

CSU judicial board overturns disqualification of Speak Up team

The CSU judicial board has overturned the chief electoral officer’s decision to disqualify the Speak Up slate. Photo by Kirubel Mehari

Speak Up slate defended themselves at a judicial board hearing on April 6

The Concordia Student Union judicial board overturned the union’s chief electoral officer’s (CEO) decision to disqualify the Speak Up slate, whose candidates received the majority of the votes in the 2018 CSU election. On April 9, the judicial board called for a recount of the ballots.

“We are pretty happy with the decision,” said Sophie Hough-Martin, Speak Up’s candidate for general coordinator, after her team found out about the decision on Monday morning.

“We remain of the opinion that our disqualification was baseless and lacked evidence.”

CEO Nicholas Roberts disqualified Speak Up on March 30 in the middle of the ballot count, citing the election standing regulation Article 316 which states that, while student media are allowed to publish material related to the election during the polling period, “no new correspondence between candidates or referendum committee members and student media can be published during the polling period.” Despite disqualifying the Speak Up slate, Roberts was not present at the hearing on Monday.

In an email obtained by The Concordian, Roberts claimed his decision to disqualify the team came after The Link published an editorial endorsing Speak Up on March 27, the first day of polling. According to Roberts, Speak Up’s claim that they were unaware of the editorial and had no role in its publication “could not be taken seriously.” He claimed, based his experience as a contributor to The Link’s opinions section, that the editorial must have been prepared at least a week beforehand, making it unlikely that the endorsement was kept secret.

Journalists from The Link disputed these claims both at the hearing and in an online article about the election results. They claimed Roberts’s familiarity with the newspaper is based on The Link’s previous publication cycle, which changed dramatically following their shift from a weekly publication to a monthly print magazine with daily online content. Currently, editorial topics are selected by the masthead on Friday, and the article is published on Tuesday. The Link’s editor-in-chief at the time of the hearing, Kelsey Litwin, told The Concordian she was displeased “that the independence of student media was questioned.”

The small room in the Hall building where the hearing took place was packed with members of Speak Up, their witnesses and interested students on the night of April 6. Speak Up’s Hough-Martin testified first on behalf of her team. In her testimony, she claimed her team was unaware of the endorsement prior to its publication.

Hough-Martin reminded the judicial board that the burden of proof is on Roberts to provide conclusive evidence that her team was involved in the publication of the editorial.

“The editorial did not provide any new information that was not publicly available already or information from past interviews that would have been validly conducted during campaign period,” she said. “We don’t have control over what journalists or editorial boards pursue.”

Although Roberts was not present at the hearing, the judicial board questioned him about the decision on April 5, and read his statement aloud at the hearing.

“It was clear to me that […] Speak Up was aware that a major campus newspaper would be disseminating info on the first day of elections that strongly promoted their platform,” Roberts said. “It was clear to me that this was a fact that Speak Up could not be unaware of.”

Despite his insistence, Roberts was unable to present any evidence that Speak Up collaborated with The Link on the article.

Four members of The Link’s staff were present at the hearing, and Litwin testified. She insisted the editorial was decided by 15 members of the newspaper’s masthead, and Speak Up did not participate in its publication in any way. Litwin provided evidence that The Link has produced editorials and endorsements regarding students elections since 1984, and the reason the endorsement was published on the first day of polling was simply because the paper always publishes editorials on Tuesdays.

Speak Up also brought forward two witnesses to help support their case: former CSU general coordinator Lucinda Marshall-Kiparissis and former CSU councillor Eamon Toohey. Marshall-Kiparissis, who worked on the 2015 CSU policy committee that introduced Article 316, said the standing regulation was designed to reduce—not increase—ambiguity surrounding press rights and elections.

“I’m going to be honest […] I’m a bit baffled that standing regulation Article 316 is being interpreted this way, and it’s also unprecedented,” Marshall-Kiparissis said after explaining that the standing regulation was designed to clarify that student media are allowed to publish editorials and other material during the polling period, and that this media involvement does not qualify as campaigning.

On behalf of the Speak Up slate, Hough-Martin requested the disqualification be overturned, the ballots be kept in a safe location for at least six months, and that a judicial board member be assigned to oversee future correspondence between Speak Up and electoral staff.

During her testimony, Hough-Martin warned the judicial board that, “the decision to uphold the disqualification [would undermine] the democratic will of hundreds of undergraduate students at Concordia and call into question the integrity of the CSU and its democratic elections.”

This is not the first time Hough-Martin has been disqualified by Roberts. In November 2017, Roberts claimed Hough-Martin did not submit her election expenses form in time for the CSU by-election, according to emails obtained by The Concordian. CSU standing regulations indicate that a candidate must submit the documents within four business days after the polls close. The decision was overturned because the judicial board determined Roberts had incorrectly considered the weekend as business days.

In an email to Hough-Martin at the time of the 2017 by-election, Roberts wrote: “As you did not hand in the form, and I could not get ahold of you, you have been disqualified. This will be my final email.” According to Hough-Martin, it took six days for the by-election results to be updated once Roberts’s decision to disqualify Hough-Martin was overturned by the CSU judicial board.

Photo by Kirubel Mehari

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News

Speak Up wins most votes, disqualified from election

Written by Matthew Lapierre and Étienne Lajoie

CSU judicial board to hold a hearing on April 6 to address the ruling

Speak Up, the slate whose candidates won the most votes in every position for which they ran in the CSU executive elections last week, was disqualified by Nicholas Roberts, the union’s chief electoral officer (CEO) on Friday afternoon, while the votes were still being tallied.

In the unofficial results released by Roberts on his personal Facebook page, candidates from the Accessibility, Transparency and Community slate (ACT) were tentatively announced as elected to all of the executive positions.

According to John Hutton, Speak Up’s candidate for finance coordinator, the slate will be contesting the disqualification. According to the unofficial results announced Friday, Hutton received 515 votes compared to the closest runner-up, Nichita Bobic, who had 335. In an email to The Concordian, Safa Sheikh, a member of the CSU’s judicial board, said the board will have a hearing on April 6 to discuss the disqualification.

On Friday, March 30, Roberts sent an email notifying candidates in the election of his decision to disqualify Speak Up. He based his decision on an editorial endorsing Speak Up published by The Link on March 27, the day polls opened. Roberts also claimed an email he received from The Concordian’s reporter asking if he had informed Speak Up of the location of the ballot counting was proof that Speak Up had communicated with student media during the polling period. The Concordian did not publish any correspondence with CSU candidates during the polling period.

Roberts cited article 316 of the CSU’s standing regulations: “No new correspondence between candidates or referendum committee members and student media can be published during the polling period.”

Roberts alleged in the email that Speak Up must have been aware of The Link’s editorial and that the editorial was considered unapproved campaigning.

In an article published Friday, The Link wrote, “Despite Roberts’ claims, The Link did not correspond with the Speak Up slate regarding the endorsement. The decision to endorse or not endorse specific candidates is made by The Link’s editorial team alone, without input from outside parties. Decisions are then kept secret until editorials are published.”

According to the unofficial results, the next CSU executive team will be composed of Andrei Bochis, Daniel Jolicoeur, Nichita Bobic, Myriam Bourgeois, Jamie Lewis Mella, Vivi To, Lida Sonylam Aman and Gabriel-Louis Guppy.

Bochis and To were all previously members of the Concordia Model UN delegation. Bochis, the unofficially elected CSU general coordinator, acted as president of the delegation. In an interview with The Concordian, Bochis said he firmly believed Concordia students would see “a lot of positive change in the upcoming year.” The unofficially elected general coordinator said his team would focus on unfinished projects, like the CSU daycare, which current general coordinator Omar Riaz said would open in March. Bochis added that the CSU needs “to focus on transparency and on fostering trust within the organization.”

Referendum questions approved

All four of the CSU’s referendum questions were approved by voters.

One dollar per credit will continue to be given to the Library Services Fund, which allows 24-hour access to the Vanier and Webster libraries and various services, including laptop and tablet lending and access to course reserve textbooks.

An increase in the fee levy for Concordia’s co-op bookstore was also approved by voters. The fee will increase from $0.10 to $0.14 per credit for every undergraduate student starting in the fall of 2018.

Voters confirmed the CSU’s motion for a two-round voting system to be used if the student union has to internally elect a candidate to fill a vacant executive position.

Concordia voters also approved the expansion of club and student spaces.

Results:

Executive

General Coordinator

Andrei Bochis—Elected

Yes: 346

No: 245

Abstain: 188

Omar Riaz

Yes: 342

No: 141

Abstain: 183

Sophie Hough-Martin—Disqualified

Yes: 523

No: 197

Abstain: 181

Student Life Coordinator

Michèle Sandiford—Disqualified

Yes: 509

No: 187

Abstain: 207

Daniel Jolicoeur—Elected

Yes: 345

No: 220

Abstain: 207

Yara Karam

Yes: 342

No: 209

Abstain: 207

Finance Coordinator

John Hutton—Disqualified

Yes: 515

No: 188

Abstain: 240

Nichita Bobic—Elected

Yes: 335

No: 205

Abstain: 240

Kathy Du

Yes: 300

No: 221

Abstain: 239

External Affairs and Mobilization Coordinator

Camille Thompson—Disqualified

Yes: 499

No: 169

Abstain: 255

Gabriel Guppy—Elected

Yes: 360

No: 197

Abstain: 256

Mustafa Bokesmati

Yes: 284

No: 205

Abstain: 256

Loyola Coordinator

Alexis Searcy—Disqualified

Yes: 448

No: 171

Abstain: 256

Jamie Lewis-Mella—Elected

Yes: 322

No: 199

Abstain: 251

April Tardi Levesque

Yes: 275

No: 209

Abstain: 256

Felicia Da Conceicao

Yes: 98

No: 249

Abstain: 256

Sustainability Coordinator

Myriam Bourgeois—Elected

Yes: 405

No: 203

Abstain: 223

Akira De Carlos—Disqualified

Yes: 493

No: 182

Abstain: 219

Sebastien Martinez De La Garza

Yes: 284

No: 217

Abstain: 219

Academic and Advocacy Coordinator

Mikaela Clark-Gardner—Disqualified

Yes: 515

No: 171

Abstain: 251

Lida Sonylam Aman—Elected

Yes: 337

No: 200

Abstain: 251

Aouatif Zebiri

Yes: 305

No: 216

Abstain: 251

Internal Affairs Coordinator

Princess Somefun—Disqualified

Yes: 516

No: 176

Abstain: 218

Vivi To—Elected

Yes: 360

No: 202

Abstain: 218

Fatoumata Binta Balde

Yes: 303

No: 215

Abstain: 220

Referendum Questions

Library Services Fund Fee Levy—PASSED

Do you agree to contribute $1 per credit to the CSU for the Library Services Fund for the next ten years (2019-2029), in order to maintain and increase existing services funded through the Library Services Fund? The contribution would be collected in accordance with the university’s tuition and refund policy.

Yes: 724

No: 321

Abstain: 237

Two Round Electoral System—PASSED

Do you as a CSU member agree with adding by-law 7.3.2 such that the Concordia Student Union Council establish an internal Two-Round Electoral System when voting on vacant executive seats?

Yes: 629

No: 234

Abstain: 424

Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore Fee Levy Increase—PASSED

Do you agree to increase the fee levy of the Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore by $0.05 per credit to a total of $0.14 per credit, effective Fall 2018?

Yes: 666

No: 326

Abstain: 300

Expanding Campus Space—PASSED

Do you support the CSU expanding and improving student spaces for clubs on campus?

Yes: 948

No: 140

Abstain: 196

CEO barred candidates access to ballot counting

The Concordia Student Union’s chief electoral officer (CEO), Nicholas Roberts, barred candidates from witnessing the election ballot count and tried to prevent student media from interviewing a candidate who had not been allowed in the room on Friday, March 30.

According to chapter four, section nine of the CSU’s standing regulations, candidates are allowed in the room to witness the ballots being counted.

On the morning the votes were counted, Patrick Magallanes, a sitting councillor from the Faculty of Arts and Science who was running for re-election, and John Hutton, Speak Up’s candidate for finance coordinator, were present to oversee the counting of the ballots in addition to a reporter from The Concordian. Roberts allowed Hutton and the reporter into the room, but told Magallanes he was not allowed to enter. When The Concordian reporter tried to leave the room to ask Magallanes why he wasn’t allowed in, Roberts told the reporter that if he left the ballot counting room, he would not be allowed back in.

“Either you’re in or you’re out,” Roberts said. He refused to comment or answer any questions concerning the incident.

Magallanes later told The Concordian that Roberts denied him access to the room on the basis that, if he were allowed in, then Roberts would have to allow other candidates in as well.

“This, in my mind, is an abuse of the power that he has,” Magallanes said. “It made me feel emotionally upset.”

Magallanes said he felt his rights as a candidate were violated because he was not allowed to witness the ballot count. He requested a ballot recount but received no response from Roberts. He said that if Roberts did not respond to him by April 2, then Magallanes would file an official complaint against him with the CSU’s judicial board.

Although Hutton was allowed in the room, Roberts did not allow him to approach the ballot counters or scrutinize any ballots. According to Hutton, the Speak Up candidates wanted to have more people witness the ballot counting, but Roberts notified them that only one member of each slate would be allowed in the room because there wouldn’t be enough space. The ballots were counted in H-535, an auditorium with approximately 100 seats. At least 75 seats were empty while the ballots were being counted.

Graphic by Alexa Hawksworth

* A previous version of this article stated that Lida Sonylam Aman had been a member of the Concordia Model UN delegation. This is inaccurate and we regret this error.

Categories
Concordia Student Union News

CSU has four referendum questions for Concordia students

Library and bookstore funding, two-round voting and more student spaces on the ballot this week

From March 27 to 29, Concordia students will go to the polls to elect representatives and executives for the Concordia Student Union (CSU), but candidates’ names will not be the only things on the ballot. There are four issues students will be asked to vote on this week.

Library services

The Library Services Fund is due for renewal. According to Veronika Rydzewski, the CSU’s internal affairs and clubs coordinator, the fund was first established in 2009 but was only ratified for 10 years. The contract will expire in 2019. Without the fund, students would lose 24-hour access to the Vanier and Webster libraries and services, including laptop and tablet lending and access to course reserve textbooks.

This week, students will be asked if they agree to continue contributing $1 per credit to the Library Services Fund. A Quebec resident student who completes a major (90 credits) will contribute $90 to the fund during their time at Concordia. If approved, the project will be funded for another 10 years, until the fall of 2029.

Two-round voting

In January 2018, the CSU resolved to adopt a two-round voting system for electing executives to fill positions vacated before the end of the mandate. This week, a referendum question will ask students if they agree with that decision.

According to the motion, the two-round system would guarantee executives are voted in by a majority of representatives on the council. According to CSU documents, there is currently no system in place for choosing an executive to fill a vacant position, which caused delays when electing a finance coordinator to replace Soulaymane El Alaoui, who resigned for personal reasons in November 2017.

Co-op bookstore fee increase

Question three on the ballot will ask students if they agree with an increase in fees to fund the Concordia Community Solidarity Co-op Bookstore. If accepted, the fees alloted by the CSU to the bookstore would increase from $0.10 to $0.14 per credit for every undergraduate student. The bookstore also asks shoppers for a one-time $5 fee to become a member of the co-op.

“It’ll pay for itself,” said Eamon Toohey, a part-time employee at the co-op bookstore. According to Toohey, co-op shoppers collectively saved $3,500 through subsidized textbook purchases during the winter semester.

“The bookstore is growing in popularity as textbooks get more expensive,” he said, noting that the co-op bookstore currently has over 7,000 members.

According to Toohey, the additional funds would allow the bookstore to sustainably pay its employees a livable wage of $15 per hour, increase their inventory and expand into online book sales. The bookstore currently employs three Concordia undergraduate students, but with the funding increase, Toohey said they might be able to hire more.

More student and club spaces

The final question put to voters will be whether or not they support the CSU expanding and improving spaces for students and clubs on campus. “This is purely to mandate the future CSU executives to start investigating what is needed to improve current club spaces,” Rydzewski said. “There is no cost associated to it.”

Graphic by Alexa Hawksworth

Categories
Opinions

Put down your textbooks and vote

Graphic by Alexa Hawksworth.

Put down your textbooks and vote

Will you walk past the polling stations set up around campus from March 27 to 29 or cast your vote for the new Concordia Student Union (CSU) executive?

With finals on the horizon, student union elections likely sit near the bottom of many students’ priority lists. This is counterintuitive. For any student hoping to flourish in university and make the most of their experience at Concordia, the CSU election is arguably the most important election to participate in.

With more than $6.5 million in revenue from fees in the 2016-17 academic year alone, it’s clear the CSU has the money and resources to significantly impact the university experiences of the more than 35,000 undergraduate students it represents. By casting a vote in the CSU election, students can have a real say in how the student union is governed and how those resources are distributed.

But it’s not just about the money. The CSU and other student associations are often the ones directing the university administration’s attention to serious problems on campus. Most recently, the CSU successfully demanded the right to recruit the undergraduate members of the Task Force on Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Violence, and is continuing to advocate for more student seats on the task force. The CSU also hosted a congress on Feb. 28 to give all students the opportunity to voice their concerns and suggestions for policy changes about how sexual misconduct on campus is dealt with.

It is the CSU’s top mandate to defend the rights of students and ensure our voices are heard. This is at the heart of their past and present campaigns for paid internships, climate justice and fossil fuel divestment, anti-austerity and ending tuition hikes. Services provided to students through the CSU range from the health and dental insurance plan to the legal information clinic to the daily free lunches offered at the Loyola Hive Café. The Housing and Job Resource Centre (HOJO) helps students find jobs and educate themselves on tenant and workers’ rights. The Student Advocacy Centre promotes student rights and assists students with issues of academic misconduct or violations of the Code of Rights and Responsibilities.

Among the responsibilities of the new CSU executive will be ensuring a smooth beginning for its downtown daycare centre and the successful completion of the $14 million housing co-operative.

Regardless of your outlook on student politics, it’s nearly impossible to be an undergraduate at Concordia and not be impacted in some way by the CSU. As with any other election, it is important to participate in the democratic process. Unlike other elections, however, your vote carries weight. You are one of 35,000 students, rather than one of about seven million eligible Quebec voters or one of over 25 million eligible Canadian voters.

So put down your textbooks, close Facebook, grab yourself another cup of coffee and take a minute to learn about the candidates and their platforms. What changes do you want to see on campus? Who’s advocating for the things you care about? Who do you want to be your voice for the next year?

Now, more than ever, there is proof that students can make an impact when they stand up and speak up for what they believe in. Students are no longer expected to follow the status quo and accept their circumstances. It may not seem like much, but casting a vote from March 27 to 29 is a step toward making Concordia a more engaging, safe and positive place for everyone.

Graphic by Alexa Hawksworth

Categories
News

President claims no disconnect between university and students

Concordia president Alan Shepard sat down with The Concordian to discuss funding, pension plans and sexual misconduct allegations. Graphic by Zeze Le Lin 
Article written by Étienne Lajoie and Megan Hunt

Alan Shepard says he is interested in the results of the CSU student congress

In an interview with The Concordian on March 15, Concordia president Alan Shepard offered no comment in response to a recent CBC report revealing that two Concordia part-time instructors, Jon Paul Fiorentino and David McGimpsey, were the subjects of complaints in a third-party investigation.

“I wouldn’t be able to make any comments about any investigation,” Shepard said. The university has not made a comment regarding the complaints since the report was published on Feb. 28.

Although Fiorentino and McGimpsey were originally scheduled to teach this semester, their classes have been reassigned while the allegations against them are being investigated. Shepard told The Concordian on Feb. 15 that professors are not allowed to teach while they’re under investigation.

Lack of faculty attendance at student congress

When asked if he felt the university’s administration was disconnected from the student body, Shepard said: “Absolutely not.”

As previously reported by The Concordian, only one Concordia faculty member was present at the congress organized by the Concordia Student Union (CSU) to discuss proposals on potential sexual misconduct policy changes. Kate Bligh, a part-time faculty member in the School of Irish Studies, as well as the theatre and English departments, said that in her 20 years of teaching, she had never been asked to attend any consent training similar to what the CSU wishes to implement for all students, staff and faculty within a reasonable time frame.

“The same way we hold discrimination and violence to this standard, we have to do the same with sexual assault and violence,” Bligh said.

Shepard said he was “very interested to see the results” of the congress, adding that Bill 151, provincial legislation requiring universities to take certain steps to address sexual violence, will require consent training for faculty and staff in all universities.
“We have to comply by September 2019 and I anticipate that we’ll do it this coming year, so it’ll be early,” Shepard said. According to him, the university is already doing “a huge amount of voluntary consent training” for students, but whether or not the training will become mandatory depends on the findings of the newly created sexual assault task force.

He also said the university’s Sexual Assault Research Centre, whose employees were not present at the congress, “does a great job [and] has been training hundreds, if not thousands of students. Probably thousands at this point.”

Shepard told The Concordian he hasn’t received an invitation from the CSU to meet with executives, but said if they want to speak with him, he is “always willing to talk to them.”

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin

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