Tag: concordia

Categories
News

Academic advising at Concordia

How students feel towards their advisors, and the University’s response

At Concordia, the main way for students to communicate issues regarding their academics is through their advisors. From faculty to faculty, their roles and qualifications will defer, but they all generally have the same responsibilities: to help students through any academic hardships.

Mainly, one will reach out to an academic advisor when facing scheduling problems, registration problems, or even problems with a professor. Oftentimes, advisors are advertised as a helpful tool for students, and make communication between the administration and Concordia’s 45,000 students easier.

A statement from the university to The Concordian highlights that, “Advisors at the department level may be administrative staff, or faculty members who undertake academic advising responsibilities in addition to their teaching and research portfolios.”

However, there has been lots of criticism directed toward the advisors. In particular, on Facebook student pages, there have been many memes and posts talking about the lack of student support.

Per department, there are approximately half a dozen advisors per faculty. For example, the Arts and Science Faculty has over 19,000 students, and six advisors. This would mean that on average, each advisor is responsible for 3,000 students. These advisors would be a part of the Student Academic Services.

According to the Concordia website, the Arts and Science advisor’s role is to, “recruit, counsel and guide students from the time of their application to admission into a program in the Faculty of Arts and Science, until completion of the program.”

Lucy Neubacher is a second year student at Concordia University, studying Anthropology and Sociology under the Arts and Science Faculty (ASF) umbrella. She has reached out to academic advisors on two separate occasions, and both times was left with more questions than answers.

She says, “First year, I had reached out to my academic advisor a couple times, and every time I was just getting very broad answers, nothing really answered my questions.”

This year, when there was a communication issue with one of her professors, Nubacker hoped to speak with an academic advisor in hopes of resolving the situation.

“Because [my professor] is the head of the department, I didn’t have anyone else to complain to about him. So I thought reaching out to my academic advisor would be worth it.”

When she finally got in touch with her advisor, she only received a link to the Concordia website, which did not help her.

“I didn’t know who else to talk to, I was really opening up to [the advisor] about, you know, my struggles and what I wanted to do. And the academic advisor just sent me an email saying ‘sorry to hear that here’s a link if you need help.’”

Academic advising at Concordia is structured in many different ways, depending on the faculty. The university’s statement explains, “Each faculty has its own advising structure with some having a mix of department level advising and Student Academic Services advising while others have a more centralized structure.”

The first advising method would apply to the ASF, while the John Molson School of Business (JMSB) has a more centralized approach.

“Advisors and the Student Academic Services provide academic advising on a broad range of topics, while department advisors (often called program advisors) can guide students through the requirements for undergraduate programs (such as course sequences, registration and substitutions),” read the statement, about the first advising approach.

For JMSB, their advising takes place in the Undergraduate Student Affairs Office.

“Students only have to go to that office to get all of the academic advising they need for their academic program. John Molson advisors are professionals who support students from the time they are accepted to the school to graduation.”

A JMSB student, who wishes to remain anonymous, explained that in his case, academic advisors helped him during registration. He says, “For me, personally, they’ve been very helpful … [An advisor] actually helped me last semester, in getting me in touch and directing me, because I wanted to register for this course that was restrictive, that you needed certain prerequisites.”

“I don’t think the advisors are to blame. It’s the administration at Concordia, who haven’t prepared properly, given that everything has shifted online. They still have one advisor for a thousand students. And obviously students have more questions, because it’s more confusing now.”

Since the pandemic began, there has been an increase in requests for advising.

But the Central Advising Working Group (CAWG), established in late 2018, aims to “champion effective academic advising service to students through sharing best practices, increasing engagement between staff who support students, providing support to advisors, and addressing areas for improvement within academic advising at Concordia. The group’s work is ongoing and looking at ways to improve undergraduate student academic advising.”

Hopefully, the CAWG will be able to hold academic advisors accountable at Concordia accountable.

 

Graphic by Taylor Reddam

A journalism student’s wake-up call: first time reporting about homelessness

… Or how NOT to be a journalist

During reading week, I spent my Wednesday afternoon at the Abri de la Rive-Sud (ARS), an emergency shelter for homeless persons based in Longueuil. To be clear, I wasn’t there as a volunteer, I was there to complete a photojournalism assignment.

At the end of the day, I came out of this experience with two conclusions:

  1. I am not ready to be a “real” journalist.
  2. I am an even worse person than I thought.

Don’t get me wrong, I learned a lot more than that during my visit. I have met great people and the ARS is an organization worthy of imitation. However, that is not what I am here to talk about.

On March 3, I did everything a professional journalist shouldn’t do.

For starters, I let social anxiety win and wasted way too much time thinking: how do I approach people without being invasive? Do I look like I’m taking myself too seriously? Do I look serious enough? What if I ask dumb questions? What if I do/say/think the wrong thing?

I was so scared of disturbing people that I shied away from asking more questions and ended up cutting corners. I even refrained from recording some interviews because I was afraid of asking people experiencing homelessness if I could put a microphone in their face. Thankfully, I only had to take pictures and gather enough information to write captions, but if I were to produce an extensive piece of journalism on the subject, there would be major holes in my story.

As an example, take Mr. A, who lost his job and his home due to COVID-19. Even though he did not seem to mind giving details about his life prior to the pandemic, I could not gather the courage to ask him: Why him, why now? What happened that made him unable to stay afloat, like many others did thanks to governmental support like the CERB or Employment Insurance?

Should I have pushed for more information?

At the end of the day, I talked to an employee at the ARS who made a comment that really made me regret not asking those questions to Mr. A. I don’t remember the exact words (always record your interviews, kids!), but the person said that, to become homeless — with no previous history — in the specific context of the pandemic, you almost “have to want it.” Referring to the government’s laxity in terms of monetary aid distribution, the employee told me that COVID-19 had actually made some of their clients better off.

“You have to want it” ???

I was so shocked by the comment that I froze. It was the last thing I thought I would hear from a social worker. I think they were able to read the disbelief in my eyebrows because they then took it upon themselves to specify that they were specifically referring to the current situation. At least, that’s what I understood… but instead of making sure that I had well interpreted the comment, I just stared in silence trying to process what had been said.

Whether it is because I didn’t want to be a burden for the employees who had “real” work to do or because I didn’t want to disrespect the few residents who were willing to talk to me, I shot myself in the foot by not digging deep enough for answers. By not addressing those missing pieces of truth, I threw the journalistic mandate in the trash and did not do justice to anyone who agreed to take part in this project.*

And here is another big no-no for all newbie journalists (and I guess people in general): I forgot to set aside any preconceived ideas.

I consider myself very open-minded, but as a person who was brought up in a very sheltered middle-class environment, I was never inclined to talk with people experiencing homelessness beyond the usual brief greetings.

At the ARS, I got to speak with Mr. B, who became homeless in 2014 and has been on and off the streets since then. He told me about his last psychotic episode and how different the situation is in Longueuil compared to Montreal. He was very articulate, perfectly lucid, and completely open when talking about his difficulties with substance abuse and schizophrenia.

Our exchange lasted a bit less than 25 minutes and let me tell you: it was the first normal conversation I have had with a stranger for a very long time. By “normal” I mean that I did not have to pretend to be someone I am not (i.e. a pseudo-reporter, a top student or a person who knows what they are doing). In fact, I was struck by how much Mr. B and I have in common, which ended up making me lose my journalist goggles. Obviously, I am not even close to knowing the same kind of struggles he did, but it only confirmed what I already knew: anyone could end up in this situation.

When I arrived on location, I had my main question ready and had prepared myself for the most plausible answer. Since the pandemic had made a lot of people lose their jobs and become isolated, I thought they would all say that COVID-19 had made the situation worse for people experiencing homelessness.

But my ignorant self had not thought of one thing: the homeless were already isolated. For many of them, nothing has changed. For many of them, things could not get much worse. When talking to Mr. B, I learned that most people in the homeless community did not spend their time worrying about the pandemic.

“An acquaintance of mine once told me that he had taken so many drugs in his life that COVID wouldn’t want to get into his body,” he said.

Under which privileged rock was I living to think that people without homes would experience the pandemic in the same way as everyone else?

In the end, a lot of the things I thought I knew about the issue were proven wrong when I visited the ARS. And all I can do about it is to tell all five people who will check out my not-so-thorough school project.

When I started working on it at the beginning of the semester, my intention was to achieve something truly meaningful. I agree; it was a bit delusional and I might have aimed a bit too high for a first-year student without any relevant experience.

Still, since I have started studying journalism, the same thought keeps lingering in my mind: maybe I am not made for journalism.

In two months, I visited two homeless outreach organizations and have been asked twice if I was a new volunteer or a recently employed social worker. Both times when I answered “no,” I was overwhelmed by the same feeling: guilt.  

If I cannot become a successful journalist, will I keep feeling bad for reporting on issues that I don’t have any real power to eradicate? If I wanted to change the world so much, shouldn’t I seek to actively help others instead of writing about things that I wish would change?

Putting that little existential crisis aside, I have to say that I am not ready to give up on journalism just yet. After all, I’ve only been studying in journalism for six months. Maybe this time I was not as good as professional journalist Christopher Curtis who’s been covering homelessnessness consistently for years, but facing these kinds of challenges so early in my student career only motivates me to do better. To be honest, I don’t think I will ever be able to grow into this groundbreaking investigative journalist I had envisioned myself becoming. But that doesn’t mean I should stop trying.

*This is why I decided not to mention my sources’ real names. They have signed a waiver regarding a specific assignment, but they were not informed that their story would be repurposed in this context. This article is about my own mistakes and “journey,” and until I am able to reach out to the persons involved, names will not be disclosed.

 

Feature photo by Christine Beaudoin

Categories
News

Demystifying Dogecoin: The meme cryptocurrency on the rise

Welcome to the doge house

By now, you may have heard of Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency with the face of a dog. Just like what happened with Gamestop last month, this small currency is trying to rocket itself to financial power. Here, we’re going to try to answer all your questions about the budding cryptocurrency.

First off, a quick explanation of what a cryptocurrency is. 

A cryptocurrency is a digital form of money that rides the line between a debit card and cash — entirely on the internet. In its most basic form, you exchange cryptocurrencies with participating entities just like any other purchase online, but instead of involving a bank, the money goes to the other person, more or less directly.

Most cryptocurrencies, such as Dogecoin, are built on a technology called the blockchain. Concordia professor and holder of the Industrial Research Chair in Blockchain Technologies at Concordia, Jeremy Clark says “The blockchain is about building something that’s like a database where’s there’s just one copy of the data and everyone agrees on what that copy of the data is, but it’s not held in a single location.”

It’s easiest to think of cryptocurrencies as a universal, digital version of cash.

The most popular cryptocurrency is Bitcoin (BTC), which you probably have heard of since it recently reached the value of $50,000 USD for one single Bitcoin after automaker Tesla announced it would accept Bitcoin as payment for cars.

Here in the explanation is where it gets meta.

Currencies in the world such as the Canadian dollar (CAD) and the US dollar (USD) are backed by the governments that print the bills. Faith in the monetary system the bills represent gives the currency its value.

Cryptocurrencies are backed by nothing but faith in their value. A Bitcoin has value because we all believe it has value. Just like stocks, cryptocurrencies are volatile and change value rapidly, and are influenced by developments around them.

The U.S. classifies Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as commodities. That’s the same classification as gold.

Think of people who collect vintage coins. They may have a value printed on them, but they can fetch prices much higher. You wouldn’t spend a rare misprinted 1919 quarter on a pack of gum – even though the coin itself would work – because you can sell it for much higher than its printed value.

“Currency isn’t meant to be something that gives you a tremendous return on value,” said Clark, “You want people to use it and not hoard it for the possibility that it doubles its price in a month, it’s meant to be a currency.”

Cryptocurrencies currently work much like that rare misprinted 1919 coin. You can use them to purchase things now or hold onto them in the hopes that they can fetch a higher value later. They both only have value because someone out there says so, and both can technically work like cash.

Cryptocurrencies do offer reasons to be used as currency. They are decentralized so no one agency controls the currency, they are easier to manage and send to individuals being a digital native currency, and cryptocurrencies at large are secure with publicly accessible transaction records.

That being said, a currency should only be valuable in what you can trade it for, and a currency that’s worth more than what you’re spending it on isn’t much of a currency is it?

If circulation never occurs because everyone holds onto their crypto-coins, they’re not really coins anymore. Coins are currency to be traded. You’re holding onto ones and zeros that at one point might have been cash should people have used them as such, but now are just code.

Everyone okay? Existential crisis under control for now? Okay good.

Now onto Dogecoin.

Beyond the popular coins such as Bitcoin and Ethereum ($ETH), there are literally hundreds of cryptocurrencies. They all function similarly but have different features, advantages, and prices.

Dogecoin is part of a smaller class of cryptocurrencies called altcoins, short for alternate coins.

Basically, Dogecoin is just like other cryptocurrencies except it was created as a joke with a picture of a dog — the doge meme — as its mascot. Well, that and being quoted on the project’s website as the digital currency “Favoured by Shiba Inus worldwide.”

“I always thought that there would be a sort of winner that would be chosen by the market,” said Clark when referring to the hundreds of smaller coins on the market. Currently, there’s value in many of them and no clear winner.

The Doge in question is an image commonly found in memes. Doge herself is a Shiba Inu named Kabosu from Japan.

So, why should I care?

Dogecoin has had quite the boom as of late.

Just like what happened with Gamestop and other meme stocks, an organized group of Reddit traders all decided to buy into Dogecoin, leading it to achieve a peak value of just under $0.085 USD per Doge on Feb 8.

Eight cents doesn’t sound like much, but this is a massive jump from below one cent per Doge just over a week before.

On top of that, Dogecoin has had lots of support.

Elon Musk, ever the champion of nonsense, tweeted about Dogecoin on Feb. 24 using language reminiscent of r/wallstreetbets and the Gamestop meme stock surge, “Literally, on the actual moon.”

ATM company CoinFlip announced in a tweet on March 1 that it would begin trading Dogecoin at its ATMs across the country.

The Dallas Mavericks basketball team announced on March 4 that they would accept Dogecoin for tickets and merchandise.

“It’s hard to say what the longevity of these things will be if people will continue to prefer having dozens of [currencies] around,” said Clark, “or if eventually, the market will coalesce behind one or two winners.”

For now, all that can be said for the joke-turned cryptocurrency is much coin, such wow.

 

Graphic by Taylor Reddam

Categories
News

The Black Student Union utilizes its social media to educate the Concordia student body

How four young women started the organization

Concordia students Amaria Phillips, Lorry Joseph, Tanou Bah and Ernithe Edmond were all shocked to see there was no Black club or union at Concordia University.

“We were like, ‘Wait a minute, there’s no actual like, Black club?’ It’s either Caribbean or African? But there’s not one for just Black people,” said Phillips.

For example, McGill, the other anglophone university in Montreal, does have a Black Student Network, which acts similarly to a union. Before the BSU initiative, this overarching support would fall under the Concordia Student Union’s responsibilities.

Phillips said, “We realized that, really, there was no Black Student Union period, then we kind of like changed our minds and we said, ‘Okay, let’s just do a Black Student Union’ … It’s going to be something that’s actually going to advocate for students.”

“We kind of found a good batch of people to help the BSU take off … We’re so like-minded,” said Phillips.

The process of becoming an official student union at Concordia is a complicated one.

“We put a lot of focus in establishing [the BSU],” said Phillips. Tired of wasting time trying to establish themselves, the BSU decided to create its own path for representation.

Now, almost a year later, they have grown their team to 13 students who help run the day-to-day operations, just by asking who wanted to be involved.

“We put something on social media to ask if anyone wants to join the team. And yeah, a lot of people were DM’ing back and saying ‘Yeah, I’m interested,’” said Phillips.

The BSU’s main platform is their social media — mainly Instagram. Run by Kyla Renee Jallow and Beza Getachew, the BSU is able to spread awareness on Black issues and educate their followers on Black Canadian History.

Phillips is excited to see the growth that comes along with the bigger team. She said, “Since we decided to start the executive team, our Instagram grew from, I think five hundred to now nine hundred something in a month.”

The increase in posts also helped grow their following. On the heels of Black History Month, Phillips does not plan to slow down the flow of information shared on the page. She said, “We’ve gotten so many messages of people saying, ‘Wow, I didn’t know that,’ or ‘I really wish that I would have known that before, that it was taught in schools.’”

The executive team decided to extend Black History Month to Black History Year, in order to educate and highlight Black history and Black people in general, because “Black History is everyone’s history,” said Phillips.

“There’s so many things we didn’t get to cover for the month,” said Phillips, so may as well continue to put an emphasis on reteaching ourselves to our history.

Categories
News

The Woodnote gives an update to the CSU

Concordia’s housing co-op gives an update

An update on Concordia’s housing co-op, The Woodnote, was given at the Concordia Student Union (CSU) meeting on March 10.

The Woodnote was first proposed to the CSU in 2014. According to its website, it is a non-profit organization that aims to facilitate access to affordable, inclusive housing for Concordia students. The co-op is the first of its kind in Montreal.

Michèle Le Moëligou, who gave the update during the CSU meeting, is the director of operations and marketing at L’Unité de travail pour l’implantation de logement étudiant (UTILE), a non-profit that promotes student housing in Quebec.

According to her update, The Woodnote was supposed to open in July 2020, but, because of COVID-19, there were delays in the building’s construction that pushed the official opening to September 2020.

Since then, over 140 tenants have lived at The Woodnote. It has a mix of studio, two bedroom and four bedroom apartments, and there is one family currently living there, said Le Moëligou during the meeting.

The update by Le Moëligou showed that 88 per cent of the tenants are from Concordia, with the rest being a mix of students from McGill, UQAM, and other universities. Most of the tenants have a yearly income of less than $12,000, Le Moëligou stated, showing the need for affordable housing.

Le Moëligou said at the meeting that The Woodnote is currently signing contracts with other universities to build similar models of student housing.

“This is the CSU’s baby, it’s been passed down from generation to generation [of CSU councils],” said Isaiah Joyner, the general coordinator of the CSU, at the meeting. There is a priority leasing period for Concordia students until the end of March, after which leasing will open up to students from other Montreal universities.

Categories
News

Film production students demand action against structural racism in Concordia’s Film department

{"uid":"9C29F6AE-92F1-4CFA-9F8B-74BD32896EDD_1613668528833","source":"other","origin":"unknown"}

Faculty commits to changes incited by Film Production Students for Inclusivity and Action organization

In fall 2020, the Film Production Students for Inclusivity and Action (FPSIA) drafted a letter of demands, clearly outlining their recommendations to address structural racism within Concordia University’s Film department. After collecting over 100 student and alumni signatures, their initial demands were met and accomplishments outlined in a recent Instagram post.

FPSIA demands

  1. Transparency and accountability in the department’s recognition of the demands and concerns raised in the letter.
  2. Transparent hiring process for new faculty members from diverse backgrounds.
  3. Increased BIPOC perspectives and subjects within the department’s curriculum.
  4. Increased responsibility for teaching assistants within the department.
  5. Clarity in the admissions process and that the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema work together in collaboration with students towards inclusivity in the film industry.
  6. A redefined jury system for Filmmaking II & III (FMPR 332 & 432), with a redistribution of roles and resources, in favour of “real world experience.”
  7. Refreshed training for faculty, staff and students regarding the Code of Rights and Responsibilities, and that the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema makes a commitment to handling complaints filed underneath the Code.
  8. Future equipment purchases be made with accessible, affordable options, and that money acquired through donations can be distributed as grants or bursaries to students who need it most.

Faculty commitments made thus far 

  1. The Film Department has formed an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion committee to address the FPSIA’s demands listed in the letter. The committee holds seven seats, with two reserved for students. Two seats are currently occupied, one by the co-chair of the department, along with Assistant Professor in Cinema, Marianna Milhorat. Three committee seats are also reserved for a full-time, part-time and technical staff member.
  2. The faculty, who has previously committed to annual artist-in-residence positions, is reserving this position for a person who self-identifies as BIPOC or who is otherwise deserving through rich community engagement experience.
  3. Workshops, training programs, and funding opportunities have been implemented.

In a conversation with Flora Nwakobi, member of Film Production Students for Inclusivity and Action (FPSIA), Video Editor at The Concordian and Film Production student Adam Mbowe framed the need for diversity and inclusion at the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema. Watch the interview below.

The FPSIA will be hosting a discussion on the topics of Film, Gender, and Education with Dr. Tracy Ying Zhang, Alexia Roc, and Whitney Norceide on Feb. 24 at 7:30 p.m. For more information or to attend the event, visit their Facebook page.

 

Feature graphic courtesy of Flora Nwakobi.

Categories
News

Concordia announces that summer 2021 will be delivered remotely

Graphic by Ana Bilokin

Students can expect more on-campus activities this summer, on a voluntary basis

On Feb. 18, Concordia announced that the summer 2021 term will be delivered remotely. This follows the Feb. 2 announcement from the Legault government that CEGEPs and universities in the province would be permitted to resume some on-campus activities as of Feb. 8.

“Despite the Government of Quebec’s announcement in early February that universities can begin reopening their campuses under certain conditions, the public health situation in Montreal remains uncertain, with concerns about new virus variants and delays in the mass vaccination program,” read Concordia’s statement.

Sent in an email to Concordia students, the statement went on to say that students can expect more access to campus this summer for socially distanced activities on a voluntary basis. Additionally, the university plans to “hold in-person final exams for a limited number of courses,” for the summer term — if they deem it safe to do so when the time comes.

The statement also reminded students that convocation will be held online this summer; CU Celebrate, a virtual graduation celebration, will take place on June 17.

Acknowledging that many students are growing curious about what the fall semester might look like, the university says they plan to make a detailed announcement in early May. They did note, however, that a hybrid learning model for the fall term would be the best-case scenario.

For some Concordia students, this hint about next school year is helpful, so far in advance. Michelle Lam, a third-year student in Communication Studies and Economics, returned home to Toronto after last year’s winter term.

“I’m thankful that they’re giving this info in advance because it gives people, especially international students, enough time to plan ahead,” she said.

With this announcement in mind, she says she’ll likely come back to Montreal for the fall, but hopes that she won’t be required to attend classes in-person.

“If I was given an option to do in-person or remote next year, I’d probably choose remote because I wouldn’t feel comfortable being in a classroom again unless everyone is vaccinated,” said Lam.

Another Communications student, Morgan Salama, feels similarly about being back in class.

“I’d love to be back in the classroom, but not until things are back to normal. The idea that the regulations could shift again and we’d be left going back to online anyway just isn’t worth the risk,” she said.

Salama lives in Pointe-Claire and used to commute to campus by train. When asked which option she would take if given the choice between online and in-person classes, she said, “It’s really hard for me to say; I love the lack of commute, but I really miss the camaraderie of being physically in class … I’d only want to be in-person if we really had cases under control.”

Since more details have not yet been given, it’s hard to say exactly what a hybrid semester will look like, or whether in-person classes and activities will be completely optional or not.

In the meantime, summer term students can plan for another semester with all the conveniences and difficulties online learning brings.

 

*Michelle Lam is the social media manager for The Concordian.

Categories
News

Concordia professor uses racial slur during a class

The Black Student Union advocates for students to be heard

 

On Feb. 3, just a few days into Black History Month, a Concordia faculty member who guest lectured in an undisclosed class said the N-word. The faculty member and the class in which the incident took place have not been named in order to avoid any ill-treatment.

Pierrette Manege, a student in Women’s Studies and Immigration Studies, and Amanda Asomani-Nyarko, an English Literature major, came forward last week after hearing the slur uttered in their class room.

They said that during a conversation pertaining to feminism and the power that certain words hold, the white lecturer gave a trigger warning and then listed a couple of words that could be considered offensive.

“She was like, ‘oh, words such as coloured’, and then she said the N-word, and then she said Black … It was just words that targeted the Black community,” said Manege.

Surprised and confused, Manege recognized that this was not okay with her.

“I’ve had instances where I haven’t said anything and I felt really guilty. So this time I was like, I’m going to put it into the chat and just let her know that I don’t feel comfortable with what she just said. Specifically, her saying the N-word fully as a white woman,” said Manege.

Asomani-Nyarkowhen noted this isn’t the first time she’s heard a professor say the N-word in class.

Reflecting on this particular incident, she said, “I was numb, and then my numbness turned into anger, and then confusion as to why this is happening. And then I wanted to say something, but then I also felt like, they’re gonna think I’m just being sensitive or the angry Black woman, you know?”

In the end, Asomani-Nyarko decided to express her agreement with Manege’s comment in the chat, stating the two were not okay with a white professor using the N-word in any context.

When the speaker saw that there were messages in the chat, she asked them to either turn their mics on or she’d read the messages aloud. When she got to Manege and Asomani-Nyarko’s comments, the speaker got “visibly uncomfortable,” said Manege.

She said, “She became very defensive, and, in her defense, decided to justify her use of that word.”

Often, white professors will use the ‘academic context’ armour to get away with saying this slur in classrooms. Amaria Phillips, a co-founder and president of the Black Student Union disagrees with this defence.

She said, “There’s no tolerance, not even in an academic setting to say, a slur that …  not only has been used in the past, but it’s still used in the present. It’s still used now, in this day and age against Black people, to demean them and to hurt them.”

Not only does this seem like common sense, said Phillips, but in the political climate that we find ourselves in — with the uprise of the Black Lives Matter movement and now during Black History Month — Phillips finds it unacceptable that Black students should have to feel unsafe in classrooms.

Phillips added that Black students are already discriminated against outside of school. She added, “Coming to classes, still [having to] hear the N-word, and then be told, ‘Oh, your opinion doesn’t matter about the N-word.’”

Phillips spoke about how the N-word never needs to be said out loud. She said, “Why not just say “the N-word”…. I don’t understand why you have to pronounce the whole word. And again, it goes back to kind of like proving that [white professors] could do it.”

Tanou Bah, co-founder and Vice President of the BSU, and Phillips explained why this word should be banned from campus. Phillips said, “I think that Black students especially, and Black people in the Black community have been telling non-Black people ‘can you stop’ for years, and yet, just again, it’s like they don’t care.”

Concordia University has responded to this incident, stating, “Our goal is to work collaboratively towards a resolution and prevention plan that recognizes the concerns and experiences of our students and supports the discussion of difficult knowledge.”

They have implemented the Black Perspectives Office and a Task Force on Anti-Black Racism, in an effort to give Black students the agency they deserve. While these have been helpful, the Black Student Union, a non-profit organization that is not currently registered with the CSU, has taken the main stage in advocating for Manege and Asomani-Nyarko, as well as other Black students.

 

The BSU’s role at Concordia 

 

At Concordia, all undergraduate clubs and fee levy groups (one funded by students for students) fall under the CSU’s umbrella. These groups have to register through the CSU.

For the BSU, this process has yet to take place. Phillips explained that when the idea for the student association came to mind, the initial goal was to form a group to celebrate and advocate for Black students with no ethnic specificity.

She said, “So there was just one for Caribbean or African [students]. But there was not one for, you know, Black people, and Black students. And like, if you are American, where do you fall into?”

The group recognized that many predominantly white universities have Black student unions, or something similar to ensure representation, and decided to pursue this goal. At Concordia, this representation would fall under the CSU if it wasn’t for the Black Student Union.

Isaiah Joyner, the general coordinator at the CSU, explained that the BSU approached them to try to start the process of being a registered student association. He said, “So typically, what you would see is organizations, or like a lot of fee levies would start off as a CSU club.”

However — and this may just be a case of miscommunication through Zoom and dozens of emails — the BSU decided to go down a different route. They are currently a non-profit organization, bypassing the CSU — for now.

If the BSU wants to become a fee-levy organization, the process may not be so straightforward. Joyner explained, “Concordia is a little tricky, because one, they don’t collect race-based data … We wouldn’t be able to just levy the Black students, we have to levy all students for a certain credit to give [the BSU] a budget and let them operate, and do all that good stuff.”

This would pose issues with any students wanting to opt out of the Black Student Union, because typically students can not opt out of representative organizations.

However, the BSU is something that would be beneficial to overall student life, no matter how complicated it may be to institute it.

Phillips expressed there may have been some apprehension when the idea of the BSU was first brought up. She explained that the goal of the BSU was to ensure representation of Black students at a higher academic level, among other things.

“When we voiced that, that’s when we got a lot of opposition. And you know, we got advice, but it wasn’t as helpful as we wanted it to be. And, yeah, I think that that opposition kind of discouraged us a little bit too,” said Phillips.

Joyner explained that this is a tedious process that all organizations must go through. He said, “We gave them all the information, we let them know the different processes, so as to why they haven’t followed up and tried to do it, like, through the CSU channels … I guess it’s not what they’re envisioning.”

“We’re still here with open arms and we want to support it. These are important issues that Black students are facing,” said Joyner.

Categories
Student Life

Not your typical food blog

HomeCooked Concordia strives to be a community for CU students through food and learning

In March 2020, the world went into lockdown and classes went online; people were encouraged to order food, support local businesses and take a chill pill — all was (relatively) well. A year later we see that this lifestyle wasn’t short-term, and we are now living in an age of isolation.

Not to mention, we are all feeding ourselves in our kitchens versus the once typical lifestyle of dining out.

Aida Setbel, a Sociology student at Concordia University, was a keen user of Concordia’s food organizations, such as the People’s Potato and the Hive Cafe. But, when they were confined to their home, they started to wonder how the absence of these organizations would impact students, “because it was also impacting me,” they explained.

The reach of these organizations was just not far enough for their liking.

“I realized that there’s not a lot of Concordia organizations that help people to prepare the food at home. It’s mostly, like, giving people meals. But I was wondering, how sustainable is that in the long term?”

And then the idea of HomeCooked Concordia started to stew in their mind.

The idea of HomeCooked Concordia is to support students and help them learn how to cook their own meals, and to educate them on their food, where it comes from, and when it is in season. The organization teaches its followers how to eat not only more sustainably, but also healthier. And that doesn’t mean the food is less tasty!

It’s a relatively new project, and has been in the works all year. However, Setbel expressed that there have been some hardships along the way. They addressed these by asking themselves lots of questions to ensure the impact of this project would be meaningful.

I don’t want to rush into creating things that are not going to be relevant for students or just for the community at the moment,” said Setbel.

But the club isn’t your typical food blog. In fact, it rejects the idea of individualism and concentrates on the ‘community’ aspect of home cooking.

Aida Setbel, founder of HomeCooked Concordia

“I think it’s important for me to put it as a Concordia-based initiative, because it’s a community organization that I’m interested in fostering. I don’t want it to be like, my personal brand, like my blog [where]  I’m gonna have affiliate links to Amazon. That’s not the vibe,” said Setbel.

In order to get this organization the support it needs to make a meaningful impact, Setbel would need more community involvement.

“I’m looking into partnering up with other student organizations who either worked in something related or who are giving out funding for this type of project.”

From graphic artists to amateur student cooks, there is an abundance of need.

Setbel’s relationship with food has been a growing one, and, through the pandemic, one that has become increasingly important to them. They realized that their budget did not include the ‘ordering food’ premium, and it seemed there were no good food options. With that, it became increasingly important to become independent with food.

That’s why I got into home cooking, personally, because I can’t afford to go to a restaurant, […], and yeah, just like home cooking for me was a way for me to make my life affordable,” they said.

Young people’s relationship to food tends to be more disconnected, and leans towards processed, pre-made options thanks to the microwave cooking time advertised on the box. HomeCooked Concordia hopes to bring the knowledge and love of food back to our students.

Setbel said, “The things that always come to mind for me when I think of cooking are the social, environmental and individual impacts.” Through these three facets, food and cooking can have different effects.

Typically, we think of the social impact of food being how it brings us together. However, Setbel is also referring to the food we can have thanks to the destruction of father countries, such as any chocolate bar containing palm oil.

“[It’s thinking] about monocultures that are destroying the autonomy and the food sovereignty of certain places that now … only grow wheat to make bread or like, cattle feed or whatever else, and then they have to import [food],” said Setbel. In other words, it is important for us to know where our food comes from in order to be aware of the impacts it can have.

As Setbel indicates, how far our food has to travel can result in major environmental impact. They explain, “The industrial system that is there right now is benefiting from the lack of knowledge on food to sell people the cheapest option available and make it seem like a good thing for them.”

Finally, the individual impact of food is what directly relates to us, our health and the benefits of eating whole foods and homemade dishes.

“There’s something for me about being able to cook a meal that has the nutrients and the energy to keep your growth going through your week.”

 

Graphic and photo courtesy of HomeCooked Concordia

Categories
Student Life

Concordia is not doing enough: the case for tuition reduction

The University has not been lenient towards students amid a global pandemic

Last May, Concordia’s proposed budget was decided by the Board of Governors and was “long-term oriented to address post COVID-19 structural issues.” The 2020-2021 budget assumes the impacts of COVID-19 will go on for three years into the future. However, recent developments in clinical testing by Pfizer and Moderna have led the government to stockpile available doses. This means a return towards pre-COVID life might come sooner than expected. As such, a crucial reduction in tuition is justified despite the university potentially operating under a larger deficit for the current fiscal year.

Thousands of students have petitioned since the beginning of the fall semester to reduce tuition. Nearly 97 per cent of students who participated in the recent Concordia Student Union (CSU) by-elections of 2020 voted in favour of tuition reduction.

In a town hall meeting  hosted by the CSU on Nov. 19, students considered mass organization and protests against tuition hikes, similar to the 2012 student strike. They stated that, “In the context of the pandemic, we need to do that now as well — enough is enough.”

Many feel as though the school is indifferent towards the plight of its students.

“I’m convinced that the university doesn’t really care. They’d let half of us die if it means that the other half will be filled with students, because what they’re really interested in is keeping us enrolled and keeping us paying,”  said a student who was interviewed by The Link.

While students continue to voice their concerns, Concordia’s current budget leaves little to no room for financial leniency towards them.

According to Fiona Harrison-Roberts, the outgoing finance coordinator of the Journalism Student Association (JSA), “Concordia will be increasing the price of tuition this year as opposed to reducing tuition.”

“COVID-19[‘s] recurrent and structural impact will need to be integrated into the budget model for fiscal years 2021-2022 and thereafter,” as mentioned in the budget’s PDF document.

With a bulk of students shifting from full-time to part-time as well as a decline in first-year students, Concordia experienced an expected loss of revenue as a result of COVID-19.

“The drop is attributable to lost income from on-campus activities such as residence room rentals, parking and conferences, and diminished tuition revenue because of a decline in international student registrations, particularly at the graduate level,” said Concordia’s President and Vice-Chancellor Graham Carr in a public statement .

Currently, Concordia is operating under a deficit of five to eight per cent for the fiscal year.

“It is a large amount; however, the figures are similar to what the Government of Quebec has invested in proportion to its own budget to address the COVID crisis,” Carr added.

While Concordia is using the government’s actions to justify their current expenditures, the question to be asked is whether comparing themselves to a provincial government that has not done enough in the face of COVID-19 is a smart thing to do.

Regardless, as the student body grows more restless and with vaccines available this upcoming year, a “three-year financial plan” to combat the effects of COVID-19 becomes less pertinent. Students continue their uphill battle this year in paying rent and tuition, working, and studying through “Zoom University,” with little to no financial relief from their institution.

Concordia boasts of a “solid financial track record” in reference to their “balanced budget for 2019-20” after public funding cuts forced deficits for many years.

“In 2019-2020, before COVID, we had a balanced budget for the first time in six years,” stated Carr.

While it may be a commendable feat for some, Concordia’s members should ask themselves: at whose cost was this achievement realized, if not the students’?

Operating under a larger deficit to ensure the financial safety and security of nearly 50,000 students during a global pandemic is not an unreasonable demand. Especially when such an operation runs at the detriment of both the financial and mental health of its students.

 

Feature graphic by @the.beta.lab

Categories
Student Life

Test our knowledge, not the bounds of privacy ethics

Taking an exam shouldn’t mean giving up your privacy

Concordia University’s OnLine Exam (COLE) system, which uses Proctorio’s technology, has received much backlash online, and rightly so. The platform helps to facilitate evaluations even if students cannot physically be present on campus, an unfortunate reality for many amidst our current COVID-19 pandemic world. However, by using Proctorio’s assets, universities are setting a dangerous precedent. One University of Dallas student journalist put it as “spyware cloaked under the guise of being an educational tool.” From knowing what tabs you have open, direct access to your camera and microphone, the ability to see what devices you have plugged in and eject them, it’s an unprecedented amount of power forced by universities onto already pressured students.

Before I go further, I want to emphasize that academic integrity is essential. Cheaters ruin our world, whether through traffic, shoddy quality goods, relationships, or taxes. Academia has a responsibility to protect itself against this, but not just because it hurts other students and our work. Ultimately, how we conduct ourselves in our schooling is how we approach our workplaces and our communities.

But enough is enough. The line was crossed months ago, and the excuse of COVID-19 simply isn’t good enough. These privacy concerns were already discussed at the start of the pandemic. In an April 7 Medium article, a former Bay Street lawyer (and Concordia alumnus), Fahad Diwan, broke down exactly how the university was violating student rights in a legal context. Shocker — he thinks it’s wrong and maybe even illegal.

“The use of Proctorio needs to be suspended until Proctorio can get manifest, free, and enlightened consent from students,” said Diwan in the post, “and Concordia University can demonstrate that online, closed-book exams are absolutely necessary.”

Well, that didn’t happen. The administration and faculties washed their hands of the controversy with the same excuse everyone is using — it’s COVID.

Let me ask my fellow educators and administrators — would you consent to this? Would you accept Concordia creeping into your computer, your files, your emails? And I’m not talking about your work machines. I’m talking about your personal tech because that’s what Proctorio does to students through their pervasive Chrome extension. Maybe you do because you have “nothing to hide.” And if that’s the case, I encourage you to post your login credentials publicly on your social media so we can all see why you are such a good netizen (please don’t do this — it’s against Concordia security policies, but also super stupid). This attitude is stunningly anachronistic that I feel genuine shame for those who utter it. Your computer, your phone, your tech IS YOUR BUSINESS.

But let’s go further: what if you were required to report your GPS location for every class you taught because the university told you they needed to verify where you were working for tax purposes? After COVID, what if they monitored when and where you were in the building because your phone automatically connects to Concordia’s wireless network? What if they said you needed to record all lectures and submit them to the university, where an independent team including students would assess if you were effective in teaching during your class discourse, as well as scanning for other problematic behaviour? What happens when you are required by Instructional and Information Technology Services (IITS) to install software that would monitor your productivity? What’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

These are no longer “what ifs.” They are WHENs. Like I said before, school environments dictate how we conduct ourselves in our communities and workplaces. By insisting students use these platforms instead of exploring alternative evaluation methods and being unwilling to show empathy for students, academia will receive the same fate. But what’s worse is that universities are setting up the digital prisons they so often rail against. How come Foucault’s panopticon, widely taught in the humanities, did not at least come up in the conversation when implementing this Orwellian spy apparatus?

I beg this: is it worth protecting against cheats if it makes you lose your soul? We’re not police officers —  we’re educators. We seek to empower our students, not wield power over them. Worse, we tell the world and every employer that these tactics are acceptable and to use them on the next generation of workers.

You might feel powerless in this situation. But students have the agency to resist. So, if you are taking exams this semester with COLE or with any system that uses Proctorio or other invasive technologies, fight back! Put a sign in your room or wear a T-shirt that says #ScrewCole or #ExamsNotProctology. It’s your right to free expression.

Before taking your exams, post photos on your social media and tag local media and journalists — encourage your friends and classmates to do the same. Because having to take a university exam shouldn’t mean your school gets to look through your life, digital or otherwise.

 

 Graphic by Taylor Reddam

Behind the open letter: an interview with Juliet Bartlett

The Concordian talks to student Juliet Bartlett about her open letter to Concordia’s administration

This past week, Concordia forums have been abuzz in response to an open letter posted online regarding the university’s approach to online schooling during COVID-19. The letter outlines complaints about a wide array of issues such as the lack of a pass/fail option, tuition breaks and support for international students.

The Concordian sat down with the author, third-year Intermedia student Juliet Bartlett, to discuss the letter and her intentions behind it.

TC: Your letter is extensive and very impassioned; what prompted you to write it?

JB: The letter was quite a few months in the making. It wasn’t just something that I typed overnight. It was inspired by months of talking and listening to students either via the [Concordia] subreddit or reading posts on Facebook or my own friends as to what their experiences were. I didn’t just want to write a letter based on what I was experiencing. I wanted to write it with everyone in mind and kind of capsule [sic] the frustration the student body is feeling at the moment.

TC: Concordia has many formal ways to communicate with administration. Why did you feel an open letter was the best format for your message? 

JB: Open letters are public, they usually embody something bigger than one person. If changes were to be made, they had to be public and they have to pick up traction. Concordia — I think a lot of students feel this way too — doesn’t make changes unless it is something bigger or that’s been on the slow burner for an extensive period of time. It was really important that it was public knowledge and that it was going past the student body and Concordia to make sure that we aren’t just going to sit and be silent and take this.

TC: You’re in Intermedia. How is Concordia’s approach to an online semester affecting you as a BFA student?

JB: I’ll prelude by saying this: I love my program, the people, the professors. But, as a fine arts student, it’s affecting me specifically because for most of my projects, you need a higher-end computer to run the software you need. Fortunately, I do have a good enough computer to run these programs. It is getting outdated though. Whereas, last year, we had the option to use either the Intermedia editing suite or the Centre for Digital Arts (CDA). There’s a lot of students that I have spoken with that aren’t as fortunate as me. They’re on a laptop that’s almost catching fire while they’re trying to run Blender. And especially for students that aren’t located in Montreal, even if [the department] were to open something, there isn’t really a way to get that equipment to them. So we need to consider fees and we need to consider costs, because tuition wasn’t lowered, we got a $17 discount. The CDA fee was waived, but how can you justify the cost of an $800, plus upgrade to your computer to run the software you need for school?

TC: What would you like CU admin to take away from your letter? 

JB: Number one, I hope that they read it in full. I hope it’s not skimmed. I want every word to be considered in my letter. Number two, I want them to know this isn’t out of spite. I wanted them to erase and forget this whole current ideal that’s been spun around by some people saying that students are lazy, students don’t care, they just want a pass and they want to cheat. That is not the point [of] my letter. What we’re trying to say is that it is a rough year. There are more issues than are being assumed going on behind closed doors with students.

The ones who were in university 20, maybe 25 years ago, maybe those employees who just started, remember what it was like when you started university. Remember the stress that you felt. Then, I want you to take away all those memories you had with your friends in first year. Take away all of the social outings you went to. Then, I want you to confine them to one small room with a computer, a webcam, Moodle frequently crashing and a heavier workload. Add a strong tiredness that is 24/7. Then, I want them to imagine that this is what their university tells them is fine.

TC: In the recent CSU by-election, students voted in favour of a pass/fail option, lightening course workload, and turning away from proctored exams, all topics you mention in your letter. Do these results give you hope or do you expect more of the same from the institution?  

JB: It doesn’t give me hope in terms of what the administration’s next plans are going to be. It does give me hope and empowers the idea of the letter, and the fact that the student body does agree with that and does want this. I think it’s pretty evident that we have wanted it since the beginning of fall term. I also don’t understand how the administration wouldn’t want to [implement] a pass/fail option. Everyone seems to be struggling — that I have spoken with. Everybody’s GPA is most likely going to take a hit. So, as a university, why wouldn’t you favour pass/fail, rather than having your overall university GPA drop? Because that is most likely what is going to happen.

TC: What would you say to other Concordians who want to have their voices heard on these issues? 

JB: I would strongly encourage them to write their own letter. Sit down and really think about the things you have felt this term, these specific things that apply to your faculty and school-wide. Be honest, and write a letter. We all need to unite, both the student body and professors, because this is affecting professors as well. We need to understand that we need to work together to make changes happen. The louder we are, and the more vocal and well-versed we can be in this, the better the outcome.

In response to the concerns laid out in the open letter, Concordia University replied in a statement:

“We understand the difficulties and frustrations that students and everyone are facing during the pandemic. Since the beginning of the pandemic, students’ success and well-being have been priorities for us and we have put in place a series of measures to help them through these difficult times. We have hired more teaching assistants, are loaning IT equipment to students, have extended the winter break, safely opened study spaces in the library or sent at-home kits for some courses, among the many measures taken. The university has also made significant technology investments to support the move to remote course delivery and assistance to faculty and staff, direct financial aid to students as well as online learning supports, increased on-campus health and safety measures, and stepped-up cybersecurity in a context where cyberattacks are proliferating. We will continue to further adjust to the situation and remain committed to the success of our students.

On tuition fees generally, please note that for the vast majority of students, tuition fees are set by the Ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur (MES) and are adjusted on a yearly basis. [For Quebec residents and out-of-province Canadian students, the government increased tuition for the 2020-21 academic by 3.1 per cent.]”

 

phoPo by Christine Beaudoin

Exit mobile version