I apologize for the late reply...

The month of December was an interesting one in the UWSA Presidential office.  In November I was away quite a bit lobbying in queens park and then attending a CFS national meeting in Ottawa.  As such I got behind in emails, and then behind in projects until I was drowning in a sea of work I didn't know how to get out of.

Fed up with my inability to get back on top of my game I came in to work at 3am Monday December 15 and worked another one of those 24h work days until I was done answering all of my emails.  Most of the emails began with the quote "I apologize for the late reply" because the person had contacted me weeks prior and while I had made a mental note to reply it took a long time to get around to it.  

There is a constant demand to be on top of your game as the president.  I easily get 30 important emails a day (20 more spam), that all require concerted effort to reply and do the work requested in the email.  Meetings run all day rarely with breaks in between and before I know it, the day is over and it feels like nothing was accomplished.  

My breaking point came when I received my first UCAPT package (a committee which decides the promotion and tenure for faculty members).  It was the size of a large text book and I had to read and assess it in only a few days time.  I did not take this responsibility lightly, it was imperative that I represented students and did the best job possible on this committee.  Which by the way is only one of over 25 committees I sit on to "represent students".  

If I could summarize December, I would say it was the month that I picked up my life.  After I spent a week getting back on top of all of my work I was able to truly rest.  I spent time at home, cleaned my room, saw my family, did laundry, organized my personal life, got my personal finances together (My OSAP loans became payable in November :S)  and visited with my friends who I hadn't seen in what seemed like years.

I'm rejuvenated and ready for the New Year, hopefully I can STAY on top of my game now that I've got my act together.  

Queens Park

I apologize for the blog hiatus but I assure you it has been for good reason.  Last week I had the opportunity to participate in a provincial lobby conference with the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA).  

OUSA is a coalition of elected university student councils from across Ontario, 

Your new OUSA campus coordinator Laine McGarragle and I represented Windsor in several lobby meetings with members of provincial parliament and various post secondary education stakeholders (Council of Ontario Universities, Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations...).

We spoke about three main issues:  Student Financial Aid, Funding and Access to Education.  We spoke about the problems with OSAP that need to be addressed and the necessity for continued and greater investment in post secondary education from the provincial government.  We spoke of the need for government support of early outreach initiatives in their grassroots forms across Ontario.  

We shared the sentiment with OCUFA that "quality matters" and discussed ways in which we could work together on campaigns about quality education.

Perhaps the most interesting discussion that took place during the lobby conference was one with Steve Peters (the speaker of the house) about the necessity for there to be a united student movement.  Why is it that the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance and the Canadian Federation of Students can not work together?  It is the age old question, and Windsor just might be the only school with the ability to bridge that gap.  

I returned to Windsor that Thursday at 12pm only to discover that I was TRIPLE booked at 3pm for three very important meetings.  Since I am unable to clone myself it was a challenge addressing that issue.  

Lobbying at Queens Park was fun, but nothing beats a day on the job in Windsor.

The Co$t of an Appeal

Today was a good day.  

I entered the office just in time to make it outside for the Remembrance Day service and sing the Anthem.  I was honoured to participate in the service to pay tribute to those soldiers who gave their lives in wars past.

Early in the afternoon I was scheduled to have a meeting with President Wildeman to discuss unique Windsor related government funding issues and strategies to get them on the provincial agenda.  The meeting was short but quite effective.

Immediately after the brief discussion with Dr. Wildeman I made my way over Toldo 203 to prepare for the Senate meeting about to take place.  After weeks of preparation and heavy lobbying the day had finally come for the vote to take place for a proposed bylaw change.  A proposal was going forward to change the wording of bylaw 51 which originally read that Appeals would cost $20, and would change to "applicable fee".  

It was argued that such a change was necessary because the senate should not be setting fees and it was inappropriate to have a monetary amount in a bylaw.  

I am omitting quite a bit of information but it should also be noted that another body within the University that has no student representation changed the fee back in April to $35.

I busied myself handing out a document which I had prepared the night before to all of the senators and briefly explaining to all of them that the students were recommending that this motion be defeated.  Further, I requested that answers to the following questions be brought forward to senate:

1. What is the make up of the committee that will set this fee?

2. What will the ratio of student representation be on this committee?

3. What other fees does this committee set?

4. How many students were charged $35?

5. Since the bylaw was noticed have students since been charged the appropriate $20?

6. Can students who were wrongfully charged $35 be refunded the $15?

7. What is the rationale for changing the fee according to the working group?

8. Does unsuccessful appeal money go to a bursary/scholarship fund?

9. What is the process for appeal fees at comparable institutions?

In the end, the motion failed (meaning that the fee will remain $20).  And those students who were wrongfully charged $35 and had unsuccessful appeals will be credited $15 to their accounts!

Later in the evening I chaired a board of directors meeting at which many funding requests were vetted and the WUFA emergency fund framework was approved.  It should also be noted that money was set aside from the WUFA donation to be used for appeals this semester (please speak with Mohsin Khan vpuauwsa@uwindsor.ca to seek information for access to appeal money).

The next challenge we will face is actually implementing the Emergency Strike Fund distribution framework.  I'll keep you updated.

-Gooch

...comes great responsibility.

I attended the Afrofest event this evening in the CAW student centre and watched the American election develop on the big screen.  I was nearly brought to tears the moment when Obama and his family graced the stage in Chicago as the First Family (elect).  

As I soaked in the moment it dawned on me that this was merely the beginning of a long road for Obama.  He would be placed under close scrutiny and expected to do the impossible with the American political system.  I thought about the great responsibility that he now had to carry out the election promises that he had been preaching about for over a year.

This lead me to reconsider my position as President of the University of Windsor Students' Alliance.  I am at the half way mark in my term, how have I represented students thus far?  I took some time out to take a look at those election promises I spoke about during my own campaign back in March and carefully reviewed each point.  Am I carrying out my own campaign goals?  Am I living up to the expectation that students had for me when they voted me into this office 6 months ago?

There have been some great successes this year so far, but I have certainly lost track of a few key ideas I stood for when I was running.  I still have time to refocus my priorities though, and I have no doubt in my mind that I have the tools and experience to accomplish the goals I set out to accomplish when I was first elected. 

I desperately need some sleep before the long day of meetings I have tomorrow, but here is a snippet from a poem I discovered that a friend of mine (Crystal Patterson) wrote during the UWSA election last spring:

Alliance: A close association of groups, formed to advance common interests or causes

Using the power of information 

Gooch is here to restore communication

Bridging the gap between students and administration

 

Embodying Hillary & Obama - two forces in one

She brings, experience, change, & inspiration

 

Our university experience she hopes to advance

By bringing awareness she gives us a chance

 

To be involved in decisions that effect us each day

She’s providing a forum to hear what WE have to say

 

Equipping us with the necessary knowledge to progress

She’s bringing back the alliance to ensure our success

 

Celebrating the unique diversity at this school

Uniting our talents and using them as tools

 

I wanna see a President who is genuine and true

With the knowledge and integrity to know what to do

 

Who is involved on this campus in many different ways

With a variety of achievements – I want to be amazed

 

Because I want to see a president who will get the job done

Who will stop for nothing until we unite as one

 

And I'm tired of seeing presidents who accept the status quo

and do nothing to help our student alliance grow

I want a speaker who will say what needs to be said

There's no room to be silent when you are the head...

The 23h Work Day

Remember that kid in elementary school who always wanted to be ahead? They did their homework and then read the next chapter in the text book for no reason at all?  Well... I was that kid.  

Being ahead helps me feel like I am on top of my game, it is simply the way I operate.  I can't stand the thought of emails piling up unanswered or various unfinished projects sitting in my office.  Yet this is precisely the situation I have found myself in.  

Today I decided to end this situation.  I refused to leave my office until I was caught up and organized.

The morning began with back to back interviews for Afrofest workstudy candidates.  I admired the variety of skillsets the candidates brought and imagined how phenomenal the Afrofest team could turn out to be.  (I wish I had more time to volunteer).

Every moment I had to myself I spent answering emails and phone messages assisting with the organization of the Ontario Undergraduate Students' Alliance conference taking place next weekend.

Hannah Larking (The Lance News Editor) interviewed me for a couple of articles she was writing for next weeks paper.

After, I marched along the river with students supporting the Engineers without Borders "Make Poverty History" campaign.

Following this event Mohsin and I made our way to a meeting with Alan Wright the Vice President of Teaching and Learning to brief him as the guest speaker for the OUSA general assembly.  It was like Christmas in October when Dr. Wright ended up being an amazing choice for guest speaker having written papers on the very issues OUSA is currently researching.  Mohsin and I walked out of the meeting ecstatic about having an excellent guest speaker AND equipped with new mugs from the Teaching and Learning office.

I returned to my office and phoned Dr. Wildeman to see if he had chosen a song for me to sing at his installation service,  we brainstormed a few ideas and decided to have a final decision made by Saturday so I would have enough time to learn the song.  

At about 6:30pm it occurred to me that with all of the running around I did all day I forgot to eat.  Theresa Trad (the walksafe coordinator) and I made our way to the pub for dinner before heading to a play at Assumption University "Dead Man Walking".  The play was fantastic, it will also be playing on Saturday and Sunday so I recommend that you check it out.

After the play I returned to my office, and still felt swamped.  No matter how hard I worked, or how much I tried I was still behind and I decided not to accept this.  I stayed in my office until every document was filed and project was complete... this brought me to 7:30am.

It felt amazing to watch those dreadful piles of paper disappear into easy to access organized labelled folders.

I have the whole weekend to sleep now, and when I return on Monday I start with a fresh slate.

Enjoy the Weekend!  See you at the Finger Eleven concert!