Advocacy

  • Gene Baines
  • No Comments

SU Club Award Winners
SU Club Award Winners 150 150 Gene Baines

Hello UCalgary,

As the semester winds down, we celebrate the winners of our annual Club Awards. These awards honour clubs that have raised the bar in categories like advocacy, sustainability, and engagement. We also introduced a brand new Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) award. This year’s winning clubs are:

  • Advocacy Award – Winner: Man-Up for Mental Health
  • Future Alumni Network’s SU Club Award for Alumni Engagement – Winner: Haskayne Consulting Club
  • Best New Club – Winner: American Sign Language Club
  • Campus Pride Award – Winner: Students Against Domestic Abuse Association
  • Club of the Year – Winner: Schulich Ignite
  • Collaboration Award – Winner: Global Development Society
  • Community Service Award – Winner: Birthday Wishes
  • Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Award – Winner: Business Pride Club
  • First Year Engagement Award – Winner: Physics and Astronomy Students’ Association
  • Innovation Award – Winner: Autism Awareness Club
  • Leadership Award – Winner: The Mustard Seed, U of C
  • L.O.V.E. Award – Winner: Mental Health Awareness
  • Quality of Education Award – Winner: Information Security Club
  • Student Life Award – Winner: Nigerian Students’ Association
  • Sustainability Award – Winner: Emulating Nature in Innovations

We also awarded $1,000 each to ten outstanding student leaders, through the Eric Lahoda Scholarship.

Check out a video of this year’s winning clubs and learn more about awards criteria here.

Fines-for-Food Success

During the last week of March, we announced a pilot program with UCalgary’s Parking and Transportation Services called “Fines-for-Food”. From March 22 – 29, 50% of all U of C parking fines collected were redirected to the SU Campus Food Bank. This program was a huge success, and we are excited to announce that over $5,500 was raised for the SU Campus Food Bank. Thank you to everyone who participated, and to Parking and Transportation Services for partnering with us on this great program!

Clean out your fall/winter locker
Make sure you clean out your locker by Thursday, April 29 (even if you have a spring locker). If you leave anything behind, you’ll be able to retrieve it at a cost of $10/bag at Bound and Copied. Unclaimed items will be donated to local charities. Please visit our website for more information. If you need a locker for the spring or summer semesters, they’re available on your Student Centre now!

Consign your used textbooks

If you need to get rid of some of those textbooks from your locker, consign them and make some money. Bring your used textbooks to the consignment window at Bound and Copied, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Check out Bound and Copied’s website for more information.

Good luck with your final projects and exams – you’ve got this.

All the best,

Frank Finley,
President,
The Students’ Union

Follow us!
Facebook/Twitter/Instagram

  • Michael Brown
  • No Comments

Advocacy Blog – February 2021
Advocacy Blog – February 2021 150 150 Michael Brown

February was a busy month for SU advocacy culminating with the release of the provincial budget towards the end of the month. Throughout February the SU met with university officials as well as provincial elected officials to advocate for students.

The SU is continuing its work towards a permanent Credit Received (CR) option for students. While the SU has had small advocacy wins with CR options for students in the fall and winter semester, the SU continues to drive towards a permanent CR option. This is relatively commonplace in Canadian universities and we remain committed to getting this over the finish line for the 2021 fall semester.

The SU is also working with UCalgary to support the SU Campus Food Bank. Students who have parking fines to pay may be able to put a portion of payment towards the SU Food Bank. More details to come on this!

Provincially, SU staff and executives worked with our CAUS counterparts from other institutions to protest post-secondary cuts and increased tuition. Students built 300 snow penguins at McDougall Centre since students cannot currently gather in a more traditional protest. The penguins carried signs highlighting stories that the SU and CAUS have heard directly from students. In these stories students highlighted challenges finding work, paying tuition, and supporting their family while going to school. The event was picked up by multiple major media outlets. Check out that story.

In addition, the SU President and VP External met with Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides ahead of the budget and received an update on the Alberta 2030 initiative. While details from the Minister were still scarce, the SU was relieved to learn that university governance will remain with the institution rather than go to a provincial superboard. President Frank Finley and VP External Marley Gillies also called on the Minister to implement some form of summer job program specifically targeted at post-secondary students. Last summer nearly one-third of UCalgary students surveyed were unable to find summer employment while another 12% had summer opportunities cancelled due to the pandemic.

Lastly, the SU responded to the provincial budget released on February 25. The asks the SU put forward to government were that student jobs program, a reversal or at least a stop to cuts, continuing funding for student mental health, and to re-implement the tuition tax credit. The UCP government did none of these things.

The cuts to UCalgary continue, there is no student job program, and, while the Minister says the mental health funding continued, he was unable to tell student leaders how much money was earmarked and for how long. You can read our news release here but as the release says “silver linings in the budget were non-existent.” The SU was again successful in speaking to media about the budget and its student impact. You can see some of those stories here.

  • Gene Baines
  • No Comments

First year students… have you voted yet?
First year students… have you voted yet? 150 150 Gene Baines

Hello first years!

Voting days are here, and the polls are open. I know for many of you, this will be your first ever SU Election. So here is a quick version of what you need to know.

Election for what?

The SU holds an election every March to determine who will be your student leaders for the next cycle (from May until next April, 2022).

Why should I bother voting?

I get it – you’re asking, “what does the SU even do?” Well, believe it or not, the SU has a profound impact on your student experience. We operate Mac Hall, advocate against unfair tuition increases, and host hundreds of events and programs each year.

Just in the last few weeks, your current SU exec successfully advocated for a CR/F option for your winter grades, and worked with our partner schools from across the province to apply public pressure through media to the Alberta government to freeze cuts to post-secondary education.

Ok you convinced me… how do I vote?

It’s so easy, I promise. First, check out all the candidates’ platforms here to see who is running and what matters to them. Then log into your Student Centre at my.ucalgary.ca to cast your vote! You can literally vote from anywhere, right up until Thursday at 4 p.m.

The election results will be announced on Thursday evening on the SU’s social media, so make sure you follow us @SUUofC.

 

All the best,

Frank Finley,
President, Students’ Union

Follow us!
Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

  • admin
  • No Comments

Excellent teachers and SU election candidates
Excellent teachers and SU election candidates 150 150 admin

Hello, UCalgary – I hope you enjoyed your well-deserved time off. I’ve got a few quick reminders for you as we near the end of the month.

Teaching Excellence Awards: nominations are due this Friday

If your professor or TA actually let you relax over reading week, it might be time to nominate them for an SU Teaching Excellence Award! I know that there are so many deserving instructors this semester, and you can help us recognize them by filling out a quick online form. The deadline for nominations is this Friday, Feb. 26, so please make some time this week to let us know who they are, and what makes them so excellent.

SU General Election: get to know your candidates

This is the time of year that you get to select who represents you at the SU. Check out all the candidate platforms to learn about who is running, and attend one or more of the public forums this week to see them in action. The forums for the presidential candidates and the new vice presidents will be streamed on Facebook Live, Feb. 23 – Mar. 1. See our social media for details.

Voting days are March 2 – 4 in your student centre (my.ucalgary.ca).

Tax Season

Finally, while the Volunteer Tax Program clinic remains closed, we’ve got lots of suggestions for other free and low-cost services to get your taxes done this semester. Visit our Volunteer Tax Program page – the deadline to file your 2020 taxes is Apr. 30.

Good luck on your second round of midterms – I’ll be in touch soon!

All the best,

Frank Finley, Students’ Union President

Follow us!
Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

  • admin
  • No Comments

Advocacy Blog – January 2021
Advocacy Blog – January 2021 1400 450 admin

As classes started for the winter semester in January, the SU was busy continuing its advocacy efforts to all three orders of government and university administration. 2020 presented new and unique challenges for student and academic life. 2021 appears as though it will be no different.

The SU always wants to hear from students about your ideas on advocacy and what you need to navigate your studies during the pandemic. Please reach out to the SU if you have ideas or need support.

At the university level, the SU continues to advocate on tuition, fees, and student costs. The SU successfully advocated for a ‘Credit Received’ or CR option for students who may have a course where they would prefer not to have a letter grade in the fall semester, and were able to secure the same option for early in the winter semester. Students who receive a C- or better may convert that grade to a CR which wouldn’t count towards their GPA. We are currently working on having the university offer this option permanently – we expect this change to be announced by the end of this semester. In addition, the SU has successfully made sure that online exam proctoring will not be used by the university. However, individual professors may still be using this software; if that’s the case please contact the SU.

The SU continued its government advocacy by meeting with several elected officials individually to bring student concerns forward. This included an introductory meeting with Calgary MP Jasraj Hallan who met with the SU to discuss student mental health and student jobs and internships.

The SU met with Minister Copping who is the provincial Minister of Labour and Immigration. Minister Copping also represents the University of Calgary and surrounding area in the Legislature. The SU advocated for a student summer job program to help UCalgary students find work over the summer months. Last summer near one-third of UCalgary students surveyed said they couldn’t find a job at all or had a position cancelled due to the pandemic. The SU is working hard to ensure more opportunities for student work this summer.

The SU also supported awareness efforts on the cuts to post-secondary education from the provincial government and subsequent increases to tuition. Through the Council of Alberta University Students (CAUS), our colleagues in Edmonton created a snow penguin army of 800 penguins carrying signs asking the government to freeze the cuts.

SU VP External Marley Gillies also participated in a drive by protest outside the Advanced Education Minister’s Calgary office. The event raised awareness of and called for an end to the severe funding cuts by the province.

Early in January, the SU also held its annual Calgary Leaders Dinner. This year’s event was reimagined as the Calgary Leaders Dialogue since it couldn’t be held in-person as usual. SU Executives and SLC members spent time talking to Calgary elected officials from the three orders of government. In total, 18 elected officials attended and Councillor Druh Farrell acted as keynote speaker. The elected officials discussed student issues such as tuition, mental health, and transit while also providing tips to student leaders on how best to advocate and build solid relationships with governments.

If you have questions or concerns about these initiatives or have ideas on what the SU should pursue on behalf of students, again, please contact us.

[button link=”/contact”]Contact Us![/button]

  • admin
  • No Comments

Our Statement on Anti-Asian Racism
Our Statement on Anti-Asian Racism 150 150 admin

We at the University of Calgary Students’ Union are concerned of many of the recent acts of hate in our city and country. Anti-Asian hate crimes, in particular, have seen a sharp rise in both Calgary and Canada. Further, this past weekend in Calgary, a Muslim woman was physically assaulted, a man using a wheelchair was attacked as he confronted anti-mask protestors, and anti-mask protestors wore antisemitic imagery as they marched through Prince’s Island Park. We categorically denounce these acts of hatred and stand in solidarity with all those experiencing acts of prejudice and racism.

While anti-Asian hate crimes have risen massively with the pandemic, the pandemic did not signal their start – these issues are deep-rooted in our society. Further, we fear it can be easy for some to compare Calgary or Canada to other places in the world and believe that these issues do not exist here. To do so would be dangerous and wrong.

These acts of hatred serve to divide us, at a time when solidarity is most needed. We must stand together to fight against these nefarious issues and to ensure everyone feels safe in our university and city.

It is not radical to believe that one should not fear for their safety because of their religion, skin colour, ethnicity, sexual identity, or ability.

Beyond statements, it is important to take action and stand up for others when we see acts of hatred being committed. We encourage any student who believes they have been mistreated or discriminated against at the University of Calgary to contact us and the university’s Ombudsperson. A full list of our anti-racism work and resources can be found here.

We stand with those fighting against prejudice and racism at UCalgary and in the rest of our society. Students have been at the forefront of many social movements, so let us fight for a future we can proud of.

  • admin
  • No Comments

News on CR/F for Winter 2021
News on CR/F for Winter 2021 150 150 admin

Hi all, SU President Frank here.

I wanted to update everyone on the status of Credit Received/Fail for the winter semester. As you know, we had the option for CR for one course in fall, but I wanted to ensure that something was in place this semester as well. While there is work being on done on a permanent policy that will allow students to take CR for a certain proportion of courses during the course of their degree, this policy will not be ready for approval until late March.

Since I believed it was important for students to know their options as early as possible in the semester, I recommended that we either push the policy forward, or put in place another temporary policy. An hour ago, I got out got out of the committee meeting in which the status of CR/F for winter was decided, and I wanted to share the news with everyone.

This semester, students will have the choice of a CR grade option for one course as follows:

  • Undergraduate students may request a CR grade for a single course where the final grade is a C- and above. A single course can be one of a 3 unit, 1.5 unit, 1 unit or .75 unit course.
  • Graduate students may request a CR grade for a single unit course where the final grade is a B- and above. A single course can be one of a 3 unit, 1.5 unit, 1 unit or .75 unit course.
  • May 14, 2021 is the deadline for students to request the CR grade for a Winter 2021 term course.
  • A course where the CR is applied will not count towards a student’s GPA.
  • This may be applied to courses scheduled during the Winter 2021 term (regular, block week, non-standard)

I hope that this CR grade will relieve some stress for everyone. Even if you don’t have any intention of requesting a CR grade, I think it’s nice to have in your back-pocket just in case.

ALSO, your hundreds of letters to university admin last semester in favour of CR/F were amazing, and certainly helped this discussion to continue. These CR/F policies are not insignificant wins and could not have been delivered if students did not make themselves collectively heard!

Frank Finley,
SU President

  • admin
  • No Comments

Big News on CR/F for Winter, Elections, and Events
Big News on CR/F for Winter, Elections, and Events 150 150 admin

Happy February, UCalgary, 

If you felt like January dragged on forever, you’re not alone! I’ve got a few updates on what the SU has been working on this semester. 

Big News on CR/F for Winter Semester 

I am pleased to announce that the U of C will extend CR/F to include the current semester. 

While there is work being on done on a permanent policy that will allow students to take CR for a certain percentage of courses during the course of their degree, this policy will not be ready for approval until late March. Since I believed it was important for students to know their options as early as possible in the semester, I recommended that we either push the policy forward, or instate another temporary policy. Yesterday, this temporary policy was implemented. 

These CR/F policies are not insignificant wins and could not have been delivered if students did not make themselves collectively heard. Your hundreds of letters to university admin last semester in favour of CR/F were a major factor in this decision. 

Read the full details here. 

Other Advocacy Updates  

Advocacy continues on a number of fronts, including work on flexible exam windows, quality of academic instruction, and the continued ban on proctoring. On governmental issues, we have been pushing for affordable student monthly transit passes, increased financial support for students, and support for student employment over the summer months.  

SU General Election 

Are you a leader in the campus community? Would you like to be? Think about running in the upcoming SU Elections. The SU is a great place to gain professional experience, connect with your faculty, and influence university policy. Curious about running but not sure if it’s for you? Everything else you need to know, including the positions available, can be found on our website. Nomination days are next week, Feb. 8 – 10.If you have more specific questions about running, you can also book an appointment with one of our Chief Returning Officers.  

Sex Week 

Not interested in student politics? How about sex? UCalgary’s annual Sex Week is coming up next week, Feb. 8 – 12. It’s a great opportunity to have all your questions about sex, love, relationships and so much more answered. Check out the schedule of events and other resources on our website. 

Teaching Excellence Awards 

We know that profs and TAs have had a challenging year, just like all of us. They have had to work extra hard and get extra creative to help students learn from a distance. But we also know that students have noticed – last semester, we received a record number of Teaching Excellence nominations from UCalgary students. So do you have a prof that has been going the extra mile this semester? Or a TA that makes it worth getting up for an 8 a.m. lab? If you do, make sure you nominate them for a Teaching Excellence Award. Complete a short online form and we’ll make sure they know their extra effort is appreciated. 

SU Survey – last call 

Have you taken the SU Survey yet? There are two good reasons to do it: (1) We use your feedback to improve our programs, services, and advocacy every year. (2) You could win one of ten $100 Amazon gift cards. The survey closes this Friday, Feb.5, so take it now and tell a friend. 

Not that anyone’s counting, but as of today you’re only 9 days away from Reading Week! Hang in there – you’ve got this! 

All the best, 

Frank, President
The Students’ Union

  • admin
  • No Comments

Welcome Back: Take the SU Survey, Join a Club, Check out our Advocacy! 
Welcome Back: Take the SU Survey, Join a Club, Check out our Advocacy!  150 150 admin

Hello, UCalgary, and welcome back to the winter semester.  

In case we haven’t met yet, I’m Frank Finley – your Students’ Union President. I’ve got some information that you might find useful as you ease back into these next few weeks.  

Take the SU Survey 

First up – Take the annual SU Survey now and enter to win one of ten $100 Amazon.ca gift cards. I want to hear your thoughts on the SU’s programs, services, and businesses – we want to make them even better, but we can’t do it without your help. Past survey data has influenced everything from payment options at Stor to funding for new study spaces. It only takes 10 minutes – take the survey now.  

Clubs Week Virtual Fair 

Speaking of new friends, there are more than 300 clubs that are part of our SU family! This semester, we are hosting over 100 clubs each day at our virtual January Clubs Week on ClubHub from Jan. 19 – 21. The event will be live from 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. each day. Drop in and say hi – there’s bound to be one (or more!) clubs that’ll be a perfect fit for you.  

Advocacy Notes 

Moving into this new semester, we have a number of ongoing advocacy initiatives. We have been fighting for various academic regulations, including the continued prevention of proctoring, flexible exam windows, and the ability for students see all questions of each exam in D2L during their exam times. Further advocacy at the municipal and provincial levels includes continued efforts to increase student financial support, demands for increased investment in student mental health, and work to hold our government and university to account. 

Run in the SU General Election 

Have you ever thought about taking on a leadership role at the SU? The SU General Election is coming soon. Official nomination packages will be available at the end of the month – but in the meantime, we’re regularly updating our election webpages with important information and deadlines. Want the details about what it’s like to campaign? Need insight into the life of an SLC member? You are welcome to check out our tip sheets, make an appointment with one of our CROs, or attend one of our Pre-Election Workshops from Jan. 19 – 29!  

Bound and Copied Used Textbooks 

Finally, are you still working out which books you are going to pick up, and hoping to save some cash? Bound and Copied is open for consignment and in-person shopping. Drop by from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, lower level of Mac Hall. 

Stay safe, UCalgary. See you in a couple weeks!  

Frank,

President, The Students’ Union
The University of Calgary

  • admin
  • No Comments

Advocacy updates and URS Research Week
Advocacy updates and URS Research Week 150 150 admin

Hello UCalgary students,

I’m Frank Finley, your SU President. I’ve got a few quick updates for you on our advocacy efforts and some upcoming events that are happening around campus.

Advocacy Updates

Earlier this week, UCalgary held a tuition town hall to announce proposed increases to tuition and fees. We have heard your voices on social media and saw the remarkable student attendance at this town hall, and we will represent you at the Board of Governors meeting on Dec. 11 when these increases are put to a vote. It is our belief that there is no worse time to raise tuition than during the largest crisis of our lifetimes, and we continue to fight against increased costs to students.

In other news, the UPass program will continue to be on hold for the Winter 2021 term. Discounted Calgary Transit ticket books are available to current UCalgary students at the Campus Service Centre, Main Campus Bookstore, and Foothills Medical Bookstore with your UCID. You can direct questions about this program to campusservicecentre@ucalgary.ca.

Other ongoing advocacy is focused on CR/F for fall and winter 2021, an extension of the add/drop/swap deadline, an extension of time off in the winter 2021 semester, and quality of online academic instruction.

URS Research Week: Nov. 23 – 27

The 15th annual Undergraduate Research Symposium is happening this week. This year’s event is a virtual showcase of undergraduate student research from all faculties, hosted here on YouTube. Forty-eight undergraduate researchers have submitted short video presentations, and are competing for $23,000 in prizes and scholarships. Judges have been busy adjudicating these presentations, and the awards will be announced on Wednesday, Nov. 25.

Stress Less in December

We know this year has been stressful, to say the least, so we have collected a series of quick, easy de-stressing activities that you can do at home. Watch the SU’s Instagram for no-bake holiday recipes, crafts, and even some special guests (hint: if you’ve been missing Fitness in the Space, your instructors have been missing you, too!) Stress Less runs from Dec. 1 – 11 on Instagram stories.

Textbook Consignment

Are you ready to say goodbye to some old textbooks? Bound and Copied can help you turn them into cash. Bring your used textbooks to the consignment window at Bound and Copied, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Are you already thinking about 2021? So are we.

Clubs Week We are excited to announce that January Clubs Week will be held virtually through our ClubHub platform from Jan. 19 – 21. Each club will have their own virtual “table”, and event participants will have a chance to chat with participating club executives over Zoom. Watch our social media channels for more information over the next few weeks.

SU General Election

Have you ever thought about taking on a leadership role at the SU? Official nomination packages will be available Jan. 25 – but in the meantime, we’re regularly updating our election webpages with important information and deadlines. Want the details about what it’s like to campaign? Need insight into the life of an SLC member? Stay tuned to social media and our website for dates of pre-election workshops in January.

Holiday Closure

The SU offices and Bound and Copied will be closed after Friday, Dec. 11, and will reopen on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021.

Good luck on your exams! You’re only a few weeks away from a well-deserved break.

Frank

President, The Students’ Union
The University of Calgary

 

Start Typing