the
PRESIDENT’S PAGE
Nick Shorten
VP (Finance)
Mary Koziol
President
Joe Finkle
VP (Education)
John McIntyre
VP (Administration)
MSU attends OUSA fall General Assembly
Highlights of the bi-annual meeting include lectures from oppositional government critics,
as well as discussion of specialized universities and the proposed Ontario Online Institute.
Joe Finkle
VP (Education)
[email protected]
ext. 24017
This
past
weekend,
delegates representing the
McMaster Students Union
(MSU) attended the General
Assembly of the Ontario
Undergraduate
Student
Alliance (OUSA). The General
Assembly is the highest
governing body of OUSA,
responsible
for
long-term
direction for the organization.
OUSA is a provincial lobby
organization that is comprised
of seven member schools;
McMaster, Waterloo, Wilfrid
Laurier, Western, Windsor,
Brock and Queen’s.
In total, OUSA represents
over 140,000 students to the
provincial government and
post-secondary
education
stakeholders.
This year’s fall General
Assembly was held at Brock
University. On the agenda
were three policy papers, two
government submissions, as
well as a discussion as to the
future policy direction of the
organization.
On Friday, two guest
speakers poignantly articulated
their vision of post-secondary
education to the Assembly - the
critics of Training, Colleges and
Universities from the both the
Ontario New Democratic Party
and the Ontario Progressive
Conservative Party, Rosario
Marchese and Jim Wilson,
respectively.
Both spoke bluntly about
their parties’ PSE priories and
delegates responded by asking
some tough questions on
issues ranging from university
accountability, to promoting
internationalization,
to
ensuring the accessibility and
affordability of a post-secondary
education.
Throughout the weekend,
delegates were separated into
one-hour breakout sessions
to discuss the three policy
papers, future policy and
student success. The morning
was spent critiquing OUSA
policy
on
International
Students, Accessibility, and
Student Financial Aid. The
afternoon was dedicated to
Student Success, future policy
and a continuation of Student
Financial Aid.
These
comments
and
concerns were taken to the
Steering
Committee
(of
which I am a member), who
applied them to the papers.
The conference ended with
a long, but very productive
plenary session, which saw
the papers and submissions
debated, discussed, amended
and finally approved. They are
now official OUSA policy and
will be the backbone of our
lobby efforts at the end of the
month, when representatives
from each OUSA school will
meet in Toronto to speak
with provincial politicians and
sector stakeholders about postsecondary education.
The
government
submissions approved by the
General Assembly focused on
the Ontario Online Institute
and Academic Transformations.
The first submission made
recommendations as to the
look and feel of the proposed
new Ontario Online Institute,
as well as how the Institute
could provide the best quality
education for students wishing
to utilize the system.
The idea behind this
institute was put forward in the
government’s Throne Speech
and OUSA has been leading
the way in shaping the debate
Research funding
opportunity provides
a career test-drive
USRA awards students the chance to take
on an invaluable summer research activity
John McIntyre
VP (Administration)
[email protected]
ext. 23250
The
Undergraduate
Student Research Awards
(USRA) provides undergraduate
students in all faculties (and
the Arts & Science program)
with the opportunity to receive
funding to complete a 15
week full-time, research-based
activity over the summer. This
opportunity offers students the
chance to obtain meaningful
summer employment within
their academic field.
As a student that has
taken advantage of research
opportunities throughout my
time at McMaster, I cannot
urge you enough to apply for
programs like this.
Many students these days
find themselves applying for a
Master’s degree in their field
because they lack the practical
experience to know whether
or not their potential career is
a good fit. Programs like the
USRA help students figure that
out, by providing the avenue to
validate a potential career choice
and actually contribute to an
important pool of research.
This past Wednesday,
the 2010 USRA Award
recipients gathered in CIBC
Hall to display their research
accomplishments from last
summer.
The projects ranged in
scope from gene regulation,
to analysis of the stigmatising
social effects of HIV/AIDS, to
the decision making power of a
school of fish.
As an organization that
represents students from all
corners of campus, this program
is particularly meaningful to
the MSU, as it helps to enrich
the student experience at
McMaster.
Applications for 2011
USRA Awards need to be
submitted at the beginning
of February, so drop by your
Associate Dean’s Office and
empower yourself to apply your
education this summer.
The President’s Page is sponsored by the McMaster Students Union.
It is a space used to communicate with the student body about the projects,
goals and agenda of the MSU Board of Directors.
www.msu.mcmaster.ca
on the issue. The submission
on Academic Transformations
refers to a book published by
the Higher Education Quality
Council of Ontario (HEQCO)
regarding an issue called
Differentiation. This term
refers to the specialization of
universities into distinct niches
(research focus, undergraduate
teaching focus, etc). The content
of the submission remains in
closed session, as was formally
requested by the Office of the
Premier.
The assembly also approved
a policy that will be presented
at the OUSA spring General
Assembly which includes;
Aboriginal Students, Ancillary
Fees, Early Outreach and Cost
Inflation.
I myself am focusing on
ancillary fees, so if anyone
would like to help me out with
the exciting world of ancillary
fees, please drop me an email.