SOGS January Council Summary

January 31, 2019

• Full January Council Package (includes reports and agenda).
• The SOGS Annual General Meeting will be on Tuesday, February 12^th, 6:00pm, North Campus Building, room 117. Bring your Western ID!
• The next council meeting will be on Thursday, February 28^th, 6:00pm, Middlesex College, room 110.
• Speaker’s Corner will happen before every council meeting, Thursdays at 4pm in the Grad Club.

Announcements:

• The SOGS Presidential Election campaigning period is now open. CRO, Madison Bettle is organizing a Q&A with both candidates on Wednesday, January 30 afternoon in MC 105B – time TBD. PLease watch for an announcement. The polls for voting will be online Feb 4-5. You’ll receive notice from the University Secretariat with a link to vote online.
• SOGS Annual General Meeting will be on FEBRUARY 12 in NCB 117 at 6 pm.
  • Councillors are not required to attend; Committee Chairs and Commissioners, however, are required to attend to present their reports.
  • All SOGS members are welcome to attend. Bring your WesternOne ID to check in at 5:30 pm.
• Does your department host wellness events or outings? SOGS offers the Wellness Joint Fund for departments to help support wellness events for graduate students on and off campus. http://sogs.ca/wellness-joint-fund/
• WINTER GAMES on University Hill event. Free! February 6 from 3:30-5:30pm. Snow person and snow angel making + hot beverages + winter fun and self-care.
• CFS will be at the Grad Club February 12 and 13 from 10am-4pm to meet with SOGS members and talk about their campaigns AND to issue ISIC cards.
• CFS will be hosting a COFFEE HOUSE event February 13 at the Grad Club from 5pm-8pm. Bring your poetry and spoken word!
• Tubing at Boler Mountain – February 23. TIME/COST TBA. Tickets will be made available in the SOGS office.
• Immigration Info Session with Mia Loebach-Readings, RCIC | Wednesday, February 27th 4:30pm – 6:30pm | UC 3110 Conron Hall | Online Registration to follow.
• SOGS members – Free tax filing through CFS : ufile.ca
• GPS committee – MC room 17, Tuesdays, 5:30-6:30pm.
• Dissertation drop-in – Fridays all day.

Motions – Summary and Outcomes:

VP of Finance Motion: The motion to approve the 2019-2020 SOGS and Grad Club budgets was passed by council. The full budget breakdown can be found in the council report appendix here. In light of the Ford government’s January 17^th announcement regarding student fees, councillors are encouraged to speak to fellow members about what SOGS is and provides, the awards they can apply for, the events they can attend, and the causes they can support.

Finance Committee Motion: The motion to accept the updated Finance Committee policy was passed by council. This update more accurately reflects the duties and responsibilities of the Finance Committee, acting as a useful template for future policy documents.

SOGS President Motion: The motion to strike an ad hoc committee to study SOGS’s structure and that of other graduate student societies in Canada, and for that ad hoc committee to maintain an arms-length relationship with the current executive while adopting the terms of reference outlined in the report, was passed by council. The committee shall have a maximum of eight voting members, elected from the SOGS membership by SOGS Council at the February 2019 Council. The SOGS Ombudsperson will act as ex-officio, non-voting member, and a committee chair will be elected amongst its members.

VP of Advocacy Motions: Two motions from the VP of Advocacy were passed. The first motion regarded writing a letter to the President, Provost, and Chair of the Board of Governors of Western in support of the project to development a general space for Indigenous graduate students. It is important for SOGS to take action and support the needs of Indigenous students, who should have a safe space on campus. The second motion regarded updating the Commissioner Bylaws, so Commissioners report twice per academic term, as well as report to the VP Advocacy prior to the Council package report submission date. This motion is to improve our current reporting methodology, keeping everyone in the process accountable.

Bylaws Committee Motion: The motion to include new Bylaws regarding Presidential nominations was passed. The Bylaws now reflect, In the event that a second nomination period is required for the presidential election, the online polling shall be conducted by the CRO, with assistance from the DCRO, no later than the third full week in March. No access shall be granted to the results of the on-line polling during the election, by any member or employee of the Society, with the exception of the CRO and the DCRO. The CRO and DCRO must verify daily that the on-line polling station remains operational, with the CRO taking ultimate responsibility.

This summary is provided to increase transparency, and to support Councillors in completing their obligations under Bylaw 2.3.5; “shall regularly communicate with his or her constituents concerning the activities, programs, and decisions of the Society”. If you have any questions, please contact our Communications Administrator (sogs.communications@uwo.ca) or the Speaker (speaker@sogs.ca).

As always, check out our website (www.sogs.ca) and follow us on Facebook (@Western.SOGS) and Twitter (@WesternSOGS) for communications, updates, and information about upcoming events!