VPI MONTHLY REPORTS

2018 – 2019

Jaleen Mackay vpinternal@ufvsus.ca 604-864-4613 ext. 4189

Abstract Dive into the exciting world of C&A, governance, and finance — one day at a

time.

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AAC – Accessibility Advisory Committee AVP – Associate Vice President (of SUS) C&A – Clubs and Associations (of SUS) SUS – University of the Fraser Valley Student Union Society TLC – UFV’s Teaching and Learning Centre UFV – University of the Fraser Valley VPE – Vice President External (usually, of SUS) VPI – Vice President Internal (usually, of SUS) VPS – Vice President Students (usually, of SUS)

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Schedules Pst! If you press control + left click, it will bring you to the relevant page.

May 2018................................................................................................................................................................................ 3

June 2018 ................................................................................................................................................................................ 3

July 2018 ................................................................................................................................................................................ 4

August 2018 .......................................................................................................................................................................... 4

September 2018 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5

October 2018 ......................................................................................................................................................................... 5

November 2018 ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6

December 2018 ...................................................................................................................................................................... 6

January 2019 .......................................................................................................................................................................... 7

February 2019 ....................................................................................................................................................................... 7

March 2019 ............................................................................................................................................................................ 8

April 2019 .............................................................................................................................................................................. 8

May 2018 Report................................................................................................................................................................... 9

June 2018 Report................................................................................................................................................................. 10

July 2018 Report ................................................................................................................................................................. 10

August 2018 Report ........................................................................................................................................................... 11

September 2018 Report ...................................................................................................................................................... 13

October 2018 Report .......................................................................................................................................................... 14

November 2018 Report ...................................................................................................................................................... 16

December 2018 Report ....................................................................................................................................................... 17

January 2019 Report ........................................................................................................................................................... 18

February 2019 Report ........................................................................................................................................................ 20

March 2019 Report ............................................................................................................................................................. 20

April 2019 Report ............................................................................................................................................................... 20

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1 1 Planning

2 Teaching and Learning Centre 2

3 3

4 4

5 5 Policy work

6 6 Meetings

7 Extended move out for select C&A 7 Meetings

8 8 Emails

9 9 Emails

10 10

11 11

12 12 Meetings, emails

13 13 Emails

14 14 Meetings

15 15 Receipt reconciliation

16 16 Receipt reconciliation

17 Director’s and Officer’s Training 17

18 18 Meetings

19 19

20 20 Work on goal plan

21 21 Joint Executive Meeting, meetings

22 Studentcare conference 22 Interviews, meetings

23 Studentcare conference 23

24 Studentcare conference 24

25 Studentcare conference 25 Policy work, goal plan

26 Studentcare conference 26 Policy work

27 27 Policy work, interviews

28 Emails 28 Meeting with UFV VP Academic

29 Follow-up EGM, meetings 29

30 Meetings 30

31 Meetings

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1 1 Cleaning and administration

2 2 All-team Meeting

3 [Vacation] 3

4 [Vacation] 4

5 [Vacation] 5

6 [Vacation] 6 Policy review

7 7 Policy review

8 8

9 [Vacation] 9 Roundtable with Ed Fast

10 [Vacation] 10 Emails

11 [Vacation] 11

12 [Vacation] 12

13 Policy work 13 Sexual violence policy review

14 14 Emails

15 15 Smart Communities Abbotsford

16 Policy work 16 Meetings with UFV Executives

17 17 Emails

18 Brochures, policy work, meetings 18

19 Policy work, meetings 19

20 Emails 20 Meetings

21 21 Emails

22 22 Policy review and training

23 Research 23 Sexual violence policy review

24 Policy work 24 Orientation preparation

25 Policy work 25 Phone calls

26 C&A Meetings 26

27 Emails 27 Orientation training

28 Emails 28 Board of Directors Meeting

29 29 Orientation preparation

30 Filing and archiving 30 Orientation meeting

31 Board of Directors Meeting 31

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1 1

2 2 Joint Executives Meeting

3 Emails 3 Meetings

4 Orientation 4 Policy research

5 Chilliwack U-Pass admin 5 Data analysis

6 Policy review 6 Emails and research

7 Preparing documents 7

8 8 Emails

9 9 C&A registrations and paperwork

10 Emails 10 C&A registrations and paperwork

11 Policy review 11 C&A registrations and paperwork

12 Payroll review, Fund Requests 12 Gayme Day

13 Meeting with UFV Executives 13

14 Phone calls 14

15 15 Emails, C&A paperwork

16 16 Mayoral Candidate Platform

17 17 Meetings

18 Meetings 18 Meetings

19 Fund Request policy 19 Emails, C&A paperwork

20 Fund Request documents 20

21 Fund Request policy 21

22 22 Emails

23 23 Meeting with UFV VPA/VPS

24 Fund Request policy 24 Meetings, C&A paperwork

25 Fund Request documents 25 Board of Directors Meeting

26 26 Policy work

27 Board of Directors Meeting 27

28 28

29 29 Emails

30 30 Policy work, U-Join Winter 2019

31 Halloweenie

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1 AAC Meeting, policy preparation 1

2 Gayme Day II 2

3 3 Office Hours

4 Emails 4 Office Hours

5 Fees Committee, SVP 5 Office Hours

6 Rexall Flu Clinic, Remem. Day 6 Office Hours

7 Meetings, presentation prep 7 Office Hours

8 IPK100 Presentation, C&A meeting 8

9 9 Office Hours

10 10 Coffee and Cookies in Chilliwack

11 11 Coffee and Cookies in Abbotsford

12 Emails 12 Coffee and Cookies in Abbotsford

13 Audit review 13 Policy work

14 C&A documentation, filing 14

15 C&A paperwork 15

16 16

17 17 Board of Directors Meeting

18 18 Policy work

19 Emails 19

20 Joint executive meeting, schedules 20

21 Meeting with UFV VPA/VPS 21

22 Board of Directors Meeting 22

23 Office Hours 23

24 24

25 25

26 Office Hours 26

27 Office Hours 27

28 Office Hours 28

29 Office Hours 29

30 Office Hours 30

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6 6

7 U-Pass Distribution in Chilliwack 7

8 Policy work 8

9 Policy work 9

10 Policy work 10

11 Policy work 11

12 Emails 12

13 13

14 Referendum and Fees Meeting 14

15 Policy work 15

16 SVP ALP 16

17 Meeting with Conner Spencer 17

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20 20

21 Policy work 21

22 Meeting with UFV VPS 22

23 Policy work 23

24 Policy work 24

25 Policy work 25

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Detailed reports May 1 – 29

Clubs and Associations (C&A) The C&A moveout date was observed on April 30th. Some additional items were found in the office, but have since been returned to owners.

Teaching and Learning Centre (TLC) As I was finishing my time as acting VPE and the incoming VPE was still transitioning into their role, I took on a meeting with the TLC.

We discussed the development of a group study guidebook that would outline a standardized grading rubric for group work at UFV. We expect to hear back from the TLC in August.

When the VPE is ready, I will transition into a supporting role with the development of the guidebook, allowing the VPE to take strategic lead while I provide policy/bylaw advice.

SUS Surveys I still haven’t had the opportunity to draft an information agreement with UFV’s Institutional Research and Planning (IRP) department.

Similar to my work with the TLC, I hope to transition and pass on these responsibilities, which belong under the VPE portfolio.

Development of mission, vision, and value statements A key takeaway from both years of our Director’s and Officer’s (DnO) training was the suggestion that each organization should have well-developed mission, vision, and value statements.

I hope to draft these statements in consultation with the student body. I intend to launch a test survey in August for student input.

Extraordinary General Meetings (EGMs) Our first EGM was scheduled for Tuesday, May 22nd at noon and failed to hit quorum.

Our second, follow-up EGM was scheduled for Tuesday, May 29th at noon and failed to hit quorum.

We had hoped to discuss rejoining the Alliance of British Columbian Students (ABCS). We were limited in our options for scheduling the EGM, particularly after our EGMs in February 2018. Failure to reach quorum in summer semester is common between SUS and other student associations.

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May 30 – June 26

Clubs and Associations (C&A) I met with a few C&A to discuss their concerns regarding elections. I believe all concerns to be resolved to the best of our ability.

SUS Surveys I hope to assist the VPE in finishing the information agreement by the end of July.

Development of mission, vision, and value statements I am prototyping suggestions for mission/vision/value statements and will work with the Board of Directors to prepare suggestions for the test survey in August.

Interviews We interviewed applicants for the Administrative Assistant position. We hope to have a full-time staff member working at the front desk around August. Adding a full-time, well-trained staff member to this role will hugely boost Executive productivity, particularly in VPI portfolio.

Transition I have concluded my transition out of the VPE role. The new VPE and VPS have been prepared to assume my prior responsibilities.

June 27 – July 31

Vacation Barring thundershowers and a chance of tornados, I had a nice vacation and am ready to continue my work.

C&A Policies I am beginning my comprehensive policy review with C&A Policies, particularly the Fund Request Policy and the Club/Association Policies.

Changes will focus on:

• Financial accountability • Clarification of the role of SUS in the day-to-day operations of C&A • Removing unenforceable clauses

I hope to have drafts finished soon for presentation to the board.

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Proposals to Senate I held a seat on the AAC during my time as acting VPE. At the last meeting in April, I committed to presenting policy changes to Senate.

These policy changes would make it mandatory (or highly suggested) for instructors to mention the Priority Access to Student Services (PASS) Program in the syllabus and on the first day of class, increasing visibility for the program and helping struggling students get the urgent help they need to succeed.

To that end, I channeled one proposal to two committees of the UFV Senate: the Undergraduate Education Committee (UEC) and the Senate Governance Committee (SGC). I have been watching the minutes and agendas for each committee, but have not yet seen an update.

July 18th UPDATE: My proposal has been reviewed, or at least referred to a subcommittee within the senate as of June 12th. I will be continually monitoring the agendas and minutes.

Accessible powerpoints Another commitment from my seat on the AAC was investigating open-source textbooks and powerpoints written with universal design principles. In October, though I will likely be handing off my seat to the VPE or VPS, I intend to present my findings on each.

August 1 – August 28

Supporting other roles I have provided in-meeting administrative support to the VPE and other types of administrative support to the VPS.

Mission, vision, and values survey The results from the survey were predominantly supportive. Roughly 70% of people that took the survey agreed with the draft mission, vision, and value statements.

Common requests included

• more student feedback on large initiatives • more political engagement opportunities for students • more inclusion and diversity within SUS and the student body • more social events and workshops, hosted by SUS

Requests included a diversity of opinions, such as increased and decreased spending in similar budget lines. Few requests were related topically to the question posed.

Summary graphics of the survey follow.

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SUS Survey I have fully passed on the responsibilities and next steps for the SUS Survey to the VPE. I am still providing administrative support, historical context, and other guidance where requested.

UFV sexual violence policy I have been working in tandem with the VPE to score UFV’s sexual violence policies. We hope to discuss our results with key partners and continue this important work in collaboration with them.

C&A Overhaul I have been working on huge changes to the C&A system for presentation to the board. These changes have required extensive rewriting of SUS documents. So far, I have rewritten/drafted the following documents:

1. Fund Request Policy 2. Fund Request Policy changelog 3. Fund Request Procedure 4. Fund Request Form 5. Example Fund Request Form with annotations 6. C&A Registration Form 7. Example C&A Registration Form with annotations 8. Club and Association Policy

I expect that I will not be able to finish these documents in time for the start of September. It takes a long time to prepare documents that are well-written. Even more important is the element of accountability with policy changes: writing the changelogs for each policy is especially slow work.

August 28 – September 27

Orientation I assisted the VPS with elements of Orientation (for new students), including the preparation of a floor plan for a “Chill Zone.” Though the plan was not used, it laid a foundation for hosting relaxed videogame and board game events in the future.

I also prepared and presented workshops with the VPE. Our two presentation topics were financial management and sexual violence on campus. We discussed challenges for students and had productive, open dialogues with students.

UFV sexual violence policy The VPE has continued their work with the sexual violence policy. I will be offering administrative support to the VPE in upcoming meetings and dialogues around the policy.

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C&A Overhaul The documents are nearly finished. I hope to have them done by the end of today, September 25th.

I would also like to write and distribute a survey to C&A regarding feedback for the Fund Request policy, procedures, and other documentation. I believe that many C&A don’t understand why some policy decisions are made, or why there are administrative tradeoffs to certain decisions. I would like to empower C&A with that information and engage their opinions as stakeholders.

I need to finish 8 documents first.

UFV Student Life consultation Student Life has requested that I distribute a survey to C&A. The survey is intended to provide information on C&A interests for better facilitation of workshops and other events that support C&A. I will be releasing this survey when the C&A overhaul documentation is ready.

Empower Me Empower Me is a service provided in partnership with our health and dental plan provider, Studentcare. SUS launched the service in September 2017. It provides access to counselling via phone, email, and online chat. We hope to integrate it with the UFV Counselling Department to provide a continuous chain-of-care for students. Our next steps include meetings between SUS and UFV’s VPS.

This program and our surrounding initiatives are part of a much larger discussion about supporting student wellness on campus. I strongly hope that we can work with UFV to support students in clinical and subclinical contexts.

September 28 – October 25

Gayme Day I planned and executed Gayme Day in the SUS Pride Centre. The event was a hit with over 20 attendees. I expect it will become biweekly programming.

Mayoral Candidate Platform The VPE organized a debate between the Abbotsford mayoral candidates, all of whom were able to attend with the exception of Mr. Braun. I helped put together some of the policy questions. Since the VPE was ill the day of the event, I moderated the conversation and posed questions to the candidates.

The event was well-received by attendees.

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Halloweenie I helped the VPS execute the event by hosting the speed friending and moderating the trivia questions. There were a few dozen visitors for the hotdogs (read: weenies) and other snacks. I estimated about 35-40 people participating in the speed friending.

C&A Policy and Documentation Review I’m still (as always) in the process of reviewing C&A policies and documentation. I’ve already produced examples for all forms. I’ve also been pleasantly surprised by the quality of documentation I’ve received from C&A since changes were introduced in September. Having typewritten (rather than handwritten) documentation has highly expedited processing speeds.

Based on feedback and my observations, I see the following next steps:

• We need more explicit “best practices” documentation o E.g., ask for receipts; pre-fill envelopes; etc.

• We need to revise the website to make it easier to navigate o This is part of a much bigger and ongoing discussion regarding the SUS website

• We should examine funding options for groups of students (as opposed to registered SUS C&A) to receive funding

• As before, I’d like to continue working on my survey regarding C&A policies o I’ve put together some case studies to better examine student opinions o I’d also like to ask IRP for some guidance on the wording and format

I’ve also been reviewing policies from other student unions across Canada, examining specific clauses on

• Loan, bridging, grant, or reimbursement models • Amounts provided per event • Amounts provided per year or academic term • Conditions for receiving funding • Types of initiatives (e.g., cultural, religious, entertainment) • How many people manage the system (e.g., count the VPIs) • When are applications received? • How does sanctioning work?

There’s a lot of data, so I expect this project to be ongoing for another month or two at a minimum.

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October 26 – November 22

Fees Committee At the November meeting of the Fees Committee, I strongly opposed increases to the Experiential Learning and Wellness Fee. I feel that students are not given enough information regarding the actual spending of the ELW. I am concerned that this fee, which collects substantive amounts from students each year, is not serving students in “experiential learning and wellness.”

We have been provided aggregate budgets and will be requesting actuals. We want to better understand what students are paying for with this fee.

Gayme Day II We hosted a second Gayme Day, this time in the Canoe lounge. The turnout was good and having more space made the event much more comfortable.

C&A Policy and Documentation Review I have received some phenomenal reporting from the AVP. Small and large student unions across Canada have been neatly tabulated. Most of the data is qualitative, so it will require some working before generalizations can be made about other policies.

My next project is drafting and distributing a survey about specific case studies in C&A policy.

AAC Meeting Before transitioning out of the VPE portfolio this past year, I agreed to attend another AAC meeting in the Fall semester. I attended this meeting with the VPS, who will be taking my seat within the committee. I strongly believe that SUS should be a leader and advocate for accessibility at UFV. It is my hope that SUS’s continued involvement in the committee will be educational for SUS and especially helpful for all students with accessibility needs.

Rexall Flu Clinic I worked with Studentcare to plan and execute a flu clinic. This clinic, operated by Rexall, had no out-of-pocket costs to students. I strongly believe that this programming should become a regular feature within SUS: it’s not often that students can access something for free with immediate and tangible benefits.

IPK100 Presentation I was invited to give a presentation on SUS, university life, and services available to students in a section of IPK100 along with the VPS. We discussed a wide variety of topics, including how to get involved with SUS and other governing bodies within UFV. I hope that SUS will have more opportunities to educate and inform students similarly in the future.

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Audit Review We have received our audit results from MNP for the 2017-2018 fiscal year, which will be brought to the board.

Elections I will be discussing the promotion of elections with our Senior Manager, Marketing and Services as well as our Executive Director. I’m confident that thorough marketing and well-advertised deadlines will increase participation in our upcoming elections.

Policies and Bylaws I’ve been struggling to balance policy and bylaw review with C&A paperwork. A very large portion of my time (~25-30% of each week) is spent on answering C&A questions and reviewing documentation. I would still like to survey students on draft bylaws before presentation at an upcoming AGM.

Specifically, I’d like to review the following:

• Should the composition of the board be academic (e.g., faculties), non-academic (e.g., first year; accessibility; people of colour; etc.), or a mix?

• How can we make it easier for students to get involved via our policies and bylaws? • How can we use technology (like our softwares and website) to better convey our policies? • How can we create a robust system for tracking policy changes?

Most of these questions seem to have answers that are time and resource-intensive. Hopefully, surveys and discussions with students will help shape a more accessible, accountable, and easy-to-understand bureaucracy within SUS.

Sexual Violence Policy (SVP) I assisted the VPE with researching SVP and annotating related documents. We prepared a great deal for a meeting with UFV’s Student Life department. The VPE is lead on this project, so I will continue to provide any auxiliary support required.

November 23 – December 17

Angel Tree Program I helped erect the Angel Tree and put up cards in Chilliwack.

C&A All external communication responsibilities for the C&A portfolio have been moved to the Vice President Students. I am excited to focus more on internal affairs.

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Coffee and Cookies I distributed coffee and cookies at the Chilliwack and Abbotsford campuses. It was really nice to spend time with Trades students.

December 18 – January 31

Elections The timeline has been secured for the upcoming election and all work has been transitioned from my portfolio to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO). A thoroughly detailed marketing calendar is ready for launch in February: in theory, everything should run like clockwork.

Annual General Meeting I am scheduling and planning for our Annual General Meeting (AGM) in March. There are some scheduling challenges, especially around conferencing or other travel plans, but we’ll be doing our best to hit quorum on the first try.

Policy Review Over the next three months, I will be reviewing and revising all 40 of our policies. I am excited to improve our back-of-house operations and make these policies more digestible for the public. As a side note: I’m working hard to ensure that the new policies have appropriate formatting and contrast to be viewed with a screen reader. If all goes according to plan, our new documentation will be much more accessible to people with vision impairments.

Many of our existing policies will be condensed into three new documents:

1. Budget policy 2. Board of Directors policy 3. HR Manual

Major highlights from existing policies include review of the

1. Teleconference policy 2. Fund Request policy 3. In-camera policy 4. Responsibilities of a Board Member policy 5. Vacation [. . .] policy 6. Committee policies

More changes will be coming in February and March.

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February policies (tentative)

1. Contingency Fund policy 2. Surplus policy 3. Endowment Fund policy 4. Investment policy 5. Inflation policy 6. Insurance policy

I’m hoping that revision to the Fund Request Policy will be the last for some time: it has seen several revisions over the past two years and we’ve collected a lot of data on its usage since 2014. One of the most exciting changes focuses on the targeted demographic: I want to open up use of funds from just C&A, to all students. If we make this change, all students can benefit from the pool they’re all paying into. I also hope that the change will increase the variety and quality of these funded initiatives.

Referenda and Fees Work has begun on referendum questions for SUS and fee structures are being re-examined in existing fees.

Board of Directors Reform I have prepared a survey on reforming the SUS Board of Directors. The major focus of the survey, aside from educating students, is inquiring about the desired composition of the Board. Specifically, I wanted to examine whether students believe the board should have an academic, sociocultural, or general focus.

I’m confident that changing the Board composition will increase engagement. There are often large academic barriers for students that are taking preparatory courses or changing programs.

Hopefully, the feedback from this survey can be used to direct bylaw reforms in the March AGM.

UFV Experiential Learning and Wellness (ELW) Fee UFV is unresponsive to repeated requests for ELW actuals. We have tight timelines in fighting this fee, especially due to UFV’s budgeting process, which gave us little opportunity to respond. As before, I am strongly opposed to UFV’s collection of this fee as part of a commensurate tuition increase. The tuition increase has some merit and reasoning behind it. The ELW increase that accompanies it, on the other hand, is suspect.

I am thoroughly disappointed with UFV’s unwillingness to disclose their spending of this fee. Is this fee, netting roughly $630,000 in the 2018-2019 fiscal year, actually supporting experiential learning or wellness? I remain unconvinced.

We have made requests — now is the time for demands. Continuing my work from the November 5th Fees Committee, I will find UFV’s ELW spending and secure that information for students.

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Sexual Violence Policy (SVP) I have been attending meetings and working through UFV’s SVP with the VPE. Preliminary discussions have begun with UFV’s VPS and members of their department. I also worked with the VPE and activist Conner Spencer to draft an action plan for UFV.

I am unimpressed by UFV’s handling of our requests and suggestions regarding SVP. The more I work UFV officials, the more I feel that they are deliberately working towards the bare minimum of legal compliance. I have come to expect condescension, antagonism, and unsound rationale from our liaisons. This process, left unchecked, will systematically silence survivors and future victims of sexualized violence.

I will continue supporting the VPE in their efforts for advocacy at UFV.

January X – February X

February X – March X

March X – April X