New member, solidifying AGM agenda highlight the final board meeting of September
The UVSS Board of Directors met for just over two hours earlier this week to finalize the agenda for their Annual General Meeting (AGM), introduce a new board member, and update rules in their bylaws.
After the agenda was adopted, UVSS Director of Outreach and University Relations Jonathan Granirer moved the discussion into the first topic — voting on the approval of a new board member. Shayan de Luna-Bueno was quickly ratified as the new Student of Colour Collective (SOCC) representative, and the board went around the table to introduce themselves to their newest member.
Moving into In the reports portion of the agenda, Granirer noted that the Executive committee have discussed the upcoming AGM and signed a letter of support for the protesters atop Mauna Kea in the ongoing battle against the construction of the proposed Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT). For more information about UVic’s relationship with the TMT and the community’s response, check out the Martlet’s coverage here.
In question period, Natalie Blecha, the Society for Students with a Disability representative, asked Granirer when, or if, the board meetings will be live streamed as that meeting only the audio was broadcast. Granirer responded that they are looking into technology that will allow them to televise the meetings with subtitles, and currently they will continue recording and posting the audio of each meeting.
Transitioning into the main motions, UVSS Director of Finance and Operations Dakota McGovern motivated a motion that would see $9 000 move from the Major Capital Fund to purchase a new convection oven in the main kitchen of the SUB.
When asked if the oven could be fixed without purchasing a new one, McGovern responded that, “in a situation like this it could be costly to repair, and in the long run we may have to replace it.”
Granirer then put the motion to a vote, and it passed unanimously.
The next segment of the agenda regarded motions that would be added to the AGM agenda.
One of the first motions discussed was about paying a $50 honoraria per month for non-Lead Directors on the board. Granirer says it’s a move that allows for all students to become DaL’s, no matter their financial position — as currently Directors at Large and advocacy group representatives are unpaid.
“It’s quite a lot to ask for someone, without paying them any money,” he said while motivating the motion. “We should pass this motion to make this position accessible to all students at UVic.”
Blecha, however, countered that the $50 a month—with the total amount of hours she puts in for her job as SSD representative — would result in her being paid a little over $6 an hour.
Granirer responded by saying that’s all their budget could afford, and Shay lynn Sampson, UVSS Director of Events, supported Granirer by adding this could be a move that sparks change for a higher monetary compensations down the line.
In the end, the motion was eventually passed unanimously, and will now be voted on at the AGM on Oct. 24.
The board also passed a motion that would be placed on the AGM agenda to vote on the removal of a section of their bylaws requiring the UVSS to advertise their full agenda and times of AGM’s or referenda through printed mediums such as the university newspaper, but not without some controversy.
After Granirer said the notice rules were “outdated and unsustainable,” Blecha countered that it should be important to advertise in the school’s student newspaper.
With the meeting approaching the two hour mark, the board discussed the topic at length and again passed the motion unanimously.
Finally, the board passed a flurry of motions that completed the proposed AGM agenda, and opened the search to fill vacancies on various committees. The motions all passed with little disagreement before they moved in camera, cueing the Martlet to hit the road.
If you didn’t get enough of the two-plus hour affair earlier this week, the UVSS board will reconvene for their next meeting on Oct. 7.
