Lengthy meeting touched on policy concerns, motions for upcoming AGM agenda
Photo by Belle White.
In an almost two and a half hour long meeting on Sept. 22, the UVSS board of directors discussed eight main motions.
The motions included an amendment to the Service Groups Policy, and a motion to add to the agenda of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) a vote that if passed, would result in the renaming of certain positions on the Board of Directors.
The land acknowledgement for the meeting was given by the Students of Colour Collective (SOCC) representative.
Agenda Amendments
The meeting opened with four motions to amend the agenda. The first was a motion to add a vote to the AGM agenda, which if passed would incorporate a decolonization policy into the issues policy. The decolonization policy would mandate ongoing actions to address the harms and barriers facing Indigenous peoples. The motion to amend passed.
The second motion was to add an amendment to the Service Groups Policy to the agenda. The motion passed with no opposition, and the amendment was added to the agenda.
The third motion to amend was to add to the agenda the approval or disapproval of the board statement for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The motion passed with all board members in favor.
The fourth and final amendment was to add to the agenda a motion to update the director’s reports. The motion passed with all in favor.
The amended agenda was then approved with no opposition, and the minutes of the previous meeting were amended to correct the name of a board member. The motion to amend passed with no opposition and the amended minutes of the previous meeting were approved.
At this meeting, there were no directors to ratify, no email motions to present, and no presentations or announcements.
UVic Appointment Committee
A motion was put forward by a board member to fill vacancies on the UVic Appointment Committee for the university’s President and Vice Chancellor, with an opportunity for board members to speak up to two minutes to provide “motivation” for their election when seats are contested. The board did not have any nominations for these roles.
Griffin Foster, Director of Outreach and University Relations, put his own name forward, and was appointed to the committee with no dissent.
Amendment to Service Groups Policy
A motion to amend the UVSS Service Groups Policy was brought forward. The service groups policy is the guiding framework for service groups — which are specialized UVSS departments that offer services and resources to students.
The motion was contentious, with some board members being opposed, citing community concerns and an email from an outgoing Anti-Violence Project (AVP) staff member which raised concerns with the amendment.
A staff member of the UVSS in support cited a perceived policy gap, which the motion would allegedly address, and the more than one year history of discussions and consultations surrounding the policy. Another staff member in support of the amended policy believed it addressed some longstanding concerns, such as those over the separate AVP and Peer Support Centre funding.
The vote originally came down to a 6-6 tie. Foster, the Board chair, was the tie breaker, and voted against the motion. There was a request for a second round of voting following Foster’s tie breaking vote. In the second round, Foster did not vote, and the motion was defeated 7-5.
After the meeting was moved in-camera, new information regarding the motion was shared, and the Board exited in-camera to hold a third vote on the motion, which led to the Service Groups Policy passing.
UVSS President and Vice-President
A motion was introduced to add to the AGM agenda a vote to adjust the duties and responsibilities of all directors, including changing the names of certain positions from “Director” to “President” and “Vice-President”.
This motion was the subject of much debate. Foster momentarily stepped aside as chair, and Lindsey Andrews, Director of Events, stepped in as interim chair.
Foster said this policy comes in part from comparison and consultation with other student unions across the country that have President and Vice-President roles, adding that a single identifiable leadership position, such as president, would guarantee accountability and provide a clear public image.
If passed during the AGM, the policy would take effect immediately after, Foster said.
A member of the board argued against the motion, stating that the terminology of “president” is hierarchical, and that having a president wouldn’t make pathways to accountability more clear. Another member also opposed the motion, arguing that lead directors were elected into their positions, and that switching up the positions mid year would not seem “at all accountable” to them.
Members of the board had concerns over the amount of policy changes this would require, and that the timeline was too short. Discussion for this motion carried on for almost one hour, but it eventually passed with a majority voting yes.
Other main motions
The motion to approve the statement for National Day of Truth and Reconciliation passed with no opposition.
A motion to add to the AGM agenda a bylaw policy adjustment, clarifying UVSS membership status for students enrolled in For-credit programs was introduced, and passed.
Another motion was introduced to add to the AGM agenda a bylaw policy that, if approved, would remove faculty representatives from the UVSS board structure and replace them with directors at large. The motion passed with no dissent.
There were two other motions to add on to the AGM meeting agenda. One proposed an update to the UVSS Issues Policy regarding anti-racism and another proposed a decolonization policy. Both motions passed.
Due to time concerns, a motion was introduced to strike the rest of the non in-camera agenda, which passed.
