Second Report of the University and Academic Affairs Coordinator

The month of June was very quiet at McGill. Senate and the Board of Governors are in recess until September, and most committees are also taking a break. Instead, I spent most of the month planning for next year. What follows are some of the activities I was involved in:

Committee Reports

On of my principal tasks for the month was to make contact with all external committee reps. I would like to receive end-of-year reports from all external committee members by the end of this month. I will compile the reports and publish them as soon as possible. If I've already received your report, thank you!

Executive Retreat

The annual executive retreat is an opportunity for the incoming executive committee to work with the outgoing exec on directions for the new year. We discussed what went well last year and what didn't, and set some goals for the year. We had some fun, too. :-) Among my goals for the year is one of maintaining strong communication with the external committee reps. I also hope to revive the Senate and Graduate Faculty Caucus, and increase communication with the Board of Governor's rep.

PGSS/FGSR Seminars

I am hoping to work with the FGSR on running a series of seminars and workshops at Thomson House, designed for graduate students to obtain information and skills in such subjects as dealing with their supervisor, writing fellowship applications, and obtaining career information and guidance. I have met with Dr Crago and Claude Lalande from the Fellowships Office in order to explore the possibilities for these seminars.

Equity Commissioner

One of Stephen Dery's last acts as UAC was to draft a proposal for a PGSS Equity Commissioner. The exec has been discussing this issue on an ongoing basis, and I have also met with SSMU UA Clara Peron to discuss their proposal for a similar position. In the fall I hope to bring the proposal to Council for further discussion.

Transcript Options

At the last council, we passed a resolution indicating our support for an undergraduate student who has filed a grievance concerning the requirement that all of our programs be reported on the same transcript. In my meeting with Dr Crago I indicated to her our position on this issue, and she indicated that she would look into it. I have also discussed the issue with Clara Peron and SSMU President Wojtek Baraniak.

Meetings

Looking ahead

I tie the knot in Toronto on July 14th. (!) As such, I'll miss Council on the 5th. Wish me luck! See you in September.

Robert Sim, UAC