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When you hear the word “radical”, what kind of images appear in your mind? Many different things perhaps, but it’s probably accompanied by a great deal of apprehension or even fear. It’s no wonder why, since many people today use it as a synonym for, or coupled with, “extreme.” Combining this “extreme” connotation with its usage in political contexts makes for a very scary word indeed. Turning on the news or listening to public discourse, you will regularly hear it used as a pejorative for factions or political actors that are opposed to the talking head you’re watching. “We simply can’t support these radical positions; they’re completely outrageous!” and so on and so forth. Well, I’m here to tell you that “radical” has been treated quite unfairly by our modern discourse and that radical solutions to the many critical problems we face today may not be so “radical” after all.

Hi and Happy Black History Month!

Within a blink of an eye, we are already through the second month of the year.

To start off OUSA's birth month, we launched the What is OUSA? campaign on social media. First, our Action Plan, which outlines the organization's annual goals, was published. Our summer internship applications opened and concluded, and we are excited to see who the new team will be. We also held a campus sweater giveaway in recognition of our 32nd birthday and our 3 winners were contacted! Finally, our campus visits reel series is now available for viewing on Instagram - this was a fun way to connect with students and listen to their concerns around OSAP and insights on post-secondary education!

We are all authors and storytellers. Following along with the pages and chapters, opportunities and barriers of our lives; a time before, during, and after this moment, and every other moment. My story, not dissimilar to yours, began inside a glass house, witnessing the unfolding dynamics around us. Uniquely, my story underscores that we carry a sacred duty to connect with our heart. Through this we possess limitless potential, striving for a collective liberation, rooted in the cultivation of wisdom.

Hey, hi, hello! 

Happy New Year dear friends! I hope 2024 has been treating you well thus far, and only continues to be as fulfilling.

Sreenidhi Jaganathan, OUSA Summer 2022 Research Intern present Should You Care? Cultural Sensitivity, Access and Community in Care at Post-Secondary Institutions.

As I enter the 4th and final year of my undergraduate journey, I am left pondering my countless career-induced meltdowns, as the post-graduation navigation of jobs is overstimulation at its finest. Although it seemed like an isolating process where only I could possibly be contemplating what to do after my time at McMaster, it was oddly comforting to see my peers in political science face the same dilemmas. 

One thing about political science students: they will do their very best to look like they got it all figured out, no matter the costs.

Hello friends!

November has been a whirlwind of events after events.

Firstly, the Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health (CICMH) hosted their annual conference where I got to co-host and where OUSA once again had the chance to present. Our brilliant RPAs, Octavia and Ananya, as well as our superstar MSU representative, Abby, facilitated a session on the mental health experiences of marginalized students in an evolving social-political climate. We were thrilled to see over 120 attendees at their presentation, and appreciate all the hard work of the CICMH staff in their planning and execution of the event!

Hi wonderful people,

I hope your days have been filled with care. It has been a while and a LOT has happened…

I want to begin my update by acknowledging the loss of our friend, Stephanie Ye-Mowe. I am sincerely thinking of my colleague, Steph’s family, friends and loved ones during this time. Stephanie was an amazing advocate and friend, who was strongly committed to amplifying the student voice and had an incredible intellect to match, carrying a critical lens in all the spaces they interacted with. We miss Steph dearly, and are always thankful for what they brought to OUSA and our lives.

Another successful General Assembly (GA) is in the bag for OUSA!  This fall GA, we gathered at Wilfrid Laurier University in Kitchener-Waterloo where student leaders spent four intensive days discussing and approving student-written policy papers. The conference brought together all of our member schools in person with the new addition of the Ontario Tech Student Union, taking our membership slate to represent nine schools and over 160,000 students in Ontario! The excitement from seasoned GA delegates and some of the nervousness of 1st time-goers made for a riveting weekend with laughter, hugs and inside jokes.

OUSA is deeply saddened about the passing of our former board member and VP Finance, Stephanie Ye-Mowe. 

Steph was a fierce champion of student-led advocacy, and stood up for students with conviction, passion, and an intersectional view of how robust policy could best address the diverse needs of students. She made immense contributions to OUSA, always thinking about and acting on ways to improve our work and organization as a whole. They encouraged their peers to think critically about the decisions guiding OUSA’s work and kept students’ best interests at the forefront of everything they did.