Hello everyone! I hope you’re ready for the cooler weather and comfy sweaters that October brings!
September has been packed for OUSA. First, on the Home Office front, we have hired a new Manager of Communications, who began on Monday, September 22nd! Her name is Tobi, and we are thrilled to have her on board! If you’d like to learn more about her, please check out her introductory blog here.
Speaking of blogs, I published my first blog for OUSA this month, titled “Empathy: Our Greatest Superpower.” It came from a place of feeling disheartened about how bleak things sometimes seem — but also from my genuine belief that if we choose to exercise more empathy in our daily lives, we can contribute to real, meaningful change. If you have a moment, I’d love for you to read it here.
This month, OUSA’s Home Office and I have also visited four different campuses: Brock, Trent-Durham, Waterloo, and Queen’s! Thank you to the Brock University Students’ Union, Trent Durham Student Association, Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association, and Alma Mater Society for hosting us! We always love chatting with students about the work OUSA does and how they can get involved with our organization!
As well, Malika and I had an introductory conversation with the Council of Ontario Universities to discuss our current advocacy priorities, hear their focus areas for the year, and align opportunities for collaboration throughout the year. This was a great conversation, and we look forward to working more with them in the future!
Malika and I also met with David Wai, the Deputy Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security. Here, we shared our advocacy priorities for the year and had a robust conversation about work-integrated learning opportunities for students. We look forward to continued talks with Deputy Wai throughout the rest of the academic year!
In other news, OUSA has joined forces with Ontario Student Voices, the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations, and the College Student Alliance to form a coalition opposing Bill 33, the proposed legislation that would allow the provincial government more power over student fees. This would threaten the democratic processes that students already have to decide which fees they want to pay and would defund many critical on-campus services. If you’d like to read our joint open letter, please find it here. And if you’d like to learn more about the bill, please check out our recent Instagram posts, @ousahome! OUSA also participated in MPP Peggy Sattler’s Town Hall on Bill 33 to discuss concerns over the bill and the threat it poses to vital student services.
Steering Committee also got together at the end of the month for an in-person meeting. As usual, we had many robust discussions, and enjoyed catching up for the first time since mid-August! We also had the opportunity to engage in a fireside chat with a few OUSA alumni, as part of professional development. I know I speak for all of Steering Committee in saying that this was a lovely opportunity to connect with folks who understand the highs, lows, and stresses of the roles we’re currently in. Thank you Eddy Avila, Shawn Cruz and Julia Pereira for joining us!
Finally, on a less serious note — if you have not already, please check out JADE’s debut album, THAT’S SHOWBIZ BABY!. She is best known for being part of the girl group Little Mix, however, this is her first solo album. It’s excellent — and one of the best albums of the year, if I do say so myself.
In solidarity,
Sayak