Last week, OUSA wrapped our annual Welcome Conference (WelCon)! Each year, WelCon allows Steering Committee (SC) to spend a week with Home Office, get more familiar with OUSA, begin planning for the year ahead, and elect the Executives! This year, WelCon was hosted in Keene, where we were lucky enough to take in the scenery at Rice Lake in between the many meetings and training sessions.
WelCon began with presentations facilitated by Home Office, providing SC with a comprehensive introduction to OUSA’s work to prepare them for the year ahead. These included OUSA 101, an overview of the organization’s research and policy process, operations and conference planning, and communications work. SC also examined their and Home Office’s leadership styles with a DISC assessment, laying the foundation for enhanced collaboration throughout the year. Day one concluded with a campfire social, complete with charades, telling stories, and stargazing.
Throughout the conference, SC held multiple brainstorming sessions to begin generating ideas for this year’s advocacy and organizational priorities. In the same way that SC members change every year, these conversations are important to ensure that OUSA is advocating on priorities that reflect the current landscape of Ontario’s post-secondary sector. The decisions made during these sessions inform the key priorities that we present to MPPs, sector stakeholders, and decision-makers.
To inform these sessions and better prepare SC for the year ahead, they also had an Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (EDIA) training session facilitated by Zanab from Bettering. During this session, Zanab and SC members had a generative discussion of the importance of employing a margin to centre framework in advocacy, the impacts of cost of living on students in Ontario across income brackets, and the ways they can employ thoughtful strategies amidst austere times. We also had an open discussion about OUSA’s Indigenization strategy, generating ideas for moving towards our organizational goals.
On day three, after continuing some work on the organizational priorities, the Executive elections took place. We’re excited to announce the results:
- President – Rory Norris, VP Government Stakeholder Relations WUSA
- VP HR & Administration – Timna Habta, VP Government Stakeholder Relations WLUSU
- VP Finance – Aisha Mahmoud, VP Education MSU
Congratulations to the new executives! We’re looking forward to working together this year to advance OUSA’s advocacy priorities and keep Home Office’s logistics running smoothly.
The final day consisted of SC’s first official meeting with the elected members, before we all said our goodbyes and headed home. Every year, we cherish this opportunity to get to know our new board of directors as they spearhead the organizational and advocacy directions for the coming year! Stay tuned for introductory blogs in the coming weeks, where you’ll get to know more about each member of SC!
SC's first official meeting!