Written by: Michelle Gomez and Henry Tran
Board to potentially apply a no-show fee on Clubs Days starting this semester
At the latest Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) board of directors meeting on Jan. 4, the board discussed whether to charge clubs a fee of $20 if they don’t show up at their booked table by 10:45 a.m. on Clubs Days.
At the moment, the board is finalizing the terms and conditions for Clubs Days and these will be made available to the public once it’s fully agreed upon. All conditions will apply to all student groups tabling at Clubs Days, including independent student societies.
According to Samer Rihani, acting president of the SFSS, it costs the SFSS about $15 to book a table and $25 to book a table along with a backboard for Clubs Days.
“For a club that has very minimal funding, [this new practice] can be enough of an impact. I think that as long as it comes with a kind of statement or an email at least warning people, [it can incentivize groups to show up],” said Rihani.
If there is an empty table on Clubs Days after 11:00 a.m., this table will be allocated to another club and clubs have up to 24 hours to change their table booking. Clubs Days is expected to take place from Jan. 15–23 for the spring 2019 semester.
Munchie Mondays
The board approved the motion to put $2,521.16 toward Munchie Mondays, which is an initiative that was started last year. It involves handing out free food on campus on Monday mornings outside MBC 2220, essentially to “provide breakfast to students who don’t have a chance to eat,” said Russell Dunsford, environment representative.
The program will go through a trial period of one month (the first four Mondays of this semester) and then will be re-evaluated by the board to determine whether to continue. If deemed successful, the program can then be extended on either a weekly/monthly/semesterly basis.
Announcement of SFSS Women of the Year Awards
The Women of the Year Award is a new initiative by the SFSS that recognizes exceptional women in the SFU community. A draft document sent from the SFSS to The Peak says that “the purpose of these awards is to recognize outstanding student efforts to create a climate that encourages women to succeed at Simon Fraser University.”
Nominees must be self-identifying female undergraduate students in good standing (in terms of paid tuition and fees, not academic standing).
There will be a nomination period where students can nominate peers in each faculty that “demonstrate a commitment to creating an equitable campus environment,” according to the draft document sent to The Peak by the SFSS.
The pool of nominees will be narrowed down by an external committee to 3–5 women from each faculty. From this, students will vote for one winner from each faculty, for a total of eight winners. Among other prizes, the winners will win a ticket to see Michelle Obama in Vancouver.
