Written by: Mahdi Dialden, News Writer

The refund and course drop deadline 

According to SFSS President Osob Mohamed, students had complaints regarding confusion around the date for refund and course drop deadlines. 

VP of University Relations Gabe Liosis said that “this isn’t the first time this happen[ed], and it is frustrating for students who are scrambling to withdraw from their class or are just unaware of these types of deadlines.” 

Some students did not get a chance to attend their first lecture due to technical issues with recording and posting lectures or the Scholar Strike protest, but were expected to drop their courses by September 15 for a full refund. 

Mohamed added, “Giving students one week to figure out if they are going to be successful in that course is not nearly enough time.”

The Board will discuss this further at the Joint Operations Group meeting and hopes to extend the deadline for future semesters. 

SFU Esports presents the gaming lounge in the Student Union Building (SUB)

SFU Esports, a student-led club that hosts social events, tournaments, and viewing parties for a variety of games, joined the meeting to discuss future proposals and plans for the gaming lounge in the SUB. 

They discussed the high student engagement they’ve been resonating with since the switch to remote learning. For instance, tournaments ranged from 80 participants to 256. 

The Board asked about the plans to avoid sexual harassment and ensuring safety in the lounge. According to SFU Esports, hiring a part-time lounge manager is a potential option, as well as having volunteers from SFU Esports to ensure the safety of students and equipment in the lounge. 

It was discussed that a working group, led by VP Finance Corbett Gildersleve, would be formed to work closely with SFU Esports to discuss budgeting, equipment, and hiring options. 

Potential event to keep students updated about the SFSS

The Board spoke about an event informing and engaging members of the student body about the SFSS and what’s going on. This event will differ from SFSS Board meetings and would present what the SFSS is working on, how to get involved, and would include an “interactive portion where students can ask questions.” 

A potential semesterly event is in the discussion and would entail a Facebook event or a Zoom presentation. 

There was no decision made regarding the topic, but will be followed up within future meetings. 

The next SFSS Board Meeting is scheduled to take place on October 2, 2020.