The Tribune

Last Thursday concluded the Winter 2010 student fee opt-out period, which had begun two weeks earlier on January 14, and the current academic year has seen the highest level of opt-outs ever. Each semester McGill gives students a two-week window during which they can, through the online Minerva service, opt out of several fees that support Students’ Society and faculty association groups and funds, as well as a pair of independent student groups: the McGill chapter of the Quebec Public Interest Research Group (QPIRG) and Radio CKUT.

This past week, McGill hosted the 20th annual McGill Model United Nations conference, a series of simulations where delegates debate and draft proposals to deal with past, present, and future international issues. The four-day event opened with Canadian Member of Parliament and McGill alumnus Justin Trudeau’s keynote address, in which he encouraged students to be politically involved.

With a proposed 67 per cent funding cut for the upcoming year, McGill Athletics’ Level II teams will face some drastic changes in the near future. Funding for McGill varsity teams is based on a three-level tiered system. The 2010-11 McGill Athletics and Recreation budget proposal, released last week, would cut Level II funding by $147,871, making the total amount $73,163, compared to $221,034 last year.

Over 150 pain researchers and specialists participated in the 14th annual McGill Pain Day on Thursday, which was organized by McGill’s Alan Edwards Centre for Research on Pain and the Department of Anaesthesia. Held in the New Residence ballroom, the day-long event brought together students and researchers to discuss our understanding of, as well as the treatment and curing of pain.

The McGill administration’s decision to switch to a self-funded model for its Master of Business Administration program, which would forgo provincial funding by substantially raising tuition, has recently drawn criticism from the provincial government. McGill’s Board of Governors originally approved the switch to a self-funded program at a meeting in July.

In an effort to close a multimillion-dollar shortfall in the university’s budget, the McGill administration has introduced a small charge on all revenues received by the university’s self-funding units. These units, which include Students Services, Athletics, Food & Dining Services, and the residence system, operate semi-autonomously from the rest of the university, at least in a financial sense.

In response to the massive earthquake that struck Haiti last week, McGill student organizations and the greater Montreal community are rapidly organizing to raise money and contribute to relief efforts. With over 100,000 Haitians currently living in Montreal, the disaster has mobilized the city’s student community.