On Sept. 13, McGill’s Media Relations Office hosted a roundtable interview for student media with Celeste Pedri-Spade, the university’s first Associate Provost for Indigenous Initiatives and an Associate Professor of Anthropology. Pedri-Spade, who began her five-year appointment in September 2022, is an Anishinaabekwe (Ojibwe) and a member of the Lac[Read More…]
News
News, off and on campus.
Along Party Lines: Language education rights being debated as Bill 40 returns to court
Following the Quebec Superior Court’s ruling that portions of Bill 40—an education reform meant to transform the governance of English school boards—were unconstitutional, Premier François Legault publicly announced on Sept. 8 that his administration intended to send the case back to court. As of Sept. 15, their request for appeal[Read More…]
Floor fellows file grievance against McGill over poor working conditions
The union representing floor fellows at McGill, the Association of McGill University Support Employees (AMUSE), has filed a grievance against the university over changes to floor fellows’ accommodations. Floor fellows are upper-year students hired to live in residences and support the primarily first-year students living there, who are often new[Read More…]
QPIRG-McGill launches free textbook loan program
The Quebec Public Interest Research Group at McGill (QPIRG-McGill) opened registration for its newly-launched Free Textbook Loan Program on Sept. 11. The program, largely funded by the Arts Undergraduate Society’s (AUS) Arts Undergraduate Improvement Fund (AUIF), allows students to borrow textbooks donated by other students for free. QPIRG-McGill is a[Read More…]
SSMU BoD vote to fill VP Finance position temporarily
The Student’s Society of McGill University (SSMU) Board of Directors (BoD) gathered for their first meeting of the fall semester on Sept. 7. During the public session, they voted to elect Vice President (VP) External Liam Gaither to take over the VP Finance’s voting power. The responsibilities attached to the[Read More…]
PGSS says Bill 96 costs the society $7,000 per month, seeks monetary compensation
The Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) gathered for its first council meeting of the Fall 2023 semester on Sept. 6. Led by speaker Nora Delahaye, the hybrid session’s agenda included teaching assistants’ (TA) rights and Bill 96. The meeting began with a presentation from Kiersten van Vliet, a representative from the[Read More…]
Tribune explains: Unions and associations at McGill
McGill employs over 12,500 staff across its two campuses. There are fourteen unions and two associations that represent, support, and advocate for part- and full-time, academic and non-academic employees of the university. What are unions and associations? Unions bring workers together to hear their concerns and advocate for better working[Read More…]
McGill TAs allege $1 million in wage theft by the university
As McGill students returned to campus for the first day of classes on the morning of Aug. 30, they were greeted by food trucks and music on McTavish Street as part of the Association of Graduate Students Employed at McGill (AGSEM)’s rally for better contracts. AGSEM, the union representing teaching[Read More…]
SSMU VP Finance Alice Fang resigns
Alice Fang, who was elected Vice President (VP) Finance of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) last semester, left her executive position on Aug. 18. Fang handed in her formal resignation to the Board of Directors on Aug. 7, citing personal reasons unrelated to SSMU. The remaining executives have[Read More…]
Governance 101
McGill’s governance structures can seem opaque and difficult to navigate. The Tribune broke down the organizations that represent the student body and how they are governed, as well as how the university’s governance apparatuses work. The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) SSMU is the students’ union that represents all undergraduates[Read More…]
