theconcordian Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011
life Staycations: There’s no place like home P. 10
music Colin Stetson refuses to label his music P. 17
opinions Farewell, Jack: charisma was key to Layton’s rise P. 21
Women s soccer looks to improve their offence P. 19
Burlesque fest brought the frisky P. 11-12
Summer ends,
orientation begins
Photo by Navneet Pall
See p. 3 for orientation preview and more ASFA frosh
CSU on the fence Action on governance over Faubourg centre report could happen while ConU waits in September Union must give final decision to university by end of September
Jacqueline Di Bartolomeo News editor While the university remains committed to a student centre at the Faubourg Ste-Catherine, the Concordia Student Union has yet to pronounce itself one way or another. Meeting every two weeks throughout the summer, the CSU and representatives from facilities management have been discussing aspects of what could become the Faubourg agreement. As university spokesperson Chris Mota explained, the university’s option to buy the building expires in April 2012. “The university is prepared to move forward,” Mota confirmed. “As soon as there is a signed agreement then we will proceed.”
See “‘Union...” on p.2 Volume 29 Issue 1
arts
sports
She added that, “The university remains committed to a student centre, there’s no question about that, and there have been meetings throughout the summer with the new student executive to talk to them about the project.” However, at least officially, the CSU remains on the fence regarding any potential agreements. “As of yet we have not come to an official decision regarding the Faubourg,” acknowledged VP clubs and student space Gonzo Nieto. “When we came into office, we were told that we had approximately three months from the beginning of our mandate to give the university our answer on a $51 million-partnership for 25 years, effectively.” Because of the time constraints imposed by the September deadline, he said, “There wasn’t much time, had we wanted to look at other options.” “A decision has to be by the end of September […] because it has to go through a series of approvals at the government level. Any investment on that level needs government approval.
Jacques Gallant Editor-in-chief
Concordia’s governance troubles could be on the mend as early as this September, depending if the university’s governing bodies adopt a set of recommendations stemming from an external review. The 39-page report from the external governance review committee, released in June, outlined 38 recommendations that could eventually lead to ending what the committee members described as a “culture of contempt” at Concordia. Formed in February, the committee was the product of a joint agreement between Concordia’s Senate and Board of Governors. It saw the light of day in the direct aftermath of the ousting of former president Judith Woodsworth in December by the BoG. Woodsworth was sent on her way with a $705,000 severance package. The entire scenario was described by the external review committee as an event that “revealed a substantial degree of misunderstanding, blatantly deficient internal communications and a lot of distrust, often bordering mutual contempt, between the various communities of the University.” Eight months after the flaws in Concordia’s governance structure began to expose themselves, the BoG’s ad hoc committee on governance is preparing to present its report on the ERCG’s recommendations to the full Board at the end of September. Whether the ad hoc committee, or the full board for that matter, will endorse some or all of the ERCG’s recommendations remains to be seen. “At the open meeting held in June about the external review committee’s report, the chair of the board’s ad hoc committee, Maitre Rita DeSantis, indicated that the ad hoc committee would be studying the report very closely with the intention of moving very quickly,” said Concordia spokesperson Chris Mota. “There were some concerns that this report would be just be sitting on a shelf, but it will be dealt with as quickly as possible.”
See “Governance report...” on p.5
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