University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
UPEI Student Union Annual Report 2014-2015
UNIVERSITY OF PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND STUDENT UNION INC. PREPARED BY: ALEXANDRA HEIGHINGTON - VICE PRESIDENT COMMUNICATIONS 550 University Avenue - Telephone: 902.566.0530 - Fax: 902.566.0979 - www.upeisu.ca
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UPEISU Council 2014/2015
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Our Mission: The UPEI Student Union is a non-profit democratic representation of students. We are dedicated to fostering pride in the university, the betterment of university life, and enhancing the student experience at UPEI. We value our independence as an organization while maintaining effective relationships with the university and surrounding community.
Our Vision: As a unifying body, the UPEI Student Union strives to provide leadership while assisting students as they obtain the highest standards in their academic and personal life; enhancing their quality of life now and into the future.
• • • • •
Our Core Values: Representation for all students Transparency, Honesty, and Accountability Fun, Participation and Engagement Progress (Growth, Strength, Best Practices, Creative Solutions, etc.) Sustainability (Triple Bottom Line - Financial, Social, and Environmental)
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Sneak Peak A Year in Review
4
Mental Health Fund
5
Communications
6
Picture Timeline
7-8
Health and Dental
9
Committees
10 - 12
Businesses
13 - 15
Election Results
16
New Jobs
17
End of Year Banquet
18 - 19
Look Ahead
20 - 22 3 of 22
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
A Year in Review Words from the UPEISU General Manager This past year has been like most at the SU an exciting one with lots of changes taking place. The year started off with a major renovation project in the Wave that expanded our kitchen to allow for full food service opportunities. This was a wonderful change that has allowed us to expand our menu options and our hours of operation, which included Sunday. I would like to thanks the entire bar and kitchen staff for all their hard work throughout the year. Over the summer I know Josh McInnis, Bar Manager, will be busy making changes and getting ready for September 2015. As well, this year the Wave purchases a pool table to give students a opportunity to relax during class. Travis Gordon did an exceptional job this year developing the UPEISU’s lobby documents which were approved by council and presented to the University Senior Administration and our municipal and provincial government. Travis was fortunate enough to be elected Chair of CASA and a highlight of the year to be able to speak to the House of Commons standing on committee on finance in Ottawa. This past year was a year of updating our internal policies and by-laws to make sure they are all current and reflect the actual practices of the organization. As usual I participated in hiring board, budget committee and the NIFD committee. It was an exciting year as the NIFD committee developed our three year strategic plan, which was approved in April. This year was also the first year that the Student Union organized the Prowl to Paradise campaign to get students involved in all areas of campus. This was a successful event with over 500 hundred students participating. This past year I had the opportunity to network with my colleagues across Canada at the Association of Manager In Canadian College and Universities & Student-Centres, National Professional Conference in Moncton. This conference is always an exciting time as you get to meet new and old friends to discuss challenges and opportunities in the SU environment. Currently, I’m the Communications Director of AMICCUS-C and attended the Campus Trust NPO, which is the executive board of our health insurance which includes ten universities from across Canada. I was extremely lucky to have had a wonderful executive committee to work with this past year. It is always a hard time of year as you have to say goodbye to the current executive but exciting as well because there is a new group waiting and full of new ideas. The upcoming year will be a year of change with a completely new executive team and I will take a leave of absence starting in August to start my own family. It has been a wonderful year and I wish Lucas MacArthur, Travis Gordon, Willem MacKenzie, Emilie Sullivan and Alexandra Heighington all the best in your future endeavours.
“Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” - John D. Rockefeller
- Melissa Morrow; UPEISU General Manager 4 of 22
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Investing in Mental Health “ The UPEI SU commits to eliminating stigma, preventing, and raising awareness about Mental Health on campus ” At the kick-off of the third annual UPEI Mental Health Week, the Mental Health Initiatives fund was announced. After a number of students identified the lack of mental health prevention and awareness resources on campus, this fund will allow UPEI students to develop and strengthen new and existing mental health initiatives at UPEI. Recognizing that mental health issues affect all members of our campus community, the goal of this fund is to encourage students to plan, execute, and raise awareness to address issues of Mental Health at UPEI. Applications will be considered at various times per academic semester. A committee of students, faculty, and university administration will create specific parameters for the fund and will also serve as the fund’s adjudicating body. Examples of projects could include but are not limited to: conferences, peer support groups, speaker series, research projects, stress busting/exam week events, film screenings, workshops, training sessions, and on/off campus events. Research demonstrates that most mental health illnesses form around or before the age of eighteen. Those aged 15-24 are most likely to suffer from substance abuse, mood disorders, and are more likely to commit suicide. The UPEI SU believes that targeted initiatives aimed at UPEI students will help to address some of these issues. The UPEI Student Union has been addressing this issue at the federal level through its partner the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations. Recommendations have included extension of the mandate of the Mental Health Commission of Canada, and funding to pursue stigma-busting campaigns. During a recent UPEI students survey,1/3 of respondents identified Mental Health Initiatives as a priority for the Student Union. The UPEI SU has heard from members of the student body and the UPEISU Council that mental health is an issue that needs to be addressed on our campus. Students at UPEI deserve to have access to more mental health initiatives and the we are committed to that goal. Until now, no specific UPEISU funding goes directly towards mental health initiatives. The Student Union fee that is collected each year did not contribute to this fund. This money does and will not come from the current or future operating budget of the UPEI SU. We wanted to make sure that students did not need to pay to have access to mental health services and awareness programs on campus. After this initial $20 000 investment the SU will begin to seek sponsorships, donations and other opportunities to increase this fund. -Lucas MacArthur; UPEISU President
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
UPEISU and Communications
“ Communication must be HOT, that’s honest, open, and two-way ”
It was a steady year for the UPEISU communications team. Newsletter, graphics, photography, face-to-face promotion, and much more were a huge focus and greatly improved. Our social media grabbed the interest of new people. Although it’s a great tool we still focused on the best way to reach people, which is face-to-face contact and the UPEISU Street team was a huge part of this reach out. It was a great year for UPEISU Social Media outlets. Our Facebook page
gained 744 likes this year and twitter gained 821 new followers!
The newsletter focused on specific events and included more pictures and graphics. We also continued with the UPEISU Bi-Weekly Newsletter. Next year we hope to have monthly society update email going out to students and an increase in media releases. Graphics is a huge part of this job and so we vamped it up. Next year there will be an in-house graphic designer which should help this area BIG time. Looking forward to graphic upgrades and amazing posters that will come out of this new edition to the communications team!
If you haven’’t seen Ryan Boudreau roaming around UPEI events with a camera, I’m sure you will see him next year. Ryan has done an exceptional job at capturing some great moments this year. His monthly photo albums and specific event albums were one of the reasons the UPEISU Facebook page received so much attention and likes. Ryan will be continuing his work with the UPEISU next year. The UPEISU is lucky to have such a talented photographer! Laura Wisener is the last UPEISU promotions coordinator as the job is switching to a Wave promotions coordinator instead. The wave didn’t receive as much attention as it needs to let students know everything that’s going on, so putting someone in charge of Wave Promotions will be a great asset. Laura did a great job at promoting everything UPEISU. From Sex Week baggies, to decorative photo booths, and chairing the first ever UPEISU Street Team. It’s been great having Laura in the position for two years. Laura will do a wonderful job in future endeavours as she has graduated from UPEI with a Bachelor of Science Degree. Congrats Laura! We hope that students appreciated all that we did and enjoyed free swag, tickets to events, participating in social media contests, and the many Facebook photos! - Alexandra Heighington; Vice President of Communications
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
A year in Pictures “ A picture is worth a thousand words ”
September
Back 2 School Pub
Aboriginal Week
Graduate Student Poker Night
#EduWeek2015
October
Wine & Cheese Night
November
Movember
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O-Week Banquet
Candle Light Vigil
Stache~ino Night
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
January
Frozen Four Hockey Tournament
Sex Week Trivia
Two Years Eve
February
Build-a-Boob
Relay for Life
Wannabe: Throw Back Thursday
March/April Type to enter text
Beach Blast
End of Year banquet
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More Beach Blast!
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Campus Trust “ A health and dental plan created by students for students ” I had the pleasure of serving as a trustee member on the Campus Trust board this year, which means that I was a representative for the campus trust as a whole not just for UPEI. The trust had another impeccable year and is looking extremely promising for the upcoming years. I have never been apart of something where all of the work was 100% for the students and the Campus Trust is that and more. The PBAS teams works hard for their money but even harder for the Students and schools that make up the Campus Trust. My work with the Campus Trust started basically my first week in office for the SU with learning more about the role that I played with the Campus Trust as well as learning all of the ins and outs of the Organization. Owen Ralph, one of the administrators from PBAS, helped us out during O-Week were the SU offered an Instant Opt out program for people who were already covered for health and dental insurance. We were able to Opt out students with proof of insurance on the spot and making things as easy as possible for them. It also served as an opportunity to educated incoming students on the benefits of staying on the Campus trust health plan and how they could stack their original plan with the Campus Trust plan for even better coverage. New additions to the plan this year included raising or prescription drug coverage from 80% to 90%, which is by far one of the best prescription drug plans across Canada. We also added increased eyewear coverage, which allowed students up to $250 coverage on new eyewear. The plan for the next year will remain pretty well the same with new expected changes in the near future. I attended the Campus Trust AGM in Toronto with the rest of the Campus trust representatives this January. It was a great meeting and covered the whole entire 6 months since the last AGM in June. The AGM is a great time to pose any questions as well as discuss how the plan is working for the rest of the schools that are involved. It was a great experience for me and really gave me a great picture on how Campus Trust works for students. For many of you that don’t know the Campus Trust is made up of 10 schools however for next year there will be a new addition of Students' General Association of Laurentian University which brings our school count to 11 Universities across Canada. This is excellent news and adds even more power to the Campus Trust organization and will allow use to provide the upmost coverage and service to our participating students. - Willem Mackenzie; Vice President of Finance
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
New Committees New Initiatives & Future Directions Committee In September 2014, the New Initiatives and Future Directions committee was struck with the mandate to engage in a year-long strategic planning process. With a diverse committee membership and support from the UPEI SU Council, they began the creation of the 2015-2018 UPEI SU Strategic Plan. This process began at the annual UPEI SU Council retreat, where council members were engaged in various strategic planning and visioning exercises. One of those activities included a brainstorming session where Councillors had the opportunities to share ideas, feedback, and suggestions on 4 broad categories including: the University; the Student Union; Council; and UPEI SU Business/Services. This data was then collected and categorized by NIFD. Using the themes and data collected from the Council Retreat activity, an online survey was created and distributed to all full-time UPEI students in December 2014 via the UPEI Campus Login. This survey was available to students until the beginning of January. The responses were analyzed by NIFD and recurring themes and concerns expressed by the membership were identified so that they could be included in the strategic plan. During the week of January 26th, 2015, the NIFD committee organized the Student Union’s first ever Outreach Week. This week allowed councillors to engage with their constituent groups through facilitated conversation starters and a newly purchased suggestion box. Those comments were then passed onto NIFD, who then developed 4 strategic pillars encompassing all areas identified by councillors, students, and key stakeholders. This plan was developed through consultation with hundreds of our members; it is based on what UPEI students want and need from their Union.
2014/2015 UPEISU Street Team
- Lucas MacArthur; President of UPEISU
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Street Team This year, a new committee was formed and was named the UPEI Student Union’s firstever Street Team. The Street Team was composed of the VP Student Life, VP Communications, the Promotions Coordinator (chair), 12 UPEISU councillors and UPEI student volunteers. In the future, more volunteers would be beneficial to increase student awareness on campus. The goal of this street team was to create awareness of what the UPEISU oers to students including events, educational information, campaigns, meetings and elections. Face-to-face interaction and personalized promotion was the heart of the Street Team. Walking around campus talking to students, handing out promotional material and answering questions was a major role of all Street Team members. This team of energetic people aimed to be inclusive, aware, friendly, outgoing, openminded and full of spirit when talking to students on campus. It was a great year and was a very successful committee. Thank you to all of the members of the first UPEISU Street Team, your dedication, creativeness and passion for the UPEI Student Union and student life are recognized and greatly appreciated. - Laura Wisener; Promotions Coordinator
Funding Committee The funding committee had a great year and it was great to work with Nancy, Kate and Rebecca. Our meetings were short but sweet and covered anything from Society nights to International Undergrad and Graduate conferences. The amount of $5000 was allocated for graduate funding which was all used for a vast amount of conferences that were covered across Canada and Internationally. $3500 was allocated for Society funding this year however a lot of it was not used to the addition of the coat check application, which allowed eligible societies to apply for to work the coat check for one of the big wave events, this was at no cost the SU funding budget and was a great way for societies to raise money by working and participating in SU events. $2500 was allocated for Undergrad funding and was very popular this year with a lot of Atlantic Canadian conferences that students were attending and all of that funding was used up to the last dollar. All in all the funding committee had a great year and it was very rewarding experience.
- Willem Mackenzie; Vice President of Finance
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Academic and External Committee The work of the UPEI SU Academic & External Committee spanned three major projects over the course of the year: the creation of easy-to-read posters for a variety of student issues, it served as an advisory committee for the Get-Out-The-Vote effort for the 2015 provincial election, and it helped to organize our policy consultation and helped to review and select the priorities for policy development. The Committee has been an asset to the organization’s academic and external affairs, and has served as a sounding board on a number of issues. The addition of the UPEI SU Policy & Research Coordinator helped to further strengthen the committee part way through the year as well. While the Academic & External Affairs Committee is still settling into its new role within the UPEI SU’s advocacy operations, it continues to be more and more productive each year; this year is no different. - Travis Gordon; VP Academic and External
Policy New position, great position This was my first year working with the UPEI Student Union and it was also the first year of the Policy and Research Coordinator position. It was a good year, filled with plenty of work completed on policy research in regards to Post Secondary Issues that affect all members of the UPEI SU. I had undertaken many research projects that include but are not limited to: New Brunswick universities transition adopting Right to Information and Protection of Privacy legislation, the prevalence of Freedom Credits across Canada, and different university approaches to Dean’s List requirements. I had also helped the Vice President Academic and External on operating the Get Out The Vote Campaign for the 2015 Provincial Election. I am proud of the work completed this year in regards to Policy and strongly believe it will benefit UPEI SU advocacy efforts in the future. - Johnathan Rix; Policy and Research Coordinator
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
The Wave Moving on up Last year I talked about different challenges The Wave faced. Everything from customer service, wait times, attendance of events to working with a small kitchen. I am happy to report that The Wave has seen some major improvements over the year. This year has also been somewhat bitter sweet. The majority of the staff are graduating, and while I’m sad to see them go, I am happy they were a part of The Wave team. I wish them the best of luck in the future and congratulations! I believe all my staff are a big part of why The Wave continues to improve. This year better training was provided, communication was improved, guidelines and standards were set. The training, communication and standards are something we will continue to provide and improve upon in the future. Not only will this provide our staff with a better experience at The Wave but it will provide our customers with better customer service and a positive experience here at The Wave. The Biggest change you might have noticed this year is the kitchen. We tore out half of the bar, knocked down a wall and built new ones. You might not be able to tell but our kitchen space has doubled. This with the addition of some new kitchen equipment has allowed our cooks to provide better quality food with better wait times. We are always looking for ways to improve the quality and variety of food we offer. Keep an eye out for some new menu items next year and your favourites. A few other changes worth mentioning are the addition of new TVs, a Wii U and a pool table! All of these things allow us to offer a place for students of all ages a place to grab a bite to eat, something to drink, somewhere to study, hangout and have fun before, between and after classes. Last but not least events! Our big events, Back to School Pub, Halloween Pub, Sex Trivia and Beach Blast were bigger than ever before. In addition to this there were several new events; Stache~ino Night, Two Years eve and an Intimate Evening with Randy and Mr. Lahey were well attended. I look forward to working on the continued success of these event, the success of new events and improving The Wave. - Josh McInnis; Bar Manager
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
The Cadre “ The worse thing you write is better than the best thing you did not write ” The 2014-2015 school year was very successful for The Cadre. In our third year of publishing online-only, we have seen consistent readership and increased interaction with our readers. Our presence on Facebook and Twitter has improved significantly over the past year and we have sustained our relationship with other news sources such as CBC PEI and MacLeans On Campus. Despite the difficulties that the Canadian University Press has been through, they have emerged as a strong organization which The Cadre is proud to be a part of. Two members of The Cadre had the opportunity to attend the National CUP Conference this year, which was held in Ottawa, Ontario. That conference gave us the opportunity to network with people from other student newspapers as well as professionals in the industry. Switching to the Wordpress website in February 2014 proved to be a great move for The Cadre. The website is easy to use and efficient to navigate. Readers are giving more feedback on our articles via comments on the website, which is nice to see. Over six months of publishing, excluding the first two weeks of April, The Cadre averaged 3,560 unique page views per month. For the first two weeks of April, the website had 1,634 views and 1,119 unique visitors. The Cadre staff all reprised their roles for this school year, so everyone was able to build on what they learned last year and apply it to their work. All five Managing Editors were extremely successful in both producing great articles and editing submissions from volunteers. Our volunteer base increased this year to include a few international students, which is great for The Cadre and the campus community as a whole. Overall, the 2014-2015 school year was a great success for everyone involved with The Cadre. I enjoyed my two years as Editor-in-Chief immensely, and I know that The Cadre will continue to flourish under the leadership of Drew MacEachern next year. - Olivia Robinson; Editor-in-Chief
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Mickey’s Place This year at Mickey’s Place was definitely one for the books. We had an increase in sales that hasn’t been seen in recent years and were able to add a few new favorites to the menu. Iced coffee was introduced this year during the fall semester and ended up being a huge hit among the students. Peppermint mocha and candy cane hot chocolate were also added to the increasing list of drinks that the kiosk can provide! Another addition that was extremely popular this year was loyalty cards for students and staff alike. The loyalty cards provided a great opportunity for Mickeys Place to show appreciation for frequent visitors in the form of a free medium coffee or tea. We rely on the dedication of students to keep us going, so it only makes sense to do as much possible to give back to them every chance we get. That was the motive behind the study specials that we brought forward for the last week of classes in the spring semester. Hopefully specials and deals for students will be something that can continue next year in order to save students as much money as possible. Giving students the best quality service possible will always be the number one priority of Mickey’s Place. While this year was an amazing experience for me to grow and learn as the supervisor of Mickey’s Place, the highlight was the wonderful student staff that worked with me. The employees of Mickey’s place are the reason for its reputation and I have no doubt it will continue to thrive next year! - Brittani Rhynold; Mickey’s Place Supervisor
Nexus Yearbook The 2014/15 yearbook will be an amazing one. I've had the pleasure of working with Pierce, Heidi, and Robyn on some new projects, included the student showcase project. Robyn has worked extremely hard recruiting students from all years and programs at UPEI to showcase throughout the yearbook. Our theme this year is connection, just like our name, "Nexus." We hope that graduating students will look back at their time at UPEI and see all the connections they made and fostered. We hope that students picking up the 2014/15 yearbooks will see themselves, their peers, and friends making connections on campus, too. As the book developed and progresses, I get more and more excited. I can't wait until the Fall of 2015 when it is printed in all of its beauty!
- Brittany Jakubiec; Yearbook Editor 15 of 22
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Elections Fall 2014 Election Results Voter Turnout
Fall Election Stats 17.52% (6% increase from 2013)
Spring 2015 Election Results Voter Turnout
Year
Spring Election Stats 27.91% (10% increase from 2013/14)
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
New Jobs Campaign Coordinator In the past we have hired different coordinators for the various campaigns that we have. The hiring process hasn’t been easy for those positions so we decided to create a ‘Campaign Coordinator’ position. This will allow our campaigns (which will be chosen by the executive team and the campaign coordinator) to receive the proper amount of attention and have a person dedicated all year to making our campaigns successful. The job duties include devoting innovative events and activities, plan and manage fundraising events, collaborate with the UPEI and PEI community, and recruit and organize campaign volunteers.
“Your life is your message to the world. Make sure it’s inspiring.”
Graphic Designer The one skill that can be hard for a New Vice President Communications to learn is graphic design. Graphics are a huge part in successful communication. You need to capture your audiences attention through captivating designs and posters. To help with our design and graphics we figured a graphic designer would be a great position to add to the UPEI SU. The job duties will include poster and banner creation, sustain and develop the UPEI SU brand, and provide technical and creative support to various UPEI SU members.
Wave Promotions Coordinator We changed the Promotions Coordinator to the Wave Promotions Coordinator. Having someone in charge of all communications for the Wave will help with student outreach and let people know what’s going on at their campus pub. The Wave Promotions Coordinator will look after all Wave social media, create communication and promotional plans, develop relationships with potential sponsors, coordinate all bar promotions, and much more! We are excited to see this change and to put focus on The Wave to make it a place students want to be.
Policy & Research Coordinator
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This position started in November of 2014 as a trial. After a great trial run, it was shown that it is a needed position in helping our advocacy and policy writing efforts. The job duties for the Policy and Research Coordinator are to complete policy research projects as they come, research and prepare policy statements for the UPEI SU, provide support to the Vice President Academic and External, maintain active knowledge on post-secondary education issues, and ensure effective record keeping of all UPEI SU policy statements.
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Cadre Volunteer Award
Nexus Volunteer Award
UPEISU Awards Banquet
Jing Zhao
Nexus Staff of the Year
Mickey’s PlaceStaff of the Year
Robyn Soulsby
Kate Rundle
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Brittany Jakubiec
Wave Server of the Year
Wave Bartenders of the Year
University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Emma Cole & JD Gilmour
Rebecca Dawson
Councillor of the Year
Staff of the Year
Faculty of the Year
Emma McDermott
Robin Sutherland
Inge Dorsey
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
A Look into the Future VP Academic and External John Rix
VP Communications Nouhad Mourad
President - Dana Kenny
VP Finance Dmitri Zhukalin
VP Student Life Nathan Hood
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
2014/15 Outgoing Executive
“Great leaders don’t set out to be a leader, they set out to make a difference. It’s never about the role, it’s always about the goal” Outgoing/Incoming Executive
2015/16 Executive Team
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University of Prince Edward Island Student Union - Annual Report 2014-2015
Student Union Council A look ahead to 2015/2016
Chair of Council: Bob Deziel Deputy Chair of Council: *Fall 2015 Arts Representative: Julia Ross Arts Representative: Andrew Beaupre Arts Representative: Kiley Kim Science Representative: Tayte Willows Science Representative: Emma McDermott Science Representative: Sarah Outram Business Representative: Kamran Omar Business Representative: Zach Tweel Nursing Representative: Jack Stultz Veterinary Medicane Representative: Education Representative: *Fall 2015 Accessibility Representative: *Fall 2015 International Representative: *Fall 2015 Residence Representative: *Fall 2015 Board of Governors Representative: Pierce Smith Senate Representative: Travis Speelman Senate Representative: Stephen Wilfeard Senate Representative: *Fall 2015 Graduate Senate Representative: Luke Poirier Graduate Student Representative: *Fall 2015 First Year Representative: *Fall 2015 Ombudsmen: *Fall 2015
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