Grad rep? Moi?

Grad Students… Be your department Grad Rep to the GSS!
 
What do the Graduate Representatives do?
-  represent the interests of fellow grad students in your department
-  report back to your home department on discussions and decisions made during grad council meetings
-  where possible, sit on one university committee a year
-  hold a departmental meeting at least once a semester to discuss common issues of concern and bring concerns and issues raised back to grad council 
-  participate in major governance decisions about the GSS (e.g. last year, the Grad Rep Council was involved in discussions regarding changes to the health and dental plans)
-  attend the monthly grad rep council meetings the Annual General Meeting and Semi-annual General Meeting
-  participate in GSS sub committees and represent graduate students to committees of the university

How do I become the Graduate Representative?
It is up to students in each department to select a representative. This call for grad reps should be forwarded to students in your department by email by the department graduate secretary. Typically interested students submit their name to the graduate secretary, and if there are several candidates, elections are held either by ballot in the department office, email vote or election at a meeting of all graduate students in the department. The nature of the election is determined by the students in the department, and usually depends on the number of students enrolled, whether the department has a department graduate students union that can administer the election, and whether many students are studying by distance. Departments should make efforts to select the representative before the first meeting of the Council on Tuesday, September 27 

Can there be more than one representative for a department?
Grad Council meetings are open to all members of the Society. However, each department has only one vote. If the representative is unable to attend a meeting, an alternate may attend in her/his place. If a representative fails to attend three consecutive meetings without sending an alternate, she or he shall be deemed to have resigned from the Council.

When does the Council meet?
Grad Council meetings are usually held on the last Tuesday of each month, at 5 pm at the Graduate Students' Centre (see exceptions below). In September there will be a meeting September 27 at 5pm. normally, there is no meeting in December or between April and August. Pizza or other light fare is served for dinner. (January 2012 meeting will be on Tuesday the 24th).

I’ve been elected, what now?
Please ensure that your grad secretary sends notice of your election to the GSS by email at gssmgr [a] uvic.ca. Successful candidates can contact Stacy Chappel at gssmgr[at]uvic.ca to provide contact information and obtain more information.

Any questions:
Please call/email Stacy Chappel at 472-5163 / gssmgr[at]uvic.ca.

Martlet Story: GSS responds to athletics referendum

Amy Cox and Mike Large have been busy ensuring grad students are heard on the referendum campaign with two recent op eds in the Martlet.

Newest is here:
http://www.martlet.ca/article/20376-gss-disappointed-with-referendum-information

My fave comment is "Why is the GSS so well run?" Thanks, "argh", it's because we have people like Amy and Mike!!

Thinking of running for grad council?

Hey grad students ! Why not run for grad council as your departmental graduate representative to the GSS?

Info here:

http://gss.uvic.ca/#GRCelection

Representation Campaign Victories

The GSS is currently campaigning to guarantee representation for graduate students in departmental meetings. Grad students in Sociology lost their long standing right to voice and vote in department meetings last summer. Philosophy students are similarly fighting to maintain their full rights, having been reduced from full representative status to attending the beginning of the meeting and speaking to items in the previous minutes.

Read the Grad Rep Council motion in support of graduate student representation here.

Come to the GSS and sign the letter to support grad students in philosophy who are fighting to save their seat at the table!

CAMPAIGN NEWS

• History in Art grad students have won a guarantee of representation in their department--including voice and vote.
• Physics & Astronomy grad students have increased their representation to include a grad student from each discipline at the table.
• Changes to Senate elections policy have been won. Previsouly, although no policy precluded their candidacy, graduate students had been refused the right to run as the senator from their home faculty and had been directed to run for the sole Faculty of Graduate Studies seat. Due to lobbying by the GSS the interpretation of the rules has changed and graduate students can now run for all student seats on the Senate.

GSS Annual General Meeting

When: Tuesday, October 28, 5pm
Where: Grad House restaurant at the Grad Centre
Who can vote: Any UVIC graduate student currently registered at UVIC
What to bring: Your valid grad student ID

Food will be provided!

Agenda:

Approve Agenda
Approve Minutes
Approval of 2008 audited statements
Appointment of the auditors
Consideraton of motions received with due notice
Other business

*Audited statements, minutes, and motions received with notice will be available at the Graduate Students' Society offices and posted on the GSS website http:gss.uvic.ca by October 21, 2008. Please submit any motions for consideration at the meeting to Stacy Chappel gssmgr@uvic.ca no later than October 20, 2008 at noon.

Perhaps you are unaware you want to be the grad rep...

That's right! You want to be a grad rep!

Why? Well, how about being part of all the great changes the GSS is winning for our members?

In the past few years, the GSS has won some significant victories:
-payment of tuition in installments
-creation of an english as a second language thesis writing group
-reduction of fee unit requirement for one year programs (ie less tuition)
-worked with other grad students in BC to win the creation of a BC Grad Scholarship program

Grad reps, who are elected in each department and meet monthly at the GSS, have been part of all this. Grad reps also help with all major governance decisions at the GSS: do we renovate the kitchen? do we borrow money to do it? Do we build our own darn superconducting supercollider for Tayfun? Its up to the reps, man.

So think about getting involved. Make sure the problems faced in your department are being addressed. Learn from other departments about how to make your department cooler. (ie. Economics has pet fish. Do you??)

Oh, and btw there is pizza (or other food) at the meetings and we are having a grad rep social one hour into our first meeting Sept 30.

So... now you know. YOU want to run for grad rep and be the coolest grad in your department! Here's how: http://gss.uvic.ca/gradrepelect2008.htm

Have a seat!

From June 10 to June 20, the offer stands to any grad reps (or their delegate) to obtain one or more of these old blue leather couches or chairs for FREE for use by graduate students in their department grad space. This offer applies to the couches an chairs in the photo, not the newer ones in IQ Bistro.

The couches are large and heavy (but comfy) and quite scratched. Check you really have space before you send a request:

There are two couches: 84"W x 37"D x 36"H
and two chairs: 40"W x 37"D x 36"H

Offers from department grad reps will be taken via email to gssmgr[at]uvic.ca on a first come first served basis until June 20 at 10 am.

June 23-July 2 grad students can request to take one of the items home at their own cost of removal. (no charge). Also first come first served, by emailing gsscomm [at] uvic.ca.

You will be required to show valid UVIC GRAD ID to obtain the chairs for personal use.

On July 2, the any chairs/couches remaining will be removed by UVic for resale or disposal.