Academic regulations
The add/drop dates for course registration have changed. Adding courses is still limited to the first two weeks of classes, and withdrawing from a course with no penalty is now possible until the end of the fourth week of the term. No penalty means that the withdrawal will not appear on the student’s transcript. Past the four-week point, students may withdraw themselves from a course on Connect up until the last day of classes. The result will be a ‘W’ recorded on their transcript, but this will no longer require a Dean’s approval. A ‘W’ does not signify that the course was failed and does not affect the student’s grade point average, it simply means that the student withdrew from the course after the fourth week of the term.
Student refugee program
The Student Refugee Program currently sponsors one refugee a year, paying for them to pursue an education at Mount Allison. The program supports them until they reach financial independence and makes it easier for them to receive Canadian citizenship. The Refugee Program referendum passed with an approval rate of 88 per cent. This means that Mt. A will be doubling its number of refugee students. Instead of one student every two years, the program will now admit one student every year.
Mental health summit
Mt. A’s first Mental Health Summit was held on March 11 and was organized by Mount Allison Student Affairs, the Wellness Branch of the Department of Social Development, Mt. A’s Jack.org Chapter and the MASU. While attendance was low, the event received positive feedback. Organizers will make use of post-summit surveys to make recommendations for next year’s summit.
Racism policy
On March 15, the Board of Regents Student Affairs Committee met to conduct a final review of the Racism Policy. Adam Christie, Director of Student Life, is making final edits. The committee will vote on the policy this week, so the policy can be brought to the next Board of Regents meeting in May.
Fall reading week
A survey is available online for students to rate and review the fall reading week. Its committee is looking for feedback for revision to better tailor the reading break to students’ needs.
Spring election results
For the 2017/2018 academic year, the newly elected senators are as follows: Kiera Stel and Noah Fry for Art Senators, Andrew Moreira and Everett Patterson for Science Senators, and Nigel Verret and Rachel Hanakowski for Social Science Senators.
Stel, a returning Arts Senator, said, “I hope to help increase research opportunities for arts students. This year, there’s been a committee working on this issue. There seems to be a real disconnect between how many students are interested in research opportunities relevant to their major program and what is available at Mt. A. I hope that next year, I can help to promote this issue more to try to find a solution to it.”
Stel will also be helping the incoming Vice President Academic Affairs transition into the new job by helping the new senators adapt to their positions.
2017 valedictorian
The elected valedictorian Isaac Gazendam said, “I’m so full of gratitude towards my peers for choosing me to represent them at convocation. I was super stoked but so surprised when I heard that I had won. All of the candidates were wonderful, and I know each of them would have done an incredible job. I’m excited to hear from people over the next couple of months about their thoughts and feelings on loving and leaving Mt. A and Sackville. I can’t wait to start writing the address and look forward to sharing it with everyone in May!”
