A slate led by Colum Grove-White swept the scandal-ridden Arts & Science Students’ Union at its council meeting last Tuesday. In September, the administration withheld funding and recommended a new election after completing a review of their controversial elections.The decision came after The Varsity revealed improper collaboration between the elections chair and former president Ryan Hayes, who defeated Grove-White in the contested spring elections. Hayes resigned after ASSU’s funding was frozen.
ASSU is the largest course union on campus, representing some 23,000 students and receiving $345,000 per year in student levies.
“It is quite clear from the first two elections that I have a vastly different agenda from previous executive who focused on social justice issues,” said Grove-White said. He added that his priorities—limiting the union’s activities to academic matters and bringing transparency and legitimacy to its systems—were vital to restoring confidence and authority to ASSU.
Grove-White voiced his opposition to projects that would reflect the political views of executive members. He said he would immediately commission a constitutional review to examine ways to augment the constitution and ensure its protection from executive members’ self-interest.
Grant Gonzales, who was elected as an executive member, echoed the need to restore an academic focus to ASSU. He cited Turnitin.com and academic changes being discussed by the faculty council as important issues for students. “That [is] what ASSU should be about as opposed to last year,” Gonzales said.
Last week Gonzales, who is also a student representative on Governing Council, voted in favour of president David Naylor’s Towards 2030 framework, which calls for corporatizing research at U of T and hints at increased tuition fees. U of T’s undergraduate, part-time, and graduate student unions all vehemently opposed the framework.
Elected execs include Iram Yunus, a returning exec, and Kimberly Stemhorn, both from Grove-White’s spring election slate. Former U of T Student Union exec Binish Ahmed also won an exec spot.
Responding to the three outstanding labour grievances that had been filed by staff against ASSU, Grove-White said that they would be resolved once he officially assumed presidency.
VP students Jill Matus said that the university administration would release the union’s levies on Nov. 5, after Grove-White requested the hold be lifted. To ensure that all student societies operate in an open and democratic fashion, Matus said, a committee has been convened, chaired by political science professor David Cameron.
When asked about specific goals, Matus was hesitant to provide an answer and replied that it would simply be “an open forum for students to talk about issues regarding the democratic process.”
She added, however, that such actions as the re-election imposed on ASSU wouldn’t become typical practice for all student organizations.
With files from Andrea Zavala-Cantú
