After what was described by the Summit Chair Joe Desloges as two meetings of “hard work, articulate, open, and creative discussion,” the Student Societies Summit reconvened for its third meeting on November 1 for further discussion, mediated by the U of T administration.
The agenda for the third meeting was set to discuss two main questions: “What would be at stake if the current structure of government became fractioned into separate entities” and, “How can the structure between U of T’s student governments be modified to prevent these possible issues from occurring?”
Victoria University Students’ Administrative Council (VUSAC) president Jelena Savic stated that the discussions resulted in a consensus that a division of responsibilities between the various governments is necessary, stressing that they are dealing with a “slightly archaic structure that needs to be brought up to speed with the current needs and demands of students.”
Regarding the negative effects of a fractioned student government, Engineering Society (EngSoc) president Mauricio Curbelo added that the fractured nature of the governments would have little impact. Feasibility reports issued by the EngSoc and the Trinity College Meeting have claimed that they could easily replicate the the University of Toronto Students’ Union’s (UTSU) current services.
Benjamin Crase, Male Head of College at Trinity, expressed his disappointment with the current system, saying that the “ongoing Summit has highlighted the impossibility of suggesting compromise.” He was, however, optimistic that the prompts given at this meeting highlight the university’s attempt to resolve these discussions with a positive outcome.
When asked about the third meeting, UTSU president Munib Sajjad, who was not in attendance, stated that the UTSU remains committed to communicating with students while “maintaining the concern of excluding the UTSU clubs and service groups from the summit as an issue.”
More meetings are to follow in the near future.
