On December 5, the University of Toronto Graduate Students’ Union (UTGSU) held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) to discuss financial positions, present the Executive Committee’s reports of the semester, amend bylaws, and pass member initiated motions. 

Other business involved members passing a new honorarium system for directors and a status change from a committee to a caucus for the Mental Health Committee GradMinds.

Executive reports

The AGM opened with the executives’ reports on the progress made on their portfolios. UTGSU Vice-President (VP) Finance Farshad Murtada informed the audience of the union’s good financial standing from the audit and discussed the new financial measures that will soon be going into effect, including the Graduate Indigenous Student Bursary. 

President Amir Moghadam reflected on the year since the 2023 AGM by highlighting the 90 per cent increase in the UTGSU building use at 16 Bancroft Avenue and a nearly doubling the amount of UTGSU grants and funds per grant. Moghadam invited the students to celebrate the union standing “stronger than ever before.”

VP Academics 1 & 2 Ameer Ali focused on events and programming, including GradFest which saw this year’s participation triple from 400 to 1,200 attendees. Ali also drew attention to job opportunities created by the UTGSU and building maintenance on the UTGSU building’s gym and the free store. 

VP External Jady Liang discussed her ongoing work on mental health through events such as art therapy and the launch of the Mental Health Campaign, Grad Thrive

VP Academics 3 & 4 Julian Nickel spoke about the recent PhD base funding increase, which the UTGSU has criticized for not covering certain masters students and professional students. For Nickel, these issues require ongoing advocacy to ensure adequate coverage for these students as well as for funding to meet the cost of living.

VP Internal Friedemann Krannich reported to the AGM about bylaw amendments that the Governance Committee had worked on. As there were at least 10 amendments to consider, Krannich argued in favour of an omnibus motion where students either approve or reject all the amendments being presented at once.

Executive Director Corey Scott presented the Health and Dental Referendum. Scott explained that, because the referendum’s current language allows the UTGSU Board of Directors to increase the fee of the health and dental plan at any rate, he is suggesting a referendum question to update the language of the plan to protect students going forward. This referendum question would place a “clear and decisive gap” on permitted fee increases. The voting period for the referendum started on December 4 and ended on December 7 at 9:00 am. Voting was online and required students’ UTORID and password.

Derecognition of honorary degree

At the 2023 AGM, a motion to prepare a submission to the U of T Standing Committee on Recognition for the derecognition of Duncan Campbell Scott’s honorary degree was tasked and referred to the 2024 UTGSU AGM. 

Scott was a Canadian confederation poet and deputy superintendent of the Canadian Department of Indian Affairs, which oversaw the enforcement and expansion of residential schools, a system of cultural genocide that Scott argued would help “get rid of the Indian problem.” 

The motion included making a submission to the committee to address how Scott’s actions and values stood in opposition to the university’s and informing students of a campaign to rescind his degree. 

After brief deliberation about the precedent the move would make, the members voted to pass the motion.

Advocacy motions

In the final few motions, Moghadam moved three efforts for the UTGSU: to form or join a GTA-wide transit coalition, to formally oppose the User Guide to U of T Policies on Protests, and to formally oppose the federal government’s cap on post-secondary international student study permits

All three motions would require UTGSU to engage in mobilization, discussion, and consciousness raising about better policies and procedures for transit, protest, and international student inclusion. 

Moghadam and Nickel discussed how Toronto’s expensive transit prices required a coalitional response to getting better services and deals for students. Nickel also spoke on the guide, arguing that it would seriously impact how the UTGSU and student groups go about bringing change at the university. 

International Students Caucus Chair Elaine Yu emphasized how international students already face existing barriers in housing, healthcare, and funding in Toronto and urged students to vote for the motion to address this effort. All three motions carried.

The AGM closed with Moghadam offering thanks to the attendees, executives, and full-time and part-time staff. 

Editor’s note (January 12): This article has been updated to reflect that the recent base funding increase is for PhD students, not graduate students, and that international students are eligible for the increase.