Orange shirts and calls for reconciliation set the tone as the AMS held its first Assembly of the year.
Assembly convened in Wallace Hall, located in the newly renovated JDUC, for its first session of the school year, running from approximately 6:00 p.m. to 8:15 p.m on Sept. 16. The theme of the Assembly was Truth and Reconciliation, and members wore orange shirts to honour the upcoming National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
The first forty minutes of the Assembly were dedicated to the acknowledgement and discussion of Indigenous issues. Co-President of the Queen’s Native Student Association, Delia Pridham referenced some positive Indigenous initiatives at Queen’s, while alsostressing the equity gaps still existent at the University. She referenced a 2024 enrollment report, which showed only 2.3 per cent of incoming first-years were Indigenous students.
“In my time at Queen’s, I’ve unfortunately seen too many barriers to success for my fellow Indigenous students,” Pridham said. “Sadly, a lot of the overall culture of this institution doesn’t align with our ontology as Anishinaabe people.”
The proceedings portion of the Assembly was officially called to order at 6:40 p.m. Some confusion took place during the motion-calling process, with the interim speaker having only joined the AMS team one week ago. A motion from AMS President Jana Amer was passed to strike Motion six: Appointment to the Committee on External Alignment. No explanation was provided as to why.
During the executive reports, Vice-President (University Affairs) Alyssa Perisa stressed the importance of treating staff with respect as they adjust to their new roles, emphasizing that harassment won’t be tolerated.
Ratification and Appointments
Motion three, which concerned the appointment of Assemblies speaker, saw two candidates put themselves forward for the position: Zahara Groenewald, ArtSci ’27, and Julie Choi, HealthSci ’26. During the question period, there was some controversy over the number of questions that could be asked, with Commerce Society Vice-President (Operations) Amin Nazari cut off by AMS President Jana Amer while asking a question about the speaker’s vision for the role in one word.
“I’m a voting member, I deserve the right to speak,” Nazari said, and was ultimately allowed to ask his question.
During the questioning, Groenewald positioned herself as adept at handling controversial discussions and passionate about policy and the democratic process. Choi talked about the importance of considering different perspectives in an unbiased manner and spoke of a passion for student government.
Following a close vote, Choi was appointed as speaker.
Motions five through ten, all concerning the appointment of Assembly members to various committees, were combined. This involved the filling of the Assembly Finance Committee, Club Advisory Committee, Sustainability Advisory Committee, Equity Advisory Committee, and Student Activity Fee Review Committee.
Budget Reviews
The Social Issues Commission (SIC) presented its 2026 budget, which projects $154,995 in total expenses, which is $2,665 more than the total expenses projected for the 2024-2025 school year.
One of the largest expense differences in Budget 2026, compared to the actual budget of 2025, is a $11,656 increase in personnel costs, which Social Issues Commissioner (Internal) Edward Sy attributed to personnel changes and new wage positions—including the elimination of one of the two Collective Reflections Editor in Chief honorarium positions into one waged role and the transition of the Black Leadership Lead role from a volunteer role to an hourly position.
The budget also saw a $10,300 reduction in costs associated with grants, bursaries, and awards, and a $7,127 decrease in money allocated to Recreation and Queer initiatives. Sy justified both as the result of “a bit of overspending” in the previous year.
This year, Sy hopes to further amplify diverse voices, make the SIC more sustainable, and address gaps relating to equity-deserving students. The Commissioner of Social Issues (External) Mujeedat Lekuti also shared her goals, which include making events more sustainable, strengthening community ties, and creating systemic change.
Motions concerning the SIC budget and goals were approved unanimously.
The Commission of Environmental Sustainability (CES)’s budget was then presented by Commissioner Brooke Schmidt. It projects $94,100 in total expenses, a $7,000 increase from its 2025 budget. Special projects expenses are now projected to be $2,444, compared to a $213 projection in 2025.
Schmidt explains this is in part because of an expansion of sustainability month, and in part because of new location costs for sustainability hubs—environmental fairs that run twice each semester.
CES plans on increasing marketing efforts as a response to “very little turnout” at sustainability events in previous years. This year, Schmidt plans to focus on existing initiatives CES already knows to produce strong results, rather than spreading the Commission in too many directions.
Motion 15, relating to the CES budget, was passed unanimously.
The next AMS Assembly is slated for Sept. 29.
Tags
AMS, AMS Assembly, NDTR, ratification
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