Queen’s students can expect significant changes to the AMS Club’s Commission.
AMS-ratified clubs will now apply for re-ratification on a bi-annual basis, instead of annually, to better suit the capacity of the Clubs Commission, according to Xian Tronsgard, AMS club’s commissioner, in an interview with The Journal. This change comes after the AMS Assembly last March approved a proposal to the AMS Board of Directors outlining several changes to the Clubs Commission.
Changes include that all clubs ratified during the 2024-25 school year will be automatically re-ratified for the 2025-26 school year. In addition, clubs will be randomly split into two cohorts that will apply for re-ratification on alternating years. This year, all clubs will hear which cohort they’re in by the end of July.
“The AMS has over 350 clubs, so the operational capacity is quite different in comparison to other schools,” Tronsgard said. “The capacity of the Clubs Commission can’t successfully and equitably re-ratify all those clubs within a one-month time frame. So that’s why we’re deciding to split them up.”
While Tronsgard acknowledges the risks associated with less frequent ratification, she believes that through implementing new internal mechanisms, such as financial audits, and encouraging better communication and collaboration, this will be a positive change.
“This will be the first year, and we don’t expect it to be perfect,” Tronsgard said. “But I think the greatest thing about the club’s commission is that we’re very adaptive, and we’re very receptive to student feedback. We want to make sure that students are feeling supported.”
The March proposal also called for a reallocation of responsibilities within the Club Commissions itself. The previous team of five employees is being replaced by three new positions—a Clubs and Policy Supervisor, Clubs Communications & Development Supervisor, and Clubs Operations & Finance Supervisor—all of whom report directly to the Club’s Commissioner.
Tronsgard explained that the Clubs and Policy supervisor will be tasked with “policy compliance and researching” and making policy “more accessible.” The Clubs Communication and Development Supervisor will help with “making centralized documents” and “making resources available to clubs,” and the Clubs Operations and Finance Supervisor will “assist the clubs for any administrative inquiries.”
All three positions are hiring until July 6.
In addition to the proposals already outlined in March, Tronsgard is focused on implementing further changes to “clarify definitions” and ensure “transparency in [the Commission’s] procedures.” This includes a redesign of the commission’s website, and the implementation of a new Help Desk ticketing system, designed to help club executives better track their tickets and reduce response times from twelve business days to five.
After last year’s Clubs Commission Restructuring Proposal found there was an overall sentiment of AMS clubs feeling unsupported, Tronsgard is committed to creating a better relationship between clubs and the Club’s Commission.
“The AMS has done an amazing job of being receptive to the feedback,” she said. “To be able to be the first [AMS] Club’s Commissioner that has the help desk, a brand-new club directory, centralized documents—I think it’ll be a great step in the right direction [for] the relationship between the clubs and the Commission.”
Tags
AMS clubs, AMS Commission, clubs, Policy
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