OUSA General Assembly passes three policy papers

The second Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) General Assembly of the school year took place at Laurentian University this past weekend. Three new policy papers were discussed and passed by the delegates in attendance.  

The OUSA General Assembly consists of eight member institutions who come together and debate policy papers written by students that address topics relevant to students in Ontario’s undergraduate programs. The policies passed at OUSA are used to lobby the provincial government for funding.

The most recent assembly resulted in the three papers being unanimously passed. The papers focused on credit transfer and mobility, mature students and student health and wellness, respectively. 

From Queen’s, current AMS President Jennifer Li, Vice-President (University Affairs) Palmer Lockridge and Academic Affairs Commissioner Victoria Lewarne were all in attendance. Joining them for the assembly were incoming Vice-President (University Affairs) Munro Watters and incoming Academic Affairs Commissioner Julia Göllner. 

In an interview with The Journal, Lockridge, Lewarne, Watters and Göllner discussed their time at the assembly.

Lockridge explained the health and wellness paper discussed a variety of subtopics, including sexual and physical health, mental wellbeing, and accessibility. 

Lewarne, who authored the credit transfer report, explained it was geared towards “facilitating the process for students to ease the transfer process and looking at credit transfer assessments.” 

“We talked about consistency of the system across the sector, and transparency and predictability so that students know what to expect when they’re about to undergo the credit transfer process,” she continued. “Because sometimes it can vary a lot, but [the paper was meant to] act as a guiding source but also still maintaining institutional autonomy.”

In addition, Palmer and Lewarne encouraged students on campus to add input on the policy papers prior to each assembly. Watters and Göllner also spoke to their first-time experience at an OUSA conference. 

Göllner commented that conversation during meetings proved to be productive and cooperative. She said she “didn’t realize how likeminded the different delegates would be.” 

Watters stated she and Göllner were able to meet many individuals from other schools who they will be working with next year. 

“We got to have some very interesting and engaging dialogue,” Watters added.  

OUSA will also host a transition conference in late April, wherein incoming members like Munro and Göllner will be fully acquainted with their new roles within the alliance.