Update from Nick

Well, it has been a while since I have blogged, but a lot has been going on! I want to give a brief overview of two things I will be covering in my blog. First, I would like to go over our compensation request following the time lost due to the strike. Second, I want to discuss the Student-Government Roundtable that I attended on Monday in Halifax.

As many of you know compensation has been quite the struggle to achieve since the strike ended. For a full review of our efforts please have a look here. The Board of Governors has decided that no money will be reimbursed to students following the strike. Although I do understand the financial restrains of the University, the rejection of our proposals were very hard to accept as I felt we put forward a reasonable ask. I want to say that it is something we have worked very hard on and I am sorry we were unable to get the Board to agree to our proposal.

On a more positive note, on Monday I attended the Student-Government Roundtable in Halifax which was a very productive meeting. This has been the fourth meeting we have had with the provincial government this year and it was the best yet. The new Minister of Advanced Education, Honourable Frank Corbett, was there to introduce himself and share a few words. A memorable quote I took from his speech was, "Tomorrow is greater than any of us here". I think when looking forward at the long-term plans for education in this province that this point is very important to remember.

On Monday at the meetings we discussed two important topics, international students and mental health. Both are very relevant issues as the Nova Scotian government as well we universities and students unions move into budget season. The government is interested in exploring better ways to address both topics and will come back in June to our next meeting with some follow up to the issues.

These meetings are incredibly important and allow for us to build strong relationships with the government and address the larger issues in post-secondary education in NS. I will not be at the next roundtable meeting, as my term will have ended, however I highly encourage you to email Ben, the incoming Students’ Union President, with some ideas of big picture issues to be discussed.

- Nick

Happy Friday!

Crazzzy to think that this time last year we were all out on The Inn patio enjoying the sun hey? I've got a few quick updates from the Comm office and then an exciting introduction!

Lots of great events coming up for the rest of the semester... tonight is Party Boots at The Inn! Party Boots played at Homecoming and X-Ring, and were unbelievable  They are so fun, and they do a great cover of Goldigger ... couple of X grads too! Then on April 5th is Customer Appreciation Night, always a great time. And finally on April 12th its Last Chance to Party with none other than TIM CHAISSON 

I am soooo excited to see Tim play here again, and with X alum Dave Sampson opening, it is sure to be a great night!

Also, the Comm office is now hiring two Marketing Managers for next year - The Inn Marketing Manager and The U Marketing Manager. Applications are due Monday and you can find them here. If you have questions about the positions, or other ways to get involved in The U, fire me an e-mail at su_comm@stfx.ca.

Most of my time now is focusing on transition and ensuring the incoming VP Comm is ready for next year! So without further ado, here she is, Ms. Emily Miller!

- Kaleigh

Hello everyone! My name is Emily Miller (some of you may know me as Scene by Emily), I am your incoming VP of Communications for the 2013/2014 year. I’m sooo excited to be in this position and start working with the awesome VP team that Ben and Taylor have brought together.

My main initiative this year is to keep the students as informed as possible about all the events and services that the Union provides and puts on.  I’m also excited to create a wicked sweet Frosh Week for all our incoming Xaverians. I want to ensure that the Marketing Team is used as effectively as possible and I also want to make sure that the Xaverian Weekly and CFXU are promoted among students much more as well as within the Antigonish community.

I am originally from Riverview, New Brunswick and am currently in my third year doing an Advanced Double Major in Development Studies and Political Science. I absolutely LOVE StFX and have had such an amazing time here so far!! I’ve tried to be involved as much as possible in campus life, over the years I’ve been involved with the Xaverian Weekly as a Senior Reporter, held several radio shows with CFXU, and have been involved in numerous societies. I was a member of the Marketing Team this past year and acted as the Unions Event Photographer which allowed me to attend a TON of awesome events that the U put on. I also had the opportunity to study abroad in China last summer on an exchange through StFX. Aside from that fun stuff, I can normally be found laughing at videos of cats, drinking tea and day dreaming of far away places to travel to.

I can’t wait to begin work in this position and to meet as many of you as possible. If you have any questions for me please feel free to send me an email or stop me on campus to talk!

- Emily

Events Update From VP Activities feat. Incoming VP A&E

comm update!

Hi everyone!

Well its been a while since this blog has been updated since we have been mostly focused on the ol' strike website for the past month and a bit. But welcome back everyone! I hope you are all surviving this midterm madness well!

Last Wednesday was the CFXU CD Release Party at The Inn which was a great night, featuring lots of student talent. The CD is really amazing, featuring students such as Katrine Chiasson, Matt Howard and Wing Night regular, Travis Braschuk - and many more! Definitely check it out.. super exciting for any incoming Frosh, The U has purchased 1000 of these CDs to put in the Frosh Kits next year, so you have some great music coming your way in September! ^photo credit Scene by Emily

This month my office is really focused on ensuring a smooth transition for the incoming VP Comm and Marketing Team. One major project has been putting together proposed changes to the sub-executive structure of the Communications Office. I am proposing for the Marketing Team to be split into two teams, one being The Inn Marketing Team and the other being The U Marketing Team. This will allow for more focus to be put on promotion of services and society and house events as a lot of times these get put to the back burner for promotion of The Inn. By splitting the teams, each can focus on specific priorities. I have passed this proposal on to be considered by By-Law and Policy, and hopefully will be discussed at the next Council meeting! 

Another project that I am taking a crack at is developing a brand guidelines document for The U. This document will provide guidelines for how The U logos should be utilized, what our brand represents, and how to ensure consistency in messaging. These guidelines should aid the institutional memory of the organization and ensure some consistency over the years - since all positions are only one year terms, a lot of times consistency is hard to achieve. Pretty boring stuff I guess haha but I find it pretty interesting!

Last week I also fulfilled my dream of making an old timey video - check out this 'lil silent film for The Inn!

This week there are some pretty exciting events coming up at The Inn.. Wing Night is feat. Pictou County's own Rowdy Dow, a great acoustic duo.. then Thursday is Karaoke, and finally Saturday is THE BEST DAY OF THE YEAR ST. PADDY'S DAY (well technically Sunday is St. Paddy's Day, but The Inn celebration is Sat haha) feat. Big Fish! Nothing is better than a good cover band, can't wait!

That's all I have for now, happy studying, and see you at The Inn!

Kaleigh