Advocacy win! As of today, August 17, 2021, the University of Calgary in collaboration with the U of A and U of L have released new safety measures for the return to campus in Fall 2021. The GSA is pleased to see the extended health and safety measures for campus including rapid testing or vaccination and masks when in doors. …
LRC Updates: Return to Campus Survey and Recommendations
Fill out our Survey As the Fall semester approaches, there are lots of questions surrounding COVID-19 and our rights as Teaching Assistants. To allow us to better advocate for graduate workers, please take a few minutes to fill out the following survey based on recent COVID-policy changes from both the Alberta Government and the University of Calgary. Communicate with your Faculty about your TAship …
Announcement from the Labour Relations Committee: GSA Partnership with the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC)
Announcement from Keira Gunn, GSA Associate Vice President Labour, Chair of the GSA Labour Relations CommitteeFor Academically Employed Graduate Students (Graduate Assistants-Teaching, Graduate Assistants-Non-Teaching) Your Labour Relations Committee is excited to announce that the GSA is entering into a partnership with the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) to better serve UCalgary Academically Employed Graduate Students at no extra cost. …
GSA Return to Campus Survey Results
The results for the GSA Return to Campus survey are in. A total of 1,104 responses were recorded, representing 15% of the UCalgary graduate student population. Thanks everyone for participating in this important survey. Survey results indicate that the respondents are divided about returning to campus: 47% of respondents are comfortable and 46% are uncomfortable. When asked if they believe …
The GSA’s response to the 2021 Federal Budget
The Government of Canada’s 2021 Federal Budget plans to invest over $5.7 billion in post-secondary students in Canada. Key investments are made in student financial aid, employment training, mental health services funding, and research funding. The GSA is pleased to see the outcome of the 2021 Federal Budget. This budget delivered many of the GSA and CASA’s key federal asks, …
New Permanent Residency Pathway for Recent International Student Graduates
The Government of Canada announced a new pathway to permanent residency for recent international student graduates. International students who graduated between January 1, 2017 – May 5, 2021 can apply on May 6, 2021 for a new pathway to permanent residency that will accept the first 40,000 eligible applicants. Application opens May 6, 2021 through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada …
March 2021 Advocacy Updates
The month of March was a busy one for GSA and its advocacy team! At the Federal Level The GSA President and GSA VP External met with student leaders across Canada for the three-day CASA AGM. We reviewed the current federal political climate, internal CASA proceedings, discussed the outcomes of the #CloseTheGaps campaign, and more. This wraps up our work …
February 2021 Advocacy Updates
The month of February was a busy one for GSA and its advocacy team! At the Institutional level As an ongoing effort to support student wellness and mental health, the GSA advocated for a flexible grading system. Graduate students can either accept their grade or opt for CR (completed requirements) for one course completed in Winter 2021. Please note that …
Advocacy Updates: Varsity Courts
Residence is an important part of our graduate student community, and the GSA recognizes that we have a thriving community in Varsity Courts. Being one of the two residence exclusively for graduate students, Varsity Courts caters to graduate students with a family. The townhouse-style residence offers more space to families, and the shared playground offers a space for children to …
January 2021 Advocacy Updates
Resuming from the break, the GSA Advocacy team spearheaded into its advocacy objectives for the month of January. The team focused heavily at the institutional level advocacy in January. The Institutional level After months of discussion and consultation, we were able to wrap up the tuition discussion with Tanille’s presentation at the Board of Governor’s meeting on December 11, and …
