Top stories of the 2016-2017 academic year
Looking back at the previous academic year, The Ontarion reflects on some of the biggest news stories that affected students and the campus community.
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Mental health
With the loss of four students to suicide at U of G this academic year, the topic of mental health has been at the forefront of a lot of people’s minds.
In January, a petition was created to ask the University’s administration for change and transparency in regards to mental health services and initiatives.
“I cannot and will not lose another friend to suicide.”
—Alyssa Logan, U of G history studentWith increased waiting times for Counselling Services, many students felt that the University wasn’t doing enough to help match the demand for support.
Several initiatives have been put in place since this petition was created, many of them student-driven, such as a banquet on suicide prevention and, most recently, the installation of a friendship bench in Branion Plaza.
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Fossil fuel divestment
While the University of Guelph brands itself as a “green” school, the student activist group Fossil Free Guelph (FFG) has asked the University to reconsider its multi-million dollar investments in fossil fuel companies. “If they say yes, they will get an international spotlight and they will actually look meaningfully green on the international stage.”
—Adrien D’Alessandro, Fossil Free GuelphUpon marching through campus to submit a special action policy to the secretary’s office, FFG is currently awaiting a response from administration, which could take up to six months.
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Student space
With a rapidly growing population, student space at U of G has been a major topic of discussion over the last few years. While this year saw some major renovations at the Athletic Centre and MacDonald Hall, the idea of change in the University Centre (UC) was met with a bit of contention from a number of student groups.
The Guelph Resource Centre for Gender Empowerment and Diversity (GRCGED) endured a number of negotiations with the UC board of directors to keep their space in UC107 while also advocating for other special status groups that were in need of accommodations.
The first floor renovations are currently underway and have been altered to keep GRCGED in its current space.
“It is in the interest of all students to protect and expand space given to voices that are often otherwise suppressed…”
—Special Status Group letter of solidarityThe Central Student Association (CSA) also proposed changes to student club space on the second floor of the UC. The current club rooms (housing approximately 27 clubs) would be wiped out to create a more open, bookable space that would be open to over 100 different CSA clubs.
While many clubs were happy to gain space with the new proposal, others were reluctant to give up their current space. Ultimately, the proposal went through and renovations will begin over the summer term.
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Student government restructuring
The undergraduate student body elected its first Central Student Association (CSA) president in the history of the organization following a recent hierarchical restructuring at the 2017 annual general meeting.
The restructuring of the CSA executive generated debate on campus, with former commissioners and students in the undergraduate membership lending their voices to both sides of the issue.
Discussions regarding the CSA continued through the 2017 general election as the sole presidential candidate’s bid and suitability were called into question. Following the resurfacing of news articles detailing Jay Rojas’s previous criminal activity, Rojas lost the students’ vote by a margin of 2.31 per cent.
This led to an emergency board meeting for the CSA to set the stage for a winter presidential by-election, which had undergraduates return to the ballot boxes to elect their first CSA president. Once the votes were counted for three new candidates, Chelsea Mulvale was elected with 59.92 per cent of the vote.
IN OTHER NEWS
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Referendum questions
During the 2017 CSA general election, students voted in favour of a $0.90 increase in student fees to make feminine hygiene products available for free on campus. Earlier, in the fall 2016 by-election, students also voted to increase student fees by $0.52 to increase funding for the Guelph Student FoodBank.
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Lords of PUP-town
Guelph alumnus Steve Sladkowski and his bandmates in PUP return to U of G to play some good hard punk and jump around with Guelph students and locals.
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President who?
In a tumultuous turn of events, reality TV star and business mogul Donald Trump was elected to the highest office in the United States, leaving many people around the world saying, “Huh?”
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Men’s soccer tames the Lions
The men’s soccer team won their first OUA championship in 26 years, beating the York Lions for the first time in 10 years to do so. They followed the victory by hosting their first national tournament since 1992 and clinching their first ever U Sports bronze medal.
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Rugby sweeps OUA titles
The women’s team won the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) title for the first time in four years, while the men’s team won the OUA championship in a thrilling penalty kick shootout for their first victory since 1998.
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No electoral reform
After promising that the 2015 federal election would be the last to take place using the first-past-the-post system, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s federal Liberals have moved electoral reform to the back burner.
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Snake, rattle, and roll!
After escaping from a student’s backpack, a two-foot long ball python was loose in the University Centre for three days before being picked up by campus police.
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Hillside Inside offers refuge from winter
If we can judge the Hillside Festival by the success of this year’s Hillside Inside—which included the likes of Bros, Terra Lightfoot, and DJ Shub—then we are guaranteed an incredible summer festival.
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Women’s hockey wins back-to-back McCaw Cups
The women’s hockey team won the OUA championship for a second year in a row, keeping the McCaw Cup in Guelph. They had not won back-to-back titles since winning four in a row from 1967 to 1970.
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Heathers the Musical revels in teen angst
Curtain Call Productions put on a tasteful, delightfully macabre version of Heathers the Musical that delivered thrills, chills, and teenaged redemption.