Advocacy
External
At the SGA, advocacy is a strong governing principle. We strive to advocate for students in an academic capacity, at a provincial level, and for on campus safety. These efforts are driven by our home office staff through their positions on the University Senate, the university’s Board of Governors, and within the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance. Alongside these very important lobbying efforts, our office staff are able to guide students through the process of grade appeals and ensure they understand their rights every step of the way.
What is OUSA?
The Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) represents undergraduate students all across Ontario! OUSA is composed of eight member student associations with elected members from each making up a governing body referred to as the Steering Committee. You can learn more about this here!
What do we do With OUSA?
OUSA works to create policy which governs their advocacy efforts within the provincial government. The SGA has worked on policies in the past such as northern and rural students, student financial aid, and technology enabled learning. Each of these policies are used to lobby the provincial government on student needs and lead to important changes in post secondary education. For more information on these accomplishments, check out the Milestones page on the OUSA website!
Outside of the policy cycle, we send our Vice President of Education to be a part of the OUSA Steering Committee. They attend all of the meetings and help to guide advocacy from within the alliance. We also have one other delegated spot, based upon how many students attend Laurentian University, where we are able to send our President to the general assembly meetings as a voting member. These meetings allow for connections between the student associations to form and for us to learn from each other.
How can I get Involved?
You can attend the General Assemblies in both the fall and spring as an observer delegate. You will be able to participate outside of a voting capacity. Alternatively, you are able to write for OUSA! There are often open spots for writing on OUSA’s blog page and Educated Solutions. Please contact our VP of Education to learn more about writing opportunities with OUSA!