UNBC Life 9

Kelley Ware
Multimedia Coordinator

fter the UNBC Faculty Association job

action came to a temporary close due to
the invocation of Section 55 of the Labour
Relations Board, there has been an air of
uncertainty about what this means for the
university moving forward. On March 25
and 27, the Senate and Board of Governors
respectfully met to discuss that and more.

Both meetings saw many a great deal more
student gallery attendees than usual - the
Senate meeting was standing room only.
Regarding current and new semesters,

the Senate decided to keep the semester
dates as is. This means that classes and
final exams will end on time. The schedule
for the Fall 2015 semester is expected

to be up on April 2 for registration.

The largest elephant in the room, which was
discussed both in Senate and the later Board
of Governors meetings, was the budget and
rebuilding trust among the administration,
faculty, and students. President Weeks
assured everyone that he would work towards

JOHN Tr RNER

a way to heal the rift between administration
and faculty so UNBC can move forward.

“This is not a messy divorce,” said Weeks
in regards to the divorce analogy used by
several students. “This is what it is like

to be married. It is daily work.” Weeks
believes that while trust is lacking in many
areas of the university, it is something

he can fix. “It is palpable that trust is

not here,” he said. “I knew that before I
came and I came anyways because I am
confident that I can build that trust.”

Greater transparency about the budget was
also urged from faculty members. What the
university’s priorities are was also a question
that popped up several times. How the
budget can be shared more effectively was
largely discussed. In the Board of Governor’s
meeting, Weeks brought up a possible
“Budget Day” that he has seen at other
institutions as a potential option. This would
effectively mean a day where administration
has tables in the Wintergarden with

people available to discuss each line of

the budget to anyone who is interested.

Either way, it is clear that many people do not
believe UNBC is budgeting effectively. “We

do not budget according to our priorities,”
Weeks told Senate. “We don’t budget, we
account. And that isn’t getting us anywhere.”

Later, at the Board of Governor’s meeting,
he expressed where the budget should
focus: “Our budget should serve our
academic aspirations. Fullstop.”

Even with good discussion happening,
it was clear that there was still

anger and hostility in the air. Week,
however, is not ready to give up.

“T believe we will come out of this
stronger,” he said. “A great sword is
forged by heating the metal, beating

it, then cooling it down. We have been
heated up, now it is time to cool down.”

Elect Wendel Schwab to the UNBC Senate

Communication: Improve communication at UNBC with
the Senate, the students, and the UNBC Administration.

Representation: Number one priority as an undergradu-
ate student representative on the Senate will be to
represent YOU.

| Accountability: Hold the Senate and the Administration
of UNBC accountable for their actions and decisions on
behalf of the students.

April 9th & 10th
10:00am - 2:00pm
in the Winter Garden

Facebook: wendel4senate
@WendelSchwab
schwabw@unbc.ca