CASA’s 2019 Annual General Meeting was hosted by St. Mary’s University Student Association in Halifax, NS.
1. Passed new policies on sexual violence prevention, student employment, and mental health
CASA’s Federal Policy Committee passed new policies that can now be recommended to the federal government through the organization’s advocacy efforts. Some of the policies passed include asking government to:
- Fund programs that promote consent culture on campus;
- Implement a standard on the types of services and procedures required to support survivors of sexual violence on campus;
- Help post-secondary graduates better transition to the workforce through increased grants for apprentices and more valuable work-integrated learning opportunities; and
- Support students who struggle with mental health illness and issues.
2. Adopted the College Action Plan
CASA is committed to representing the interests of all post-secondary students in Canada, including undergraduate, graduate, and college students. Recognizing that college student associations are a minority at CASA, the organization has adopted the College Action Plan. This plan outlines structural changes to CASA’s committees that will ensure each body has adequate representation of diverse students. Moving forward, CASA’s previous Trades & Tech and Graduate Committees will be repurposed into the College and Polytechnics and Graduate Advisory Groups, which will serve to advise the Board on matters of direct importance to their students. Additionally, all other existing CASA committees will reserve a spot for both a graduate student and college/polytechnic student representative.
3. Observers now required to apply for “Observer Status”
CASA has adopted a new system for student associations who are not members but who are interested in learning more about the organization and its work advancing the interests of students in Canada. Non-member student associations who wish to attend CASA’s conferences here on out will be required to apply for Observer Status, which they may hold for a period of two years. This allows observers to have the potential to experience each conference the organization hosts first-hand, as well as have two years of executive councils' input into whether CASA meets their association's advocacy needs. After two years, observers shall be required to wait one year before re-applying for observer status.
4. Approved a Pilot Program to Increase Representation of Indigenous Students at CASA
CASA is proud to announce a new pilot program aimed at increasing representation of Indigenous students within the organization, and strengthening its advocacy efforts for all students. The pilot program will launch this coming summer and continue on throughout the 2019-2020 year. Indigenous students from member associations will be invited to convene and develop formal protocols on how they will participate in the organization and ensure it is adequately representing diverse Indigenous students. Learn more.
5. Determined the Locations of CASA’s Upcoming Get Out The Vote Campaign Regional Conferences
With an upcoming federal election, CASA is beginning to plan for its non-partisan voter mobilization campaign: Get Out The Vote (GOTV). Before the launch of the campaign, CASA will be hosting regional conferences for its members to go over strategies and tactics to effectively run the campaign on their campus and mobilize students to the polls. Each GOTV conference will be held over a span of two days during late-July and early-August. The conference locations are as follows:
- Eastern GOTV Conference: Charlottetown, PEI
- Central GOTV Conference: Ottawa, ON
- Western GOTV Conference: Calgary, AB