This month’s AUSU council meeting started with the council further probing new methods of providing monetary scholarships. Last month, the council agreed that to ensure the awards be used for education, the scholarship amount would be deposited to the Registrar’s Office, directly supplementing the student’s next tuition fee, instead of issuing a personal cheque. This month it was revealed that the Registrar’s office is not willing to keep funds on file, and a new system for delivering funds is being investigated.
Next up on the block was consideration to provide council member Tamra Ross Low a software program (Dreamweaver) , to help with AUSU’s new layout as the head designer of the AUSU and Voice websites will no longer be working with AUSU (she is not concentrating on other aspects of her business). If you’ve been active on the AUSU message boards, you’ve already noticed the post where students were encouraged to provide feedback on AUSU’s current website, which will be redesigned to improve accessibility, content and overall navigation.
The Athabasca University Sports Club has also applied for funding– the Sports Equipment funding policy will give students the opportunity to provide necessary equipment to organize their own team sports. The AUSC offers AU students with an interest in sports a place to find information on nutrition, athletic training, fitness, and a listing of local/national sports events and scores, as well as a bi-weekly “Ask Angela” advice column featuring fitness pro and student member, Angela Staley.
The AUSC has also launched a successful fitness support group, where members share weekly journals of their fitness goals, as well as troubleshoot with other members, regardless of age or fitness level. For more information, or to become a member, check out the AU Sports Club page here: ( http://www.ausu.org/clubs/ausc/index.php)
The council wrapped up the meeting discussing lighter topics such as the Newsletter Committee’s plans to introduce regular member profiles, an Ask AUSU segment, and to feature student writings on important issues, such as tuition. The council then went on to an entertaining debate on the distribution and/or disposal of leftover AU Convocation portfolios — in an amusing discussion, the council tried to contemplate ways to pawn the portfolios off on each other. The portfolios cannot be reused because of dating on the front covers — council members who thought the portfolios were attractive were allowed to keep one — the rest shall be tossed.
All current AUSU members are invited to attend AUSU council meetings via teleconference. Inquire at ausu@ausu.org.
