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As the semester winds down, the members of SAMRU’s Student Governing Board (SGB) are celebrating a great year that saw the Board achieve some record-breaking statistics!

The SGB comprises up to 14 elected or appointed student members who inform the strategic direction of SAMRU and have the highest decision-making authority within the organization! 

Student governors provide strategic direction and oversight to SAMRU’s Executive Director, who advises the Board on matters of finance, policy, and more. Members of the Representation Executive Council (REC) are also employed by the Board to advocate on behalf of all students.

With that said, join us in celebrating the successes of the SGB in the 2022-2023 academic year!

Summary
February 8th Annual General Meeting
Governor Elections/Welcoming New Governors
REC VP External Hiring
Committee and Working Groups
SAMRU Fees

February 8th Annual General Meeting

Each year, the SGB hosts an Annual General Meeting (AGM), an important piece of SAMRU’s accountability to its members (MRU credit students, that’s you!). This year’s AGM was held on February 8th, 2023, over Zoom.

Here, SAMRU presented its Annual Report for a look at some of the past year’s highlights and its Audited Financial Statements for a transparent look into our finances. This year, a few changes in SAMRU’s bylaws were on the table as well, including changes to membership fees and governor benefits. These are first presented to the Board for discussion and later voted on by our membership during an AGM. Find the most updated version of SAMRU’s bylaws here!

SAMRU’s 2023 AGM broke records, with over 280 students in attendance! The SGB is very excited to build on this success, and they are currently contemplating how to increase attendance at next year’s meeting! 

For a breakdown of everything that happened during the 2023 AGM, including what the changes in SAMRU’s bylaws mean for you and highlights from the year, check out this blog. And if you want to have a say in SAMRU’s decision-making process, watch for next year’s Annual General Meeting!

Governor Elections/Welcoming New Governors

A big part of each AGM is the election of new governors to fill vacant positions on the Board! 

Twelve students ran for five vacancies on the Board during the February 7-8 campaigning period, another record for the SGB!

Members who attended the AGM voted for their choice of governors, and with a record-breaking number of attendees casting their votes, there were some close calls! While there was no shortage of great contestants in the running, the Board ultimately welcomed Orion Tigley, Kyle Joseph, and Angel Castillo. Taylor Amy and Nancy Tran were also re-elected to serve a second term!

In the first board meeting following their election, each of the new governors recited the Governor’s Oath, and from that point forward, they have kept busy between their studies and their obligations to the Board!

REC VP External Hiring

We mentioned above that members of the REC team are employed by and report to the Board, so when there is a vacant position to fill outside of election season, the Board steps in to select a candidate. 

Following the 2023 REC Elections from March 13-16, 2023, the Board was still in need of a REC Vice-President External to perform important external advocacy work, rounding out the team. Since then, the SGB has engaged in a formal hiring process to find a great candidate to represent students! 

We are pleased to report that the Board recently achieved another milestone— more students than ever before applied for the role! SAMRU would like to welcome PJ Grewal as the new REC Vice-President External.

Committee and Working Groups

As part of their volunteer commitment on the Board, your Student Governors sit on various internal committees and working groups in addition to regular monthly SGB meetings. 

These include the Agenda & Governance Committee, the Accountability Committee, and the REC Performance Review Working Group. While not every governor sits on every group or committee, each Student Governor has the opportunity to contribute their unique perspective to the areas that interest them!

While the Board’s working groups and committees each serve a specific purpose, they are united in their drive to fulfill SAMRU’s Mission of serving students!

SAMRU Fees

In last November’s SGB meeting, your Student Governors voted on changes to SAMRU’s membership fees for the 2023-24 academic year. As finances are at the top of many members’ minds, the SGB made sure to consider student feedback as they discussed and voted.

Ultimately, the SGB voted to reduce SAMRU’s General and Operating Fee by 5%. 

You can find a more extensive breakdown of SAMRU’s membership fees here.

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Interested in getting involved? SAMRU’s Student Governing Board is now accepting applications! No prior experience is necessary, and any MRU credit student in good standing can apply to join! Apply online by heading to samru.ca/sgb before the deadline of April 30, 2023, at 4:00 p.m.!