The SSMU Board of Directors governs YOUR Student Union. It is composed of members, just like you.
Exceptions include:
Please visit our “Board Structure†page under “How We Run†for more information.
As a Board member, you will have access to benefits that will enrich your personal, social and professional life.
Personal → Board membership will assist you in developing a robust set of skills that can be applied to your personal and professional life. These skills include leadership, communication expertise, financial management insights, and more. Directors will also receive the personal satisfaction of contributing to positive change at SSMU and Â鶹ӰԺ University for other students (and themselves!)
Social → Board members are also given many networking opportunities with University and external actors, which will enhance your confidence and introduce you to new avenues of growth.
Professional → The skills and experiences granted by Board membership will allow you to refurbish your CV with new impressive information. Board membership, and your adjacent volunteering experiences, is also included on your Co-Curricular Record, which enables you to receive post-graduate recognition for your contributions to SSMU.
1. By the Nominating Committee:
The Nominating Committee shall solicit, through an application process, and nominate four (4) Members who are not members of the Legislative Council to the Board of Directors, in accordance with Section 6.2 hereof.
2. By Appointment:
The Legislative Council shall nominate four (4) members of the Legislative Council, who are not Officers, to the Board of Directors, in accordance with Section 6.2 hereof.
3. By Election:
Some officers elected for the Executive Committee have seats on the Board; these are:
In the event that one or more Officers holding ex-officio seats on the Board of Directors do not meet the requirements provided for in Section 6.3 hereof, their seat shall be filled by another Officer.Â
Note: the Vice-President (Sustainability & Operations) position has not been elected since summer 2017.
A General Assembly (GA) is an opportunity for the student body to directly participate in student governance by voting on items such as motions, nominations, policy amendments and more. GA(s) have equivalent power to the Legislative Council, but there are restrictions on what can be done via GA. These restrictions include policies concerning the SSMU’s Constitution, any financial matters of the Society, or the composition of the Society’s staff. General assemblies can be further divided into regular, special, and strike GAs.
Regular general assemblies are held once per semester and facilitate regular feedback between student governance and its members.
Special general assemblies are those held outside of regularly scheduled meetings to address a specific cause or concern within the student body. Special assemblies can be requested by 200 members, with no school or faculty representing more than 50% of signatures, or 8 Councilors, with the representation of at least 4 faculties or schools, and quorum will remain 350.
Strike general assemblies are special general assemblies held to call for, or address a call for, a general strike of the student body. Strike GAs are requested in the same way as special assemblies, but have a quorum of 500 instead of 350.
‘Quorum’ is the minimum number of members that must be present in order for the proceedings of a General Assembly to be considered ‘valid’. That is, quorum must be met or exceeded in order for the meeting to continue. The quorum for regular GAs is 350 members.
SSMU is committed to ensuring the accessibility of its meetings and events. The following accommodations will always be available:
There are a variety of additional accommodation options available to members upon request by contacting the Speaker (speaker@ssmu.ca). This includes (but is not limited to):
For more information, or any concerns about the accessibility of SSMU meetings or events, please contact the Accessibility Coordinator (accessibility@ssmu.ca).
The Executive Committee, governs the Society between meetings of the Board of Directors, in a manner not inconsistent with a Policy set out by the Board of Directors. It comprises seven (7) elected officers and the ex-officio non-voting General Manager.
Exceptions include:
Note: These qualifications do not apply to the General Manager.
It comprises seven (7) elected officers and the ex-officio non-voting General Manager.
The Officers of the Society shall be the following: the President, the Vice-President (Student Life); the Vice-President (Internal Affairs); the Vice-President (External Affairs); the Vice-President (Finance), the Vice-President (Sustainability & Operations); and the Vice-President (University Affairs).
The Legislative Council is the representative and political body of the Society.
All Members shall be eligible for appointment as a Councilor. No Member may hold more than one position on the Legislative Council
Thirty (30) councilors are elected by specific constituencies, including school and faculty associations and councils representing particular student demographics, and the seven (7) SSMU Executives comprise the voting members of Council. The Speaker, Parliamentarian, General Manager, and Recording Secretary are non-voting members.
Student Senators represent the student body at Â鶹ӰԺ’s Senate. The Â鶹ӰԺ University Senate is a governing body tasked with general control and supervision over the academic matters of the University.
The elections are done through each faculty association and school. See your faculty or school association’s website for more information.
A referendum is a vote held by an organization to determine its membership’s position on a particular question. The outcome of a referendum is binding, i.e. the organization must take steps to comply with the outcome of the vote.
Referenda can be either student-initiated or council-initiated. Either way, the question must get approval by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Elections SSMU before it can be put on the ballot. The CEO ensures that the question is neutrally posed and complies with the other rules relating to referendum questions contained in the Constitution and Internal Regulations.
The Legislative Council decides whether to have a direct and binding measurement of student opinion on an issue. Usually, -initiated referenda are limited to issues where Council is required to get approval from the membership for some measure it wishes to undertake. When a non-binding opinion is desired, Council may also place plebiscite questions on the ballot.
   2. Student-initiated referenda
This does not require the participation of Council at all. Any student may collect 500 signatures in order to have a referendum question placed on the ballot. Provided that all of the rules are properly followed, the question will be placed on the ballot at the next referendum period. It is important to note, however, that student-initiated referenda may not alter the composition of the Society’s staff or any financial matters of the SSMU.
Members of the SSMU participate in direct democracy by voting in referendums, held once a semester (early November and early March).
SSMU has a variety of channels that you can use to keep in touch! Our website has all of our information compiled for you, but it’s not the only way you can learn more. You reach us on social media via Instagram (@) and . All members are automatically subscribed to receive our listserv as well as any public statements made by SSMU governing bodies/individuals, if you believe you are not subscribed properly, please reach out to us (info@ssmu.ca). For specific questions or concerns, see our Contact Us page to figure out who you should contact.Â
The Steering Committee is the Legislative Council committee that is responsible for any and all matters related to the operation and management of Legislative Council conduct. What this means is that they are responsible for a variety of tasks including setting agendas for meetings, reviewing documents for structural consistency, monitoring deadlines, and enforcing rules and regulations.
For more information, go to . If you have any questions please contact Elections SSMU at elections@ssmu.ca.