The Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) is a large part of the uOttawa campus. They are in charge of the three student businesses, providing funding for student activities, planning events for undergraduates, and so much more. However, with such as huge array of jobs to do, the SFUO can excel at certain things, but fall flat on others. Here are some of the things the SFUO has done well and poorly this year, and possible areas of improvement.
The Good
This year, the SFUO has put an immense amount of effort into satisfying the needs and wants of the student body. Overall, 101 Week was a success and other large events organized by the Fed were met with positive responses. The SFUO has done a great job creating campaigns and events to inform students about topics affecting our world, such as Syrian Refugee Support, Consent campaigns and Black Lives Matter events. In addition, organizing week-long events that have been around from past years, such as Pride Week and Green Week, and making sure the events were well attended was impressive this year. You can’t forget the other fun events organized by the Fed, such as Poutinefest and Winter Challenge which were enjoyed by many students. The Trans Women of Colour mural painted this semester was an excellent idea and really shows what a unique campus we have. Finally, the passing of three referendum questions and the granting of academic amnesty for the most recent General Assembly demonstrates that the SFUO is passionate about its students and what would make their university experience the best it can be.
The Bad
It’s impossible for an organization to cater to over 40,000 students without having some mishaps. A large issue with this year’s SFUO was continuity, where the Fed would say one thing but do another. Let’s use last semester’s FEDtalk event as an example: tickets were being sold for 5 dollars each in the weeks leading up to the event. However, on the day of the event, students were being let in for free, leaving the purchasing students feeling ripped off. In addition, it was quite an ordeal for purchasing students to get their money back. Another issue this year included the rapid turnover of some executive members, which resulted in students being confused about the affairs of the Fed. Finally, the SFUO was not as accessible to students as it could possibly be, with some students waiting weeks for their emails to receive replies.
The Ugly
How can we talk about the actions of the SFUO this year without mentioning the obvious: the yoga controversy. Was the SFUO right to cancel the Centre for Students with Disabilities’ weekly yoga for worries about inaccessibility and cultural appropriation? It depends on who you ask, but no one can dispute that it put our school on the map. Our little school made international news, and the butt of many jokes. The SFUO received a lot of backlash for its decision to cancel the yoga program. The Federation did not respond to many questions facing them from their students and the general public, and was slow to give a public statement on the matter. This did not improve their reputation for lack of accountability and transparency for their actions.
Breaking News May 31, 2016
The SFUO has dug itself into a deeper hole and made its members even more upset with its latest announcement: it will be reducing its services throughout the summer in order to prioritize resources for the next school year. As a result, some current SFUO employees will be laid off or have their hours cut, in addition to some SFUO positions remaining vacant. The SFUO summarizes that their current budgetary issues are a result of “a significant cash flow shortage”, meaning since they will not be receiving as much student fees in the summer they cannot afford to provide summer services. The SFUO also blames their poor financial position on their expenditures for the health plan. Although these reasons are valid for running into financial issues, it can be expected that students paying summer tuition (yours truly included) will be upset with the lack of resources open for use that we need to use regardless of it being summer. In addition, the SFUO has stated that they will adopt “a new budgeting process”, however they fail to give concrete examples of what they will do. Overall, their financial issues are a large obstacle, which the SFUO will have to overcome in order to improve their image amongst U of O students. Kudos to them for admitting their errors, however students are not happy with the news that their student federation is falling short of the expectations set out for them. You can find their statement regarding their budget here.
The Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) is responsible for a large amount of the activities, which undergraduates participate in. Regardless of students’ personal opinion of their work, they are an undeniable force on campus who has the power to improve (or harm) the student experience.
Sources
SFUO Budget Statement
Picture Credits
SFUO Twitter