Student Alumni Advisory Committee
September 13th, 2017
MEETING MINUTES
Present: Trevor Smith, Hazel Williams, Carolyn Lee-Jones, Kim Collins, Marsha Ryan
Regrets: Pauline Mwangi, Laura Mele
Updates:
- We have two new members on the committee this year. Welcome Trevor and Hazel.
- SAAC members have been asked to write a short introduction in order to post on the blog and for the upcoming edition of RADS Roads.
New Business:
- There is a new pot of funding this year. During the summer institute Paris, Kathryn and Kim worked on a report to send to the Dean listing how these funds would be spent and justifying the need for these funds. Kim worked with the previous discussions by the committee to compose a series of existing and new initiatives.
- There were some requirements from the dean’s office. The salary for the study coach for DST 501 will come from this funding, also the accessibility for the student award ceremony and the art & culture event, as well as live streaming.
Existing initiatives
- In person gatherings. This may be more difficult that we had originally thought as most classes will not have onsites. The committee discussed perhaps in late April or hosting these events during the summer institute
- SAAC Committee support. This item would cover food for meetings and other meeting related costs.
New initiatives
- Speaker Series. The original plan is to host 4 guest speakers which will engage with the community, student learning and support online teaching through live streaming. Kim sent out a request to all instructors to see if there topics or speakers that would be useful and they offered a couple of suggestions.
- Melannie M. who speaks to crip art, disability justice and spoonies
- Jenelle R. who lectures about Deaf Arts
- Lindsay F. disabled artist
- And there was a request for “historical hits lecture” covering the charter and human rights. Lana K. was suggested for this lecture.
- The committee decided that it would be best to host one or two class related live streamed events and then focus on one larger event to take place in the spring term.
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- Redesign of RADS Roads. As the school wants to increase its profile across the university Kim will find a graphic designer work with the news letter. As the school receives little support in terms of recruitment must use all of its output both to engage with alumni and students, but also to recruit and profile the school. Kim will return to the committee with pricing. It was decided that if Kim is able to take a workshop on making accessible PDFs she will in turn teach the skills to the committee.
- Why Disability Studies at Ryerson video. The committee has talked about producing a promotional video for a number of years now. Kim has been in contact with Digital Media Projects here at Ryerson for the filming. The committee would need to create a storyboard for the video and decide with the faculty who to profile in a 3 minute video. The committee suggested a short 20 sec segment profiling a number of alumni in a variety of career/activist roles.
- Activist Support. The committee will purchase a banner through the new Vista Print store on King street.
- Conference support. The committee will host a lottery draw for students who are interested in receiving a small sum of money (likely $50) towards conference attendance. This will be posted in the course shells for DST 88 and DST 99. New information about conferences will also be posted in shells.
- Peer mentoring. The committee will revive the peer mentoring option. This time alumni will be paid for their time.
- Gift cards. The committee decided to ensure all funds were used and will consider purchasing VISA gift cards with unspent money to use for future years/events.
Other Business:
- Previously the committee had talked about opening a bank account and formalizing the funds. However, the funds will be kept in a cost centre and the committee will invoice for them.
- Ryerson’s Dinner. So every year there is a Ryerson Dinner which is held during the Alumni week. We have the opportunity to have a table at the event. The event is described as…
“An annual sell out, the Ryerson Dinner brings together 500 alumni, staff, faculty, friends and family for a gala evening. This year, for the first time ever, the dinner will take place on Mattamy Home Ice under the historic dome of Maple Leaf Gardens at the MAC. During the dinner, we will honour the recipients of the 2017 Alumni Achievement Awards. Hosted by alumna Sangita Patel, the evening offers an exceptional opportunity to entertain and say ‘thank you’ to alumni and friends close to Ryerson, or to bring those new to our community even closer.”
- It would be held on Saturday, October 14th.Committee members interested in attending must confirm by Sept. 19th
Member roles:
- In our previous meeting the committee discussed creating formalized roles for members. Kim has written brief descriptions.
Chair:
The Chair is a member of the committee and the Student Engagement Facilitator. They will liaise with staff, faculty, students, alumni and committee. They will provide meeting agendas, chair meetings and keep updated notes on all committee activities.
Vice Chair:
The Vice chair is a long standing committee member. They perform the duties of the Chair (agendas and meeting facilitation) when the Chair is unavailable. They work closely with the Chair on committee activities and performs other responsibilities as assigned by the committee.
Secretary:
The secretary is a member of the committee. They manages minutes of committee meetings and ensures minutes are distributed to members shortly after each meeting.
Members at large:
Members at large are committee members. They regularly attends committee meetings and important related meetings. They make a serious commitment to participate actively in committee work. They volunteers for and willingly accepts assignments and complete them thoroughly and on time. They stay informed about committee matters, prepares themselves well for meetings, and reviews and comments on minutes and reports.
Vision Passion Action 