Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) executives and council members packed their bags for the Canadian Federation of Students – Ontario (CFS-O) skills symposium at York University May 23-25.
The event consisted of numerous sessions spread out over two days for representatives from student unions across Ontario.
Some sessions focused on more political skills, such as member recruitment, campaign organization, and communication with media or members. Others were more practical, such as how to organize events on a budget, negotiate contracts, draft proposals, and hold meetings.
CFS-O chairperson Alastair Woods said the structure was a change from previous years.
“This year, we increased the number of workshops from nine to 21 to address the diverse needs of different students’ unions,” he said by email. “For example, instead of trying to encompass everyone’s needs in event planning, the workshop was divided into three areas: large budget events, small budget events, and securing sponsorship.”
CFS-O held the event at no cost to participants and invited up to 15 delegates from each student union. It also paid for transportation costs associated with attending, Woods said.
This year, CUSA sent 14 delegates to Toronto for the conference, including all the executives, some councillors, and representatives from Carleton’s residence association.
Despite tensions between CUSA and the CFS this past year, Woods said he was not surprised to see Carleton delegates at the conference.
“It would have been surprising if CUSA, Local 1 of the Canadian Federation of Students, had not participated, given that they have participated in the symposium almost every year since its founding,” he said.
CUSA president Folarin Odunayo said the weekend was a good chance to learn, regardless of past conflicts.
In December 2013, CUSA withheld $300,000 from the CFS and CFS-O that was collected from student levies. At the time, CUSA said it was withholding the money because CFS had not provided it with a “statement of dues” for 2012-2013.
Although there have been talks of CUSA potentially de-federating from the CFS, Odunayo said he could not comment on any such plans at this time.
“We would only act if students want that,” he said.
Attending the conference was an attempt to take advantage of services the federation provides, Odunayo said.
“I felt like there was some useful information being made available,” he said.
