[GSA Council] PLEASE APPROVE: Additional funds for GSA election

Mon Mar 23 11:59:57 PDT 2015

I just raised the concern and I am sure that Jon is doing a good job  , but
elections are a project with a budget as decision maker I report to you ,
to see how much you can reallocate to the election without impacting
negatively the rest of the budget lines  audits ,  payroll , GA .....etc.

On Mon, Mar 23, 2015 at 2:17 PM, Isabelle Johnston <
isabelle.johnston at gmail.com> wrote:

> I do not think Houda's concerns about the budget should be so quickly
> dismissed. No one is suggesting that Jon will use the money to "party", but
> we should look at the budget and see how and where it can be adjusted in
> order to meet the needs of our unusually large election.
>
> I think any concerns about other areas of the budget, or about money being
> spent on items that are not in the budget, such as birthday parties, should
> be part of a separate discussion.
>
>
> "The secret of freedom lies in educating people, whereas the secret of
> tyranny is in keeping them ignorant."
>
> Maximilien Robespierre
>
> On 23 March 2015 at 13:22, Harkirat Singh <harkirat.ms at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I beg your pardon Houda.
>> And we have budget to let people celebrate their birthdays at GSA house.
>> Just a concern.
>>
>> P.S. : I don't think we should debate on this request on this request by
>> Jon which is plain and understandable. Of course he's not gonna party with
>> this money.
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>> On 23 Mar 2015, at 12:59 pm, Houda MADNOUNE <president at gsaconcordia.ca>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Hello,
>> W have a fixed budget for elections, I asked liz to provide me the
>> actuals and she said she will forward it by today for you to decide if you
>> can allocate more money or not  , my concern is  that we are exceeding the
>> election budget  postering + the 500 dollars Jon asked for Wednesday
>> meeting  , we have 2 DRO maybe they can help him and divide the work
>> between them , otherwise it is up to council to decide.
>> Houda
>>
>> On Mon, Mar 23, 2015 at 1:42 AM, Jon Summers <jsummers6 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Thank you very much, Harkirat and Isabelle!
>>>
>>> All I ask is that I be given adequate resources to properly run this
>>> overwhelmingly popular election, and that I be fairly compensated for
>>> completing this enormous task in such a limited period of time.
>>>
>>> *Council, in order for this motion to be put on your agenda, it will
>>> require one of you to "move" it and another to "second" it. I encourage you
>>> to please attend the meeting Tuesday at 6pm and vote in favor of my request
>>> for additional funding.*
>>>
>>> I cannot do this without your support. Thanks again!
>>>
>>> Jon
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sun, Mar 22, 2015 at 2:04 AM, Harkirat Singh <harkirat.ms at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi jon,
>>>>
>>>> I won't be at the council meeting to vote for this. But as you
>>>> explained it clearly, I think your request to make the necessary changes is
>>>> valid.
>>>>
>>>> I approve both of your points and I believe everyone should because its
>>>> apparent with the facts stated by you.
>>>>
>>>> All the best for the hard work you'll be doing in the coming weeks.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>>>
>>>> On 21 Mar 2015, at 06:59 pm, Isabelle Johnston <
>>>> isabelle.johnston at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Hi Jon,
>>>>
>>>> Thanks for your detailed response. It sounds like you've been working
>>>> very hard, and I don't doubt that the elections will run much more smoothly
>>>> thanks to your efforts. I am satisfied that you should be granted the extra
>>>> hours you requested, and the additional funding for the election. I won't
>>>> be at the council meeting to vote, but I hope my fellow directors will
>>>> consider this very thorough breakdown when they make their decision.
>>>>
>>>> Best,
>>>>
>>>> Isabelle
>>>> On Mar 21, 2015 6:43 PM, "Jon Summers" <jsummers6 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Hi Isabelle, I'm glad you asked. Since I was contacted by the Hiring
>>>>> Committee on the morning of March 13, I have worked almost non-stop on
>>>>> promoting and preparing for this election.
>>>>>
>>>>> I reported to Council that I have worked at least 50 hours already,
>>>>> and this includes the following: 8 hours creating and maintaining the
>>>>> website; 6 hours graphic design and printing; 6 hours postering both
>>>>> campuses last Sunday (with no shuttle bus); 4 hours creating and
>>>>> maintaining a Facebook presence; 6 hours producing content for email
>>>>> distribution to all members; 2 hours producing content for email to
>>>>> candidates; 8 hours verifying signatures and responding to nomination forms
>>>>> from all candidates; 4 hours responding to questions from members and
>>>>> candidates; 4 hours contacting various departments at Concordia, 2 hours
>>>>> meeting with Deputy Returning Officers; 2 hours organizing a meet and greet
>>>>> with candidates; 1 hour meeting with my counterpart at the CSU.
>>>>>
>>>>> The next 50 hours will be spent verifying all campaign materials and
>>>>> closely monitoring all the campaigns, responding to questions and concerns
>>>>> from our many energetic candidates, hosting the meet and greet with them,
>>>>> hiring poll clerks and preparing a guide for them, offering multiple
>>>>> training sessions for them and the DROs, and purchasing and preparing
>>>>> elections materials.
>>>>>
>>>>> The additional 30 hours are for running the polling stations over 3
>>>>> days and counting the ballots.
>>>>>
>>>>> For comparison's sake, last year I believe only 2 positions were
>>>>> contested: VP External and one seat for ENCS Director. But this year all
>>>>> positions are contested (and many of them hotly so) except for Fine Arts
>>>>> and INDI Director. This means that I will have A LOT more work in the next
>>>>> 2 weeks than any CRO in recent history.
>>>>>
>>>>> I would ask Council to please recognize the extraordinary effort that
>>>>> is required to run this year's exceptionally contested election, and
>>>>> approve my two-part request for additional funding.
>>>>>
>>>>> Thank you!
>>>>> Jon
>>>>>
>>>>> On Sat, Mar 21, 2015 at 4:34 PM, gretchen k <gbayou at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Hey folks--
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I am cc'ing andrea. this can be added to the agenda, you just need to
>>>>>> motion to amend this business to the agenda when approving the council
>>>>>> agenda on Tuesday.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> --gretchen
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Sat, Mar 21, 2015 at 4:27 PM, Mathilde Mbom <mathildembom at yahoo.ca
>>>>>> > wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Hello,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Should we make a motion and add it on the agenda?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Mathilde
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Mar 21, 2015, at 12:48 PM, Jon Summers <jsummers6 at gmail.com>
>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Dear Executive and Council of Directors,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> This year's general election is shaping up to be the biggest the GSA
>>>>>>> has seen in a long time: 60 candidates, including 3 slates and a number of
>>>>>>> independent candidates. *This is HUGE!*
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> However, there is only *$1,350* in the budget under "*Elections --
>>>>>>> Candidate costs*." The Election Regulations say each candidate may
>>>>>>> be reimbursed up to $75, although I have lowered this amount to $50. Still,
>>>>>>> if each candidate requests a reimbursement of $50, this comes to a total of
>>>>>>> *$3,000*.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> There will also be *other additional costs* related to having such
>>>>>>> a large number of candidates, like having to print many more ballots than
>>>>>>> expected.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Furthermore, my contract is for *100 hours of work*. I am already
>>>>>>> at 50, *with the bulk of the work still to come* over the next week
>>>>>>> and, of course, over the polling days from March 30 to April 1 and the
>>>>>>> counting of the ballots. With such massive participation, it is essential
>>>>>>> that I put in the hours required to make sure this election is run properly.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Therefore, I humbly request that Council approve the following:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *1) That the election budget be increased by $2500. This will cover
>>>>>>> the additional costs of having so many candidates campaign, as well as
>>>>>>> having to print far more ballots than usual.*
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *2) That the CRO be remunerated for an additional 30 hours of work,
>>>>>>> at $20 per additional hour, as stipulated in his contract. This will ensure
>>>>>>> that he has the time required to guarantee the proper running of the
>>>>>>> election.*
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Thank you very much to the Executive and the Council of Directors
>>>>>>> for your support, and good luck to all the candidates!
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *Jon Summers*
>>>>>>> *Chief Returning Officer (CRO), GSA Election 2015*
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>>> Gsaconcordia mailing list
>>>>>>> Gsaconcordia at lists.resist.ca
>>>>>>> https://lists.resist.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gsaconcordia
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>>
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>>>>
>>>>
>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> *Houda MADNOUNE*
>> President
>>
>> Graduate Students Association
>> Concordia University
>> 2030 Mackay · Montreal · QC · H3N 1J1
>> tel  514.848.2424.x7900  ·   fax  514.848.7904
>>
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>

-- 
*Houda MADNOUNE*
President

Graduate Students Association
Concordia University
2030 Mackay · Montreal · QC · H3N 1J1
tel  514.848.2424.x7900  ·   fax  514.848.7904

*Privacy Notice*

This message is reserved for the exclusive use to whom it is adressed and
may contain privileged or confidential information. Unauthorized disclosure
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message in error, please notify us immediately. Next, destroy this message
and any attachments.

*Avis de confidentialité*

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contenir de l'information protégée ou confidentielle. Toute divulgation
et/ou utilisation non autorisée est strictement interdite. Si vous avez
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