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McGill, News, SSMU

SSMU and McGill join forces for a Fall Reading Week

by Nina Russell on

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As students return to classes from a week off, they can rest assured that the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) is working in conjunction with the McGill administration for the implementation of a similar break in the Fall semester.

Following a referendum question in Winter 2018 where 96 per cent of students voted in favour of a Fall Reading Week, SSMU released the SSMU Fall Reading Week Survey in Nov. 2018 to gauge student support for the various options that could create time for a Fall Reading Week. With 4,338 respondents, the most popular option to make up for the classtime lost to a break was to start classes before Labour Day in September. Arts and Science Senator Bryan Buraga vouched for this option as a way to give students a full week off instead of having to combine reading week with Thanksgiving. This option would also allow additional days to be added to the December exam period, push back deferred Winter exams to mid August, change Frosh and move-in dates for incoming freshmen, and may impact the summer courses’s schedules.

“Starting school a week early in the last week of August would give McGill the flexibility to have a Fall Reading [Week] while allowing the fall exam period to be extended, alleviating a lot of stress that students face during these times,” Buraga wrote in a message to The McGill Tribune.

The administration has raised concerns that such an option might force students to pay an extra month’s rent. However, only nine per cent of survey respondents had leases from September to April, giving some relief to concerns over financial consequences.

A different option currently under consideration is the addition of an extra four or five minutes to each class period. This would amount to an additional 35 minutes per course, which would affect the timing of continuing studies classes and potentially present conflicts for those reliant on daycare services.

Currently, the McGill ad-hoc Fall Reading Week Committee and a sub-committee of the Enrollment and Student Affairs Advisory Committee (ESAAC) are working together to weigh the feasibility of each option. Once an option is selected, students will be given a referendum question in March or April to affirm support for the break.

According to Fabrice Labeau, McGill’s interim deputy provost of Student Life and Learning, a Fall Reading Week in 2020 might be possible if ESAAC is able to secure approval from other administrative bodies.

“By the time we hit April, depending on the advancement, ESAAC may be able at their meeting to say ‘we endorse this choice,’ [though] this is all conditional on being able to get a buy-in from the rest of the stakeholders because we’re limiting our study to some extent to the student view and the logistical view,” Labeau said. “But, to me, [planning a Fall Reading Week for 2020 would be] a reasonable time frame.”

Similar debates about the feasibility of a reading week have occurred in the past; however, SSMU President Tre Mansdoerfer is confident that, this time, SSMU and the administration are working together to ensure that all options are thoroughly considered.

“I’m in my fourth year at McGill, and I’ve seen these discussions take place in my first year, and, originally, I think people had these ideas that they brought, but there was never any sort of formal committee made at McGill,” Mansdoerfer said. “There’s different leadership that is listening to students, and, if at the end of the day it turns out that it can’t work out, I’m appreciative because at least they were giving an honest shot […] at it. And that’s kind of the difference right now, is that there’s a genuine desire to explore it and to see what kind of happens from there that necessarily wasn’t there one, two, or three years ago.”

Album Reviews, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Weezer stumbles into pop music with ‘Weezer (The Black Album)’

by Joey Caplan on

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Before even pressing ‘play,’ Weezer’s Weezer (The Black Album) tempts listeners to write the album off immediately. With The Black Album, released on March 3, the band tried to emulate meme culture, adding a spork into the packaging of pre-ordered copies, and even making a cameo in the game Fortnite. These gimmicks are strange bells and whistles on what is ultimately an album with little to offer.

The band’s newfound interest in millennial internet trends is a departure from the counterculture-inspired aesthetic they had spent the last two decades developing. The release of an underwhelming album of cover songs, Weezer (The Teal Album) on Jan. 24 was just a preview of the onslaught of disappointment that the next wave of Weezer content would bring. While The Teal Album was meant as a strange, self-aware joke, The Black Album takes itself much more seriously, yet shows very little improvement.

There is an admirable, albeit undeserved, confidence that pervades the album. “Everybody’s playing it safe,” Rivers Cuomo sings on the The Black Album’s second track, “Zombie Bastards.” The song is taking a dig at bands who pander to their audiences, betraying their artistic integrity. Ironically, Weezer themselves are attempting to appeal to a larger and younger audience, and a broad, generic pop style that only serves to further contradict their lyrics. “High as a Kite” sees Cuomo metaphorically plugging his ears to drown out anyone who criticizes his band: “Miles above, it’s so serene […] Way up here, no one can touch me,” he croons.

“The Prince Who Wanted Everything” is a forced tribute to the late, great Prince, and like The Teal Album, acknowledges music icons without coming close to doing them any justice. Every song feels manufactured to be as catchy as possible, but “Byzantine” is the only track which successfully harkens back to the Weezer of old.

Despite these shortcomings, Weezer (The Black Album) is not messy, nor is it poorly produced. It’s the pop fixtures and referential quality that are antithetical to Weezer’s musical identity.

Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

Science & Technology

Eat your greens

by Léa Perret on

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Among other changes, Canada’s 2019 Food Guide places dairy and meat in the same category as other sources of protein including fish, beans, and tofu. The diet of every Canadian is at stake, with the Canada Food Guide influencing the recommendations of teachers, doctors, and dietitians across the country.

The new guide reflects a global trend toward more plant-based diets. In Canada, consumers have increasingly been avoiding meat and dairy. Statisticians have noted recent decreases in milk consumption among Canadians, with total consumption falling to 66.68 litres per capita in 2017 compared to 69.53 litres in 2016. In addition, nearly one out of 10 Canadians, half of whom are under 35, consider themselves vegetarian or vegan.

There is precedent for these changes, with previous food guides representing largely different scientific and social attitudes towards nutrition. For example, the previous food guide, from 2006, does not highlight the danger of processed foods, which have been strongly linked with cardiovascular diseases. It also included a decrease in recommended vegetable and fruit portions alongside an increase in meat portion compared to the previous guide from 1992. Several studies have since found that plant-based diets are more environmentally friendly since they require less natural resource input and produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions.

“[I am] excited that the new guide brings a focus on plant-based options, as the scientific evidence points to the health benefits and lower environmental impact of having a more plant-based diet,” Andrea Rubin, a nutritionist and registered dietician, said.

However, deemphasizing the importance of meat for a healthy diet has prompted resistance among established interests. The government created the past 2006 Food Guide under the watch of an external advisory committee which included representatives from Food and Consumer Product Manufacturers of Canada, the Vegetable Oil Industry Council, and the BC Dairy Foundation. According to reports, Health Canada diminished the influence of meat and dairy industry lobbyists in the new 2019 Gude by banning them from meeting with Health Canada personnel working on the project.

“[The new guide is a] move toward a more science-based versus a politically-motivated guide,” Rubin said.

Beyond current food trends and lifestyle choices, the new Canada Food Guide also reflects Canada’s varied demographic groups. The 2011 National Household Census illustrated this diversity, which showed that one out of every five Canadians is foreign-born and one in five identifies as a visible ethnic minority.

The new guide also emphasizes individual responsibility for health. The notions of mindful eating, food labels, and food marketing put more onus on the consumer to make more conscientious food choices. This contrasts with the view that the government is responsible for regulating marketing, food labels, and production.

Canada relies heavily on imported fruits and vegetables throughout the winter, making it difficult to prioritize local produce for families facing food insecurity and simply cannot afford a diet rich in nutritious food.  A recent study shows that 90 per cent of Canadian youth did not meet the recommended fruit and vegetable servings from 2006. Furthermore, a 2017 UNICEF report ranked Canada 37 out of 41 high-income countries on child hunger. Canada is also one of the only high-income countries not to have a national school food program. This new food guide is undoubtedly a step forward; the next challenge is empowering Canadians to be able to meet its standards.

Montreal, News

Liberal victory in Outremont by-election

by Yasmine Atallah on

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The Feb. 25 by-election in Outremont, which includes the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough, saw the victory of Liberal candidate Rachel Bendayan. In the past, Liberals have almost exclusively held the riding since 1935 until New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Tom Mulcair’s victory in 2007.

Bendayan won the seat with 40.4 per cent of the votes while NDP candidate Julia Sánchez came second with 27.5 per cent. Green Party Candidate Daniel Green came in third with 12.9 per cent, Bloc Quebecois candidate Michel Duchesne came in fourth with 11.1 per cent, and Jasmine Louras, the Conservative candidate, came in fifth with 6.1 per cent. The voter turnout was 21.35 per cent.

Daniel Minden, vice-president (VP) Communications for Liberal McGill, worked closely with Bendayan during her campaign. Other members of Liberal McGill helped by knocking on doors and hanging posters. Minden credits Bendayan’s victory to her efforts to make the campaign personal for the people in her community.

“She’s from the riding, and [she] really knows the community well,” Minden said. “She has a lot of connections with community organizations. She has been very involved with all those communities, and they came out to support her”.

Mulcair’s win in Outremont as part of 2011’s ‘orange wave’ saw the NDP earn official opposition status for the first time in Canadian history. However, in 2018, Mulcair resigned after the party voted to hold elections for a new leader, stating that that he would not run in Outremont again.

“We’re very excited that this riding has returned to the Liberal Party,” Minden said. “We hope that it is emblematic of something larger that’s going to come in October.”

Celeste Cassidy and Sarah Mikhail, co-presidents of NDP McGill, considered the historical tendencies of voters in Outremont to be a deciding factor in this by-election, in spite of their candidate and group’s efforts to mobilize NDP voters.

“It was a different candidate [this time around], and Tom Mulcair was the leader of the party, so that also holds some gravity,” Cassidy said. “The seat was traditionally Liberal, so it was not that shocking.”

However, both Cassidy and Mikhail remain hopeful for the party’s future following Jagmeet Singh’s victory in Burnaby-South, where he gathered 38.9 per cent of the votes.

“[Now that he is elected], I think that will really bring a shift into how his leadership is viewed and, hopefully, how the party fares in the coming months,” Cassidy said.

Ali Gürsoy, VP Finance of Conservative McGill, likewise explained the loss of the Conservative candidate, Mouras, as a symptom of the riding’s political history.

“In my opinion, many Conservative-leaning voters didn’t [come out to vote] because it was a safe Liberal seat,” Gürsoy said. “If it’s a safe seat, then turnout is low, and the opposition voters are just not interested in that campaign.”

However, the low voter turnout could also be a consequence of the vote being a by-election, which Minden, Cassidy, Mikhail, and Gürsoy all agreed tend to see lower numbers. Taharima Habib, communications coordinator at Apathy is Boring, a non-partisan charitable organization aiming to increase youth engagement in the democratic process, believes that by-elections are unfairly undervalued.

“By-elections indicate an empty seat in the House of Commons [since Mulcair left],” Habib said. “This means that [the Outremont riding] is not represented, and representation is important.”

The McGill clubs involved in the by-election, as well as Habib, also agreed that youth involvement in politics is crucial. Not only are youth the new voter demographic, but the current policies will affect their lives and should, therefore, include their input.

“It’s fantastic that we’ve seen campus clubs of all parties be involved in this election,” Minden said. “I think there’s a real sense on campus that politics, including federal politics, really affect students, and there’s a desire to get involved. As we lead up to the federal election in October, we hope that that sentiment only grows.”

Point-Counterpoint, Sports

Point-Counterpoint: Paying NCAA student-athletes

by Kaja Surborg, Zoe Babad-Palmer on

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On Feb. 20, Duke University basketball star Zion Williamson suffered a knee sprain, reminding the basketball world that one major injury can jeopardize any college athlete’s future earnings. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and its member schools, meanwhile, make over a billion dollars a year off of the backs of Williamson and his peers. Is it time for the NCAA to compensate its athletes?

Pay NCAA athletes

Kaja Surborg

NCAA student-athletes are expected to maintain a high standard of achievement in both academics and athletics. This set of expectations places an immense amount of stress on student-athletes, especially those playing on scholarships. Additionally, more than 98 per cent of NCAA athletes do not become professionals in their respective sport, even though the huge time commitment of collegiate varsity sports prevents them from exploring other career options and from making the most of their education. The time commitment also makes it challenging for athletes to earn money through part-time work while they are in school, but, under NCAA rules, they are not allowed to receive any compensation from endorsements. Thus, they should be paid.

Student-athletes are not considered NCAA employees and therefore are not paid for the time and effort that they put into the games that generate millions of dollars. In 2017, the NCAA reported $1.1 billion in revenues—and not a single cent went to the athletes. The NCAA claims athletes receive an education in return for their contribution to their schools’ athletics programs. But, tactics such as using only certain grades to calculate eligibility GPAs make academic eligibility easier to achieve and, in turn, easier for coaches to demand that student-athletes commit even more time to their sport. This system prevents student-athletes from accessing a quality education and university experience.

Colleges also argue that they cannot afford to pay their players. However, any large Division I school generates huge revenues from their sports teams. Schools could pay the players who generate these revenues instead of spending their money on lavish new athletic facilities or raises for coaches in order to maintain their non-profit status. In 2007, for example, the University of Michigan approved a $226 million renovation project for the largest stadium in the United States. If a college can afford to own and maintain a 100,000-seat stadium, it can afford to pay its athletes.

Don’t pay, NCAA

Zoe Babad-Palmer

Student-athletes are, first and foremost, students. Paying them puts the ‘athlete’ before the ‘student,’ undermining the primary mission of a university. While athletics are an important part of the university experience for student-athletes, sports should not be their primary motivation for attending school. Less than two per cent of NCAA athletes go pro; if they were paid, they would feel pressured to devote even more time and effort to their athletic endeavours, further pushing their academics—and future—aside. Student-athletes are already attracted to programs with expensive facilities and big-name coaches, rather than academics. If universities were to tempt players with substantial paycheques, the recruiting process would only get more skewed, and smaller schools would suffer from their inability to match others’ offers while recruiting top prospects.

Both practically and ethically, there is no ideal way to compensate student-athletes. Teams could either pay all players equally or pay them by performance. Both options would lead to resentment between teammates. Further, many sports, like track and field or swimming, are less profitable to the NCAA than others, like football and basketball, but it would not be fair to pay those athletes less money simply because their sports are less profitable.

Clearly, the NCAA’s current system is flawed: Players are exploited, and coaches are engaging in illegal, underhanded recruiting practices. To fix its problems, the NCAA should require that schools redistribute their revenues toward programs that help their student-athletes, like academic support or mental health services, instead of paying coaches millions of dollars. By placing more emphasis on academics, the NCAA would help students—not just administrators and coaches. Fortunately, the system has already begun to shift in the right direction: Next year, the NCAA will redistribute Division I revenue to schools based on academic performance.

Paying student-athletes will only create more troubles. The NCAA needs to create a system that is focused on the holistic experience of its student-athletes. Maybe then the NCAA can fix its image and, more importantly, improve the lives of student-athletes during and after university.

Editors’ Pick:

The NCAA needs to pay up. Student-athletes are the most important members of collegiate sports, and, with each restricting regulation, the NCAA is only further taking advantage of their hard work to fill its own pockets.

Executive
Editorial, Opinion

Overworked and underpaid: Executive dysfunction in student government

by The McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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On Feb. 25, Cody Esterle, Student’s Society of McGill University (SSMU) Vice-President  VP) Student Life announced that they would be taking time off for an indefinite period due to immense emotional and physical burnout. Similarly, VP External Marina Cupido resigned in Sept. 2018 citing mental health concerns while in office. In Dec. 2018, Post Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) External Affairs Officer Hocine Slimani left his position as well. With executive elections fast approaching, student societies need to confront that burnout is inherent to a flawed structure. Underpaid and overworked executives are physically and emotionally unable to fully carry out all of the tasks in their portfolios or campaign promises—healthier systems of labour will only strengthen the work that SSMU and PGSS are already doing.

Students often underestimate the significant roles that student society executives play on campus. While executives garner unwanted attention during times of controversy, much of their job is mundane. Besides being responsible for facilitating many day-to-day operations, such as the SSMU Daycare and tutoring services, executives often handle multiple large-scale projects at a time. On paper, the job is a 40 hour a week commitment, but, in practice, that number can stretch to anywhere from 60 to 90 hours. For the amount of work executives do, they are grossly underpaid. For instance, as of 2016, SSMU executives are some of the lowest paid in Canada, making roughly $6,000 less than the $35,000 per-year average for Canadian student association executives at the time.

Institutional structures are part of the reason why executives are overworked: A small group of elected representatives come into year-long terms with multi-year goals. These representatives are tasked with handling budgets of over $1 million, running multiple businesses such as SSMU’s MiniCourses, and lobbying governments, all while completing their degrees. PGSS officers juggle additional academic responsibilities, such as holding teaching positions and conducting research.

When it comes to advocating for campus reform, administrative change at McGill often happens too slowly for an executive to see the results of their efforts during their term. What students may see as a failure to achieve campaign promises may be indicative of something more concerning: McGill’s current bureaucratic administrative structure makes achieving their goals almost impossible.

A lack of institutional memory contributes to these structural issues, as well. Previous and newly-elected executives’ terms overlap for a month in May, but this is hardly enough time for new executives to fully grasp all of the responsibilities of their roles. Student societies should consider creating more administrative full-time positions or extending elected terms to have more overlap. Additionally, student societies should hire more students and non-students to aide executives, taking over their more mundane, but time-consuming tasks, such as email correspondences.  

SSMU and PGSS serve indispensable roles on campus by supporting and advocating for students. General Elections are approaching soon, but student engagement and voter turnout continue to be low; in previous years, most candidates ran uncontested. Currently, there are only four candidates running for PGSS’s six executive positions. Assuming a more reasonable workload would likely help address the problem of uncontested executive elections, as well. There has been momentum toward reforming aspects of SSMU through a governance reform committee, and it is crucial that these efforts be sustained. Student societies need good executives to continue, improve upon, and create new tasks and projects: Making their jobs less grueling is a first step to keeping them around.

McGill, News

AUS executive team broke constitution, Secretary General finds

by Kyle Dewsnap on

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During the Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) Legislative Council on Feb. 27, representatives unanimously approved two questions for the upcoming AUS referendum concerning the powers of the Executive Committee. One asked whether executives should be restricted from voting on AUS matters digitally and the other whether executives should be allowed to consider matters that the Legislative Council has already voted on. The AUS referendum will take place Mar. 18-21.

Both motions were prompted by the controversial approval of the POLI 339 course fee, which was originally rejected by Legislative Council on Jan. 30 before subsequently being approved by the Executive Committee in a private vote over Facebook. The AUS Secretary-General team had previously suspended the Executive Committee’s decision following allegations that the vote was unconstitutional and, during the meeting, presented the findings of their investigation into the matter.

The report, conducted by AUS Secretary-General Sophie Zhao and Deputy Secretary-General Nathan Mendel, found that all seven members of the Executive Committee had broken the AUS constitution and could therefore be removed from office. The report specifically condemned the actions of AUS President Maria Thomas as well as Arts Representatives Andrew Figueiredo and Ana Paula Sánchez.

“President Thomas did not execute her duty to ensure the Executive Committee’s compliance with the Constitution and By-Laws,” the report reads. “She knowingly allowed the Executive Committee to violate […] the AUS Constitution [….] The actions of Arts Representative Figueiredo and Sánchez contradict their agreement and duties as outlined in […] the Arts Representatives contracts.”

After the Secretary-General team’s presentation, Thomas apologized for her actions and confided that she was considering resigning.

“To be very honest, this meeting has given me a lot to think about,” Thomas said. “I kind of feel like I’ve failed all of you. I will think about it, and, if need be, I will resign, given that I was in charge of the Executive Committee.”

Council members were concerned with Sánchez’s actions and departmental representatives asked for her to apologize in front of the council. Sánchez is the only executive that hasn’t signed on to the public apology.

“I think a lot of the council members are curious about why she’s the only one who hasn’t addressed this issue,” Lily Yu, vice-president external affairs of the African Studies Students’ Association said. “A lot of people were hurt through this process, and she […] has yet to acknowledge it. I’m not trying to attack her, I’m just genuinely curious why.”

Sánchez addressed the council, stating that she had posted an apology on Facebook and had also expressed condolences in an opinion article published by The McGill Tribune.

“I’m very grateful to have had a [meeting] where departmental executives and constituents could express their thoughts and feelings,” Sánchez said. “I tried answering all concerns to the best of my abilities and [am] reiterating my apologies for deficient constitutionality.”

Following the Secretary-General team’s suspension of the POLI 339 vote, Figueiredo resigned from his position on Feb. 20. Representatives from departmental associations also created a petition on Feb. 15 calling for the resignation of the two other Arts Representatives, Sánchez and Garima Karia. 12 of 27 departmental associations have signed the petition, which also calls on the AUS Legislative Council to consider writing future motions that would address the damage of the Executive Committee’s actions.

Errata: A previous version of this article incorrectly misquoted that it was HSA Vice-President External Maeve Botham who was curious about AUS Arts Representatives Ana Paula Sánchez not acknowledging the issue. In fact, it was ASSA Vice-President External Affairs Lily Yu. The Tribune regrets this error.

News, SSMU

General Assembly fails to meet quorum with 27 attendees

by Delphine Polidori on

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The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Winter 2019 General Assembly (GA) failed to meet the required 350 students for quorum during its Feb. 25 session, with only 27 voting members in attendance. Nonetheless, the Motion to Endorse the Student Walkout for Climate Justice passed within the limited powers of the consultative forum and the Legislative Council subsequently approved it on Feb. 28.

The motion called for SSMU to publicly declare support for the Mar. 15 climate walkout, which is organized by university students across Montreal as part of an international day of climate protest.

“Be it resolved that the SSMU publish an official public statement endorsing the McGill Student Walkout for Climate Justice on Friday, March 15th to demand governmental and institutional action in line with the [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)] report’s recommendation to limit warming to 1.5 degrees celsius,” the motion reads.

The executives passed an amendment asking the SSMU Executive to send a delegation to the McGill Student Walkout under the VP External portfolio. The motion’s representatives, Christina Lau, U1 Management, and Noah Fisher, U2 Arts, spoke to the importance of student engagement.

“McGill University’s institutions don’t always and often cannot represent the interests of the student body, particularly the Board of Governors, [which only] has token representatives from SSMU,” Fisher said.  “As such, we believe that it is very important for SSMU to recognize and to endorse this movement to amplify the voices of students whether it be in divestment or [with] regard to government change or institutional change, that could not necessarily […] be represented in these institutions.”

The GA’s low turnout prompted SSMU President Tre Mansdoerfer to address the issue of attendance, pointing to obstacles posed by the temporary closure of the SSMU building and explaining his proposal for a SSMU public relations department.

“I think we should […] hire someone to do PR specifically,” Mansdoerfer said.  “I think that SSMU should be working on how [to] write certain motions that people might be engaged in. There shouldn’t be a desire for a controversial motion necessarily, but things like [today’s motion]  are very valuable motions that members would be engaged with.”

SSMU VP University Affairs Jacob Shapiro expressed enthusiasm for the proposal, highlighting it as an example of the community-driven innovation that the GA stands for.

“This is, I think, the best of what a General Assembly is,” Shapiro said. “It is members of society bringing forward motions around important issues that, for whatever reason, executives or councillors or other members of SSMU failed to address.”

Arts and Science Senator Bryan Buraga echoed Shapiro’s sentiments.

“We here at SSMU have a long history of fighting for social justice and upholding human rights, and this motion really embodies what we here at SSMU are fighting for,” Buraga said.

The motion represents the latest in SSMU sustainability and climate legislation. In Mar. 2015, the Student Society also passed the Motion Regarding the Adoption of a Climate Change Policy and approved the Motion Regarding the Formal Ratification of the United Nations Sustainable Goals in Feb. 2017. Additionally, SSMU updated its Sustainability Policy in Mar. 2018.

Hockey, Men's Varsity, Private, Sports

Four-goal first period boosts Carleton over McGill in OUA East semifinals

by Shaun Lalani on

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On Feb. 23, McGill men’s hockey (17-7) fell to the Carleton Ravens (18-5) in the second game of the OUA East semifinals at McConnell Arena. After an eventful first period during which Carleton quickly took control, McGill was unable to fight back and ultimately lost by a score of 5-3.

Initially, neither team was able to build any momentum. However, the Ravens finally kicked into gear, testing the McGill defence repeatedly. In turn, McGill third-year goaltender Louis-Philip Guindon made a series of spectacular saves to keep Carleton off of the score sheet. When tempers flared later in the period, McGill found themselves on the penalty kill while the Ravens took advantage of the power play, finding the back of the net to go ahead 1-0. A Carleton slapshot doubled the visitors’ lead just 17 seconds later. The McGill team then left a Carleton winger all alone as a result of a glaring defensive error, and, less than 10 minutes into the period, the score was 3-0 Carleton. The Ravens kept up their pressure and eventually put another past a hapless McGill. With the team now down four, McGill Head Coach Kelly Nobes called a timeout.

“We talked about what we needed to do.” Nobes said. “We needed to get on our feet [and] have a greater sense of urgency.”

McGill picked up the intensity after the timeout. With the pressure mounting and physicality escalating, the Ravens goaltender was forced to make several critical saves, leading to a Carleton penalty for charging. Capitalizing on the advantage, third-year winger Guillaume Gauthier and fourth-year centre Jerome Verrier set up third-year transfer defenceman Nikolas Brouillard for a one-timer that finally put McGill on the board. Following the goal, Carleton’s defence began to falter: A mesmerizing move from Verrier left a Carleton defender helpless and set up second-year forward Antoine Dufort-Plante to score with a wrist shot. With one minute left in the first period, second-year forward Keanu Yamamoto added another shot to pull McGill within one goal of Carleton.

The second period proved to be a drab affair in comparison to the first. Carleton sat back, frustrating the home side. McGill continued to push into the offensive zone, but the well-organized Raven defence was unrelenting. Fourth-year McGill winger Christophe Lalonde had the best chance of helping McGill to inch again when he hit the post with a slapshot, but, at the end of the period, the score remained 4-3 in Carleton’s favour.

McGill put up a fight at the start of the third period, controlling the puck in the offensive zone. The Ravens responded skilfully: They exploited the gaps in McGill’s defence and nearly scored a fifth goal. However, a spectacular triple save from Guindon kept McGill within one.

On the other side of the rink, the Carleton goaltender made a spectacular move to deny first-year forward Nicolas Poulin. The two goaltenders continued to make admirable saves, and the tension continued to rise. With seven minutes of regulation time remaining, Carleton scored a fifth goal, and, despite their best efforts, McGill could not respond.

While disappointed by the loss, Nobes applauded the spirit his team showed in the comeback attempt.

“We started the game four down, but I liked our character in coming back in the first period and closing it to 4-3,” Nobes said. “[But], we weren’t able to get the final goal.”  

The two teams faced off the next day at Carleton’s home rink. Unfortunately, Carleton came out victorious in the overtime affair, ending McGill’s season with a conference semifinal exit.

 

Moment of the Game

Jerome Verrier deftly maneuvered his way through the Carleton defence before setting up Antoine Dufort-Plante for McGill’s second goal.

Quotable

“I don’t think we were prepared for the storm they brought. But we answered well, we played really well after 10 minutes The game could have gone either way.” – Nikolas Brouillard on the positives the team could take from their performance.

Stat Corner

Third-year goaltender Louis-Philip Guindon made plenty of saves in the third period after a shaky start to the evening; he ended the game having saved 24 out of 29 shots.

 

Consultation
McGill, News

Mandatory sexual consent and violence training to start Summer 2019

by Jacqueline Yao on

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Beginning Summer 2019, McGill University will roll out mandatory online training modules for students, faculty, and staff on sexual violence awareness and consent. At a Feb. 15 information session for the university’s major stakeholders, Dean of Students Christopher Buddle and Associate Provost (Equity and Academic Policy) Angela Campbell revealed that students and staff will have separate modules, and that, due to time restraints, the administration will not hold consultation sessions about the modules prior to their implementation.

The implementation of the interactive modules fulfills the requirements outlined in Bill 151, a provincial act to combat sexual violence in higher education institutions. The training will be 30-60 minutes long and cover topics such as bystander intervention and support for survivors in addition to sexual violence and consent training. The modules for staff will also inform them about the implications of power dynamics, including how to navigate student-staff and staff-staff relationships. Although Concordia University and KnowledgeOne, an eLearning consultation company, produced the modules, Buddle explained that they will be tailored for the McGill community based on advice from relevant sectors including Human Resources, IT Services, and Office for Sexual Violence Response, Support and Education (OSVRSE).

“It’s a big investment of time, energy, and money to develop this, and rather than reinventing [the modules], we can work with Concordia directly so that the McGill perspective can be incorporated,” Buddle said. “There are links to our policies and procedures [integrated into the modules] as well as which offices are appropriate to get support. For example, for students, it could be SACOMSS [Sexual Assault Center of the McGill Students’ Society] or OSVRSE and for staff, it could also be OSVRSE or the Employee and Family Assistance Program.”

Future students will only be able to register for courses after they’ve fulfilled their training requirements, with faculty and returning students undergoing training in Fall 2019, and administrative and support staff beginning their training in Winter 2020. Meanwhile, the completion of the modules will tie into faculty members’ annual merit process. However, Campbell acknowledged the difficulties of enforcing the training and was unsure if McGill can bar uncooperative faculty members from research resources.

“A professor can decide that they don’t want to fill out their annual report, and the consequences of that are that they don’t get their salary adjustment,” Campbell said. “We are wrestling with [a situation where] a professor fills out their report but on the space where it says ‘have you completed the online education modules’, they tick ‘No.’ If the prof is refusing to take the module could you then say ‘no access to graduate students?’ My sense is that’s possible but I’m truly hoping that that sort of situation will not happen.”

Accessed through MyCourses, the modules will not replace any existing workshops or training that educate on sexual assault and consent, such as those for Server Training and Frosh. Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) Equity Commissioner Tristan Renondin, who was also Head of Leaders and Orientation Staff for Engineering Frosh in 2018, is hopeful about the modules, but is concerned that differing advice among training on sexual violence prevention would confuse participants. For instance, he referenced how the modules will use the “3 D’s” of bystander intervention while Frosh uses the “4 D’s.”

“We have 800 frosh leaders and O-staff that we train throughout the summer, and then Frosh also has a training program in place for incoming students,” Renondin said. “I think it’s important that the material of this training is communicated properly to Campus Life Engagement because we’ll probably have to modify some of our content. I’m scared that […] differences will build up over time and devalue the content of the McGill-wide] training.”

Buddle and Campbell noted that they will consider publishing the module transcripts before the training becomes available.

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