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Know Your Athlete, Men's Varsity, Sports

Know Your Athlete: Spencer Bromley

by Wasif Husain on

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When you think of McGill Lacrosse, you think of a program that has dominated the CUFLA for the last five years. Many fantastic players have come through the program during that time, but none have had the honour of being drafted into the National Lacrosse League (NLL). That changed on Sept. 26 in Toronto. Fourth-year forward Spencer Bromley became the first McGill player selected in the draft when he was taken 48th overall in the fifth round by the two-time NLL defending champion, the Saskatchewan Rush. 

Bromley never thought about the possibility the he would be drafted. He did not even attend the NLL combine, where teams interview and work out draft-eligible players, as it clashed with a McGill game.

“I didn’t know what to expect, I didn’t have an idea at all,” Bromley said. 

Even with Saskatchewan being a deep team on the wing, Bromley believes that he is talented enough to go to camp and make the team.

“It’s up to them,” Bromley said. “The ideal situation would be for me to take a crack at the team and hopefully make it.” 

In addition to being an accomplished lacrosse player, Bromley is also focused on his academics: He was named to the Principal’s Student-Athlete Honour Roll in 2016. He plans to go to graduate school alongside playing in the NLL, a situation for which he is well-prepared. 

“Playing lacrosse at [McGill] prepared me with a work ethic to balance my school and athletic life,” Bromley said. “It taught me a competitive attitude. We’ve lost very few games in my time on the team.”

However, McGill wasn’t the only offer Bromley had when he graduated in 2013 from Earl Marriott Secondary High School in Surrey, British Columbia. He chose to attend McGill over several scholarship offers from NCAA lacrosse programs. 

“I felt that McGill was the perfect combo of good lacrosse and good school,” Bromley said. “I figured if I put the time in high school to get good grades, I would have the opportunity to come to a great school.”

Growing up in Surrey, Bromley played for the Semiahmoo Rock and Richmond RoadRunner lacrosse clubs. His run of excellent play earned him a spot on the Delta Islanders, a Junior A box lacrosse team, where he still plays during the summer. He has thrived with the team, scoring 61 points in 21 games this past summer and winning a provincial Junior A title. He attributes a lot of his success to the coaches and teammates he has played with.

“My biggest influence has been my coaching staff,” Bromley said. “The Delta coaching staff starting with Greg Rennie, Logan Schuss, Bruce Davidson, my minor lacrosse coach, and Brent Hoskins, my field lacrosse travelling team coach who helped me get into McGill.” 

Having the privilege to play with so many great players has helped Bromley to evolve into a more complete athlete, giving him the chance to play at the professional level. 

“It’s a huge honour to play here,” Bromley said. “A lot of great players have come through here who should’ve been drafted. It had a lot to do with luck and timing. Playing in the Minto Cup, [the trophy awarded annually to the best men’s Junior lacrosse team in Canada,] this year gave me the platform to get scouted.”

With all his recent success, he remains humble and focused. Bromley  wants to repeat as a national championship winner and end his McGill career in style. Whichever path he chooses, wheteher it be the NLL, graduate school, or both, he is primed to make an immediate impact.

Student Life

The case of the disappearing myCourses class list

by Liz Willcock on

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On the first day of school this Fall, there was a noticeable sense of unease as students filed into their classrooms. Professors watched students walk through lecture hall doors, eyes darting nervously around the classroom, desperately searching for a familiar face. The lucky ones would breathe a sigh of relief as they recognized their usual faculty crew sitting across the room. The not-so-lucky ones would shuffle to a seat near the fringes and strategically consider how to make friends for notes. Gone were the days when a mass email to the class would suffice. The classlist is now gone, and the room has been reduced to a contest of survival of the fittest. 

In the life of every student, whether in U0 to U4, undergraduate or graduate, there comes a time in which the myCourses classlist feature has been a lifesaver. The infamous classlist used to provide McGill students with the names, emails, and—for those particularly keen users—the icon images of their classmates, professors, and teaching assistants. Whether students sought  notes in a class where they had no friends, partners for a project, or were just logging in before the first day of school to creep their future classmates—the classlist function had their back. Until suddenly, it didn’t. 

At the beginning of the Fall 2016 term, this tab was noticeably absent on the myCourses home page. In its wake lies a simple instant message button, devoid of any contacts. Although the new instant message function is still in its developing stages, students left without their classmates’ information have asked themselves who will answer their message into the abyss—God? The ether? Suzanne Fortier?

“The basic reason for the removal of class lists is that there are in Quebec strong laws concerning confidentiality of student information,” Anna Walsh, associate registrar at Enrolment Services, said. “[This] would cover the information available on class lists. Unfortunately, there were also cases in which there were concerns that class lists, including email addresses, were at risk of being forwarded to commercial parties for inappropriate use.”

The Act respecting Access to documents held by public bodies and the Protection of personal information, implemented in 1982, holds all Quebec universities responsible for keeping student information confidential. When word reached the Enrolment Services that students emails were being distributed for profit, they were forced to consider the lawfulness of the classlist function.  

“I think there was an awareness that someone was making these lists available to off-campus users, but as with a lot of things at McGill, the reporting came to us from a lot of different people, and students have an absolute right to confidentiality about their academic records,” Walsh said. “The laws in Quebec state that no one should be aware of what [students] are registered in, unless it’s necessary—for example their advisors—and, in the case of the class lists, the responsibility came on to the university to prove why someone would need to know a student’s registration.” 

Some students feel the lack of class lists not only prevents them from accessing notes and academic collaboration, but creates an unwelcoming classroom environment in that it  discourages students from getting to know their peers. 

“Part of the whole university learning experience is that the classroom is a community, and you can’t foster that if everyone is anonymous,” Kimberly Richter, U3 Psychology, said. “We learn as much from each other as we do from the professors, especially in the Arts undergraduate community where so many of our classes are discussion-based.”

Richter believes that the class lists were essential for students trying to connect with each other, particularly at McGill, where large classes often leave students feeling isolated from their peers. 

“In my case, all of my psychology classes are, like, 400 people, so methodologically you can’t really know everyone,” Richter said. “You need the class lists to set yourself up with study buddies or forge a support system.” 

Both university administration and enrolment services are very aware of the effect that  confidentiality laws have on the classroom environment. However, when it becomes a matter of Quebec legislation, McGill administration’s hands are tied. 

“I understand the frustration that some students must be facing in losing the convenience of having access to the class lists and email addresses in myCourses,” Walsh said. “[However,] it is McGill’s responsibility to ensure that student information is confidential. Not only are we governed by this law, but we recognize how important it is to protect the privacy and security of all students.”

The onus of connecting with classmates thus falls back on students. Gone are the days of mass emails sent the night before an exam, begging for notes due to a suspiciously ill-timed computer failure, and never again will an entire introductory class receive a message from a first-year student asking if anyone has seen the coffee mug they left in Leacock  132. Rather,  students will be forced to meet their classmates, learn their names, and connect with them in real life before they do so virtually. Is this inconvenient? Yes, but if the case of the disappearing classlist function can be said to have a silver-lining, it is that students will be forced to interact face-to-face in order to get those coveted Friday morning lecture notes. Although this may seem like a daunting task to those students who have enjoyed the comfortable safety net of the class lists, maybe losing a little bit of our virtual connectedness is not an entirely bad thing.

Opinion

The dangers of the endless scroll: Social media use as a mental health indicator

by Jackie Houston on

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The internet has a dark side. A recent McMaster University study is the latest to confirm the adverse effects of too much screen time: The connection between internet use and mental illness is even stronger than previously thought. The survey of 254 McMaster University students, using the Young Internet Addiction Test as well as a new survey of the researcher’s own design, revealed that 42 per cent of subjects faced mental health issues as a result of excessive internet use, and 48 per cent of the total sample couldn't control their use of social media. If communities such as McGill—where students make up a majority of the population—are committed to combatting mental illness among young people, this connection demands further attention.

The internet, and more specifically social media, is a pervasive aspect of student life. Students must take it upon themselves to be more conscientious of how their social media use is a mental health indicator. Additionally, mental health care providers on campus should adjust their resources to address this new connection.

According to the McMaster study, internet addiction is correlated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, and ADHD symptoms, as well as issues with planning, time management, and impulsiveness. Yet these results do not describe the full story. The Internet Addiction Test that the researchers used, comprised of 20 ‘how often’ questions, was developed in 1998; young people’s relationship with the internet has changed since then. Some of the questions based on external measures—for example, "How often do others complain about your internet use?"—don't account for how normal excessive internet use has become. Moreover, the questions don’t differentiate kinds of internet usage. This eclipses the diversity of the modern internet landscape and, importantly, the distinct and profound impact of social media on one’s mental state.

If methods of mental health diagnosis are to be accurate and clinically useful, they must account for the environment of their subjects. As such, more effort needs to be devoted to understanding the relationship between social media, the web, and their effects upon mental health—both at the broader clinical level and here at McGill. Internet addiction is not included in the latest American Psychological Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, never mind the more specific correlation between mental illness and social media. Mental health initiatives on campus, such as Healthy McGill and the McGill Mental Health Hub, should implement measures of social media use into their self-diagnosis surveys.

A 2014 study conducted by Facebook further demonstrates the need to account for social media use in the diagnosis and treatment of mental health. In the study, Facebook manipulated the content of its users' news feeds to evaluate the effect of social media on mood. Unsurprisingly, people were likely to mirror the emotional state of the posts they saw. A more targeted research report released in the same year found that using Facebook specifically—not just general Internet use—decreased users’ moods. Of even more concern, a study conducted earlier this year revealed a connection between social media use and depression. Participants that used social media frequently were 2.7 times more likely to be depressed. More than a quarter of all participants who reported using social media an average of 61 minutes a day showed high indicators of depression.

These results become more worrying when one considers the susceptibility to mental illness that young people already face. As of 2015, the 20-30 age demographic has the highest levels of depression, anxiety, and stress, and the lowest levels of happiness, satisfaction, and well-being compared to other age groups. Millennials have been coined "the anxious generation."

Without reducing this downturn in youth mental health to the internet alone, it is a factor that should be taken into account, especially given the high rates of internet usage among young people today. Steps should be taken to raise awareness of social media use as a mental health indicator and to encourage students to be conscientious of their scrolling time. As recent studies indicate, the unique effects of social media on mental health cannot be ignored. Mental health initiatives at McGill must acknowledge the reality of today’s youth—a reality that features 20 new Snapchat filters and endlessly scrolling newsfeeds.

Hockey, Men's Varsity, Private, Sports

In conversation with Winnipeg Jets’ Assistant Coach Jamie Kompon

by Cameron Cash & Zikomo Smith on

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“I have a passion for hockey,” McGill alum and 17-year veteran NHL coach Jamie Kompon said. “It consumes your life, and it has consumed my life for the past thirty years.”

However, a long Stanley Cup-winning NHL career was never a given. Kompon first pursued  a professional career, moving to Germany and competing in the ECHL. He eventually gave up his playing career to put his McGill education degree to use to teach high school mathematics at Loyola high school. He combined this with coaching the McGill Redmen hockey team–first as an assistant, then as co-head coach.

“I got the opportunity to be a teacher at Loyola school,” Kompon said. “It was the right decision for me at the time [….] I had the chance to coach hockey and teach mathematics and physical education.”

Kompon still had NHL aspirations. While he enjoyed teaching, the NHL was his calling.

“If I didn’t take that opportunity to be a coach and step out of my comfort zone, I would probably be teaching right now,” Kompon explained.

Kompon got his first NHL job with the St. Louis Blues on a friend’s recommendation to  Head Coach Joel Quenneville. Since then, he’s won two Stanley Cups and been behind the bench of multiple NHL teams.  Strong personal relationships have fuelled Kompon’s career.

“The jump to the NHL happened because you knew people,” Kompon explained. “It’s the right time and the right place, being fortunate to surround yourself with good people [….] I just happened to get an opportunity through a friend, and Joel Quenneville hired me in the NHL.”

In perhaps his biggest career move, Kompon became general manager and head coach of the Major Junior WHL’s Portland Winterhawks in 2014. His teaching experience came to the fore, coaching younger players.

“You are dealing with 16 to 20-year-olds, so the ability to relate to them and to talk to them [is important],” Kompon said. “It is their first time away from home and […] for some of them, when they are not the best player on their team.”

The WHL also required Kompon to micro-manage more than in the NHL.

“At the NHL level it is a little different, you ask someone to do something and it is done instantaneously,” Kompon said. “At the junior level […] the staff is not as large so sometimes things fall through the cracks, so you have to stay on top of them.”

Kompon’s Winterhawks compiled a 77-54-13 record over two seasons and made the Western Conference Final in 2015. He was let go in early 2016, but quickly found his way onto an NHL coaching staff after being approached by Winnipeg Jets’ Head Coach Paul Maurice.

“I still want to be a head coach,” Kompon said. “But I thought this was the right path to learn from someone different […Maurice and I] see the game in very similar ways and I am very excited to be learning from him.”

The relentlessness of the NHL forces coaches to develop strong professional bonds. Kompon is adamant that coaches must be collaborative, and not limited by labels such as ‘defensive’ or ‘offensive coaches.’

“No one is on an island,” Kompon said. “So no one says you are the power play guru [or] you are the penalty kill person. A lot of teams do not do that because it isolates one person and they do not necessarily have all the answers [….] If I am presenting the power play, I want [Assistant Coach] Charlie [Huddy]’s support [….] If he is doing the penalty kill, I want to make sure he is delegating to me also, so we get a different set of eyes [on the issue].”

Kompon now has his hands full with a young, talented Jets squad that boasts a potential superstar in 2016 No. 2 overall draft pick Patrick Laine, as well as dynamic youngsters Mark Scheifele, Nik Ehlers, and 2015 first rounder Kyle Connor.

“There are a lot of similarities between [our team] and […] the LA Kings,” Kompon said. “When I got there [the Kings] were having a changing of the guard and had a couple year gap when we were not a very good team […] All these kids were coming up through our system and we were developing them.”

Kompon’s challenge is to keep the players mentally fresh.

“Now it is about polishing [the young players] and making sure you stay on their habits,” Kompon said. “Young kids […] have ebbs and flows. The NHL is a grind [….] We have 16 games in the month of November, and with these young kids coming up it is about taking caring of themselves […and] I think it is mental more so than physical [….] We have to make sure they are progressing in the right way and staying mentally sharp.”

The Jets had six players miss the start of training camp for the NHL’s World Cup of Hockey, in addition to Head Coach Paul Maurice who served as an assistant to Ralph Krueger on the Team Europe coaching squad. Kompon, however, believes the experience will serve those players well as they prepare for the upcoming season.

“I know as a coaching staff we are watching this with our eyes wide open,” Kompon said. “It gets us excited for the season [….] I really think that as much as people say that maybe it is a detriment because you do not have that team bonding, players want to hear their experience […] and share some good experiences and stories.”

With Maurice busy with Team Europe in the World Cup, Kompon had to open up the Jets’ training camp alongside fellow Assistant  Coach Charlie Huddy. All of Kompon’s skills as a coach and mentor will be on display. Perhaps his tenure with this young Jets team could be his final step before landing an NHL head coaching job.

 

Favourite class at McGill:

I am not sure. I don’t know, there were so many good influences [….] I enjoyed any anatomy classes.”

 

Favourite study spot:

My house. Because it was quiet there.

 

Favourite restaurant:

Amilios pizza. I think it closed down now. I lived above it and I couldn’t get enough of it [….] I tell you something, it has the best Slaw I ever had.

Album Reviews, Arts & Entertainment

Album Review: Atrocity Exhibition – Danny Brown

by Dylan Adamson on

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Danny Brown doesn’t make albums for the faint-of-heart. Throughout his career, Brown has pushed the limits of what one can say on a mainstream rap release, as well as the genre’s sonic boundaries. As he shifts rapidly between coked-out rampages, stoned relaxation, explicit sexual descriptions, and bleak explorations of alienation and loneliness, one wonders how long it will be before his volatile lifestyle catches up to him. Atrocity Exhibition declares that, in his 35th year, Brown is not slowing down anytime soon.


Brown’s fourth full length album was released via Twitter on Sept. 27, three days ahead of schedule because the eccentric Detroit rapper “COULDN’T WAIT ANY LONGER.” His excitement was understandable: The rapper’s recent streak of influential LPs —2011’s XXX and 2013’s Old—as well as the four excellent singles he’s dropped in recent months have set the bar sky high.


Atrocity Exhibition shatters all expectations. The album is named after a Joy Division song—immediately hinting at major themes of addiction, alienation, and death. Brown takes full advantage of the album’s 45 minutes, in 15 short tracks, stuffing more dense wordplay, explicit imagery, and stark truths into a rap album than should be possible.


A more unified project than Old, Atrocity Exhibition  has only six features across four songs, and ten of the album’s fifteen tracks are produced by Paul White. White is best known for his work on Brown’s earlier projects, and a split LP with L.A. rapper Open Mike Eagle (Hella Personal Film Festival), but his work here should garner some serious attention across the genre.


The opener, “Downward Spiral” sets a dark tone for the album. White delivers a beat featuring a slide guitar reminiscent of the Breaking Bad theme and some fluttery drums sounding straight out of the jazzy Birdman soundtrack. White’s sample-heavy beats lack any correlatives in hip-hop, and, as a result, this album defies comparaison. As always, Brown fills this beat to the point of overflow with comically dark imagery, inviting listeners to marvel at his knack for rapid-fire wordplay, while gawking at the vivid self-portrait he paints.


On “Ain’t It Funny,” the album’s sixth track, White lays down one of the many fantastically bizarre beats on the album. With a pulsing bassline punctuated by erratic bursts of horns, the sound is a startling revelation on a mainstream hip-hop LP. Of course, Brown does lyrical somersaults over the unwieldy beat, rampaging through bars packed with double entendres and internal rhymes. The resulting chaos produces a uniquely grim vision of party-rap. Brown shifts unpredictably between moments of stark clarity (“It’s a living nightmare, that most of us might share / Inherited in our blood, that’s why we stuck in the mud”) and his trademark party-to-forget mentality (“So I’ma wash down all these problems with a bottle of Henny”). His outlook morphs from line to line, juxtaposing startlingly cold realizations with destructive tendency to self-medicate.


While these peaks and valleys can be a lot to take in for the casual listener, one is impressed by the lyrical urgency and emotional tenacity Brown brings to each of his songs. The oscillation between fear and awe characterizes the album’s narrative and the listening experience itself. Although Brown tackles many of the typical party-rap tropes—such as sex, drugs, alcohol—he howls his bars with such ferocious honesty that it makes for some uncomfortable social listening. In short, Atrocity Exhibition is party-rap for people who hate party-rap.

A highly experimental album which defies categorization, its complex portrait of a damaged individual solidifies Brown’s position as a simultaneously human and superhuman rap artist.

 

Standout tracks:

“Really Doe” (ft. Earl Sweatshirt, Ab-Soul, Kendrick Lamar) – Stacked posse-cut produced by J Dilla disciple, Black Milk

“Get Hi” (ft. B-Real) – Excellent change of pace slow jam, featuring a great hook from the guy from Cypress Hill

 

Editorial, Opinion

Broadening the scope of sustainability at McGill

by McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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On Sept. 23, McGill hosted the first in a series of open forums to discuss sustainability with members of the McGill community. The forums were agreed to in the wake of Divest McGill’s sit-in at the James Administration Building in Winter 2016. The forums were structured to include segments on sustainability on campus, in academic research, and in investment practices, yet the majority of the conversation was focused on McGill’s investments in the fossil fuel industry.

The issue of sustainability at McGill is a complex and multifaceted one, in which the administration, faculty, and students all have a role to play. In assessing McGill’s progress in sustainability, it is necessary to examine the wide range of initiatives and policies adopted at all levels in the university community.

In an email sent to all students on Sept. 25, McGill announced that it has received a Gold rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE)—an upgrade from its 2012 Silver rating. The timing of the announcement stood in contrast to the other two events that took place within the same week—the Open Forum on Sustainability and Fossil Free week—both of which stemmed from dissatisfaction among certain student groups.

The university highlights developments in several key areas as the reason for its high rating. These include the maintenance of the Sustainability Projects Fund―the largest of its kind in North America―to provide funding to student and faculty sustainability initiatives; the inclusion of sustainability in the curriculum through a variety of Arts, Science, Engineering, and Management programs; as well as sustainable food sourcing, energy conservation, and procurement services. The extensive and diverse criteria in the AASHE report—including categories of academics, engagement, operations, planning and administration, and innovation and leadership—is a reminder of the numerous ways a university can strive to be sustainable.

McGill should be commended for the areas in which it has successfully implemented sustainable practices, and held accountable for those where progress is lacking.

Judging McGill’s commitment to sustainability by considering only one criteria―such as divestment―would be a mistake. Instead, members of the McGill community must take a holistic approach to sustainability. Indeed, the McGill Office of Sustainability acknowledges that sustainability is multifaceted and complex. Its vision is framed around five key concepts—research, education, connectivity, operations, and governance and administration. McGill should be commended for the areas in which it has successfully implemented sustainable practices, and held accountable for those where progress is lacking.

For example, in the AASHE report, McGill scores notably low in certain criteria—specifically, sustainable investment, water use and rainwater management, and waste minimization and diversion. These are areas in which students can demand to see an improvement from the administration and expect an active response to.

Members of the McGill community should keep in mind that sustainability is a shared responsibility. While conversations about sustainability at the university can centre heavily around the administration’s role, faculty and students are also an integral part of McGill’s sustainability efforts. As the foundation of the university community, students are in a unique position to implement grassroots initiatives to promote sustainable, environmentally-friendly practices at McGill. Successful projects such as Plate Club, Fight the Power, and the Arts Undergraduate Society’s Snax’s on-site compost were all the result of mobilization at the student level.

A sustainable university is not just the result of administrative decisions, but of the efforts of all members of the university community. Administrators can set long-term sustainability goals―like McGill’s Vision 2020 Sustainability Strategy, faculty can incorporate sustainability into their research and course content, and students can work at the grassroots level to create sustainable campus initiatives. In turn, faculty and administration should encourage students to continue pursuing such initiatives; however, at the same time, students can and should continue to lobby the administrations on its big picture decisions, whether or not it chooses to listen. All three of these pistons must be firing for McGill to make substantial progress on the road to sustainability.

On campus, conversations about sustainability must acknowledge the many ways in which it can be achieved, and the roles of all members of the university community in achieving it. A proper assessment of McGill’s progress on this issue needs to take all relevant criteria into account. Administrators, faculty, and students must be aware of the unique ways in which they can each promote sustainable practices at McGill.

 

 

 

News, SSMU

SSMU Council discusses the role of sponsorship in budget report

by Emma Avery on

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At the Sept. 29 Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Legislative Council, an initial report on the Society’s budget was presented by Vice-President (VP) Finance Niall Carolan. Additionally, executives gave reports on the formation and progress of various committees as well as upcoming plans for the year.

2016-2017 SSMU budget overview

Carolan reported on the budget, which will be finalized and presented at the Oct. 13 Council meeting after SSMU has been audited. Carolan addressed issues of sponsorship, the Student Run Cafeteria (SRC), and Gerts.

“Sponsorship is something that we’ve always used at the SSMU, and […] it has […] come into public light recently,” Carolan said. “However, I just want to provide a little context [….] There are two main allocations of sponsorship [….] A small portion of sponsorship is [for] general administration, and that’s used to pay for our sponsorship coordinators [….] The remaining portion of the sponsorship revenue goes directly to the events that it’s used to […] sponsor. And then more general sponsorship […] around the building and […] specific tabling events [….] goes directly into offsetting the costs of running this building.”

Carolan acknowledged one of the challenges with sponsorship lies in figuring out its impact on the student body. According to Carolan, the goal is to add to the student experience, not to detract from it.

“[Balancing that impact is] something we’re focusing on acutely now, after hearing input from students and […] campus media,” Carolan said. “Also, finding ways to make sponsorship more student-centred and ultimately […] ways that sponsorship can add value to students’ lives on campus[….] Some opportunities we have include getting students more involved in the reviewing of sponsors, and again, just trying find ways to add value to students’ lives through sponsorship.”

According to Carolan, SSMU has been exploring avenues to make the SRC more profitable. Although sales more than doubled in 2016 to approximately $221,000, this was accompanied by a rise in expenses, which in turn led to a deficit of $120,000 in the same year.

“A lot of [why that happened] is to do with how the SRC was set up,” Carolan said. “Advertising, for instance, as per [SSMU’s Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), the SRC is] not allowed to advertise anywhere on campus. This heavily restricts our promotional capacity to McGill students [….] Other issues are some of the mandates the SRC has [….] Things like using locally-sourced produce, sustainable produce, [and] paying workers fair wages. All of those things are good mandates, however, [they do] restrict our ability to be profitable.”

In order to regain profits in the SRC, SSMU is tracking sales on an hourly basis. Carolan emphasized that making the SRC profitable is a priority for all of the executives this year.

“I think having a student operation in this building is […] of paramount importance and I’ve always said that having a profitable student-run operation is always our […] top goal,” Carolan said. “However, we have been working through just about every executive portfolio and permanent staff member available […] on ways we can increase sales and more accurately attribute our costs to those sales.”

Other current and planned initiatives for the SRC include targeting off-campus sales, increasing catering, and introducing McGill ID card scanners to draw in first-years.

Executive Reports

VP Internal Daniel Lawrie addressed some of the positive feedback regarding this year’s Frosh. He also identified aspects of Frosh that could be improved for next year.

“We came up with a few key things that we could work on for next year. We found that [the] communication between all our faculties had improved significantly, but we could still work on that further […],” Lawrie said. “We also had a meeting with the administration about the street teams. Again, that was extremely positive.”

Lawrie also explained his upcoming projects, namely Four Floors and the McGill app. Lawrie plans to integrate SSMU services like the listserv into the app, as well as use it for event ticketing this year.

VP University Affairs Erin Sobat commented on the current state of the Draft Policy for Sexual Violence, which will be presented at the Oct. 19 Senate meeting, and voted on at the Nov. 19 meeting.

“We’re doing a wide range of consultation on this,” Sobat said. “We’ve got a whole bunch of focus groups that have been happening last week and this week until about [Oct. 3], which we are going to be compiling a report on to take to Senate.”

President Ben Ger explained a possible new initiative to increase attendance at the General Assembly (GA) by providing academic accommodations during the assemblies.

“The idea of potentially having some sort of academic amnesty, which would mean that [students] could not be graded during days in which the GA is happening,” Ger said. “That would be a McGill policy so that students could come out to attend the GA without fear of […] grades or missing class [….] The other option is having all classes cancelled or moved that day—with the exception of some […] labs.”

Ger explained that Associate Provost (Policies, Procedures, and Equity) Angela Campbell and Provost and Dean of Students Christopher Buddle both seemed receptive to the idea.

“Having more representation at the GA was something that they were behind—more engagement with debates on campus […],” Ger said. “ Moving forward, it will be brought to the Student Life and Learning team, as well as some other areas.”

 

A previous version of this article incorrectly identified that advertising on campus is against the SRC MOA. In fact, it goes against the MOA of SSMU. A previous version of this article also incorrectly identified that Associate Provost (Policies, Procedures and Equity) Angela Campbell and Vice-President (Academic) Christopher Manfredi both seemed receptive to the idea of academic amnesty during SSMU GA periods. In fact, Associate Provost (Policies, Procedures and Equity) Angela Campbell and the Dean of Students Christopher Buddle have both seemed receptive to the idea.

McGill, News

McGill launches pilot initiative for budding startups

by Raseel Ghoul on

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Over the summer, the McGill Office of Innovation began working on realizing a new McGill Startup Space, a physical place for student entrepreneur groups to come together and develop ideas and initiatives. The Office is launching the space through their partnership with the Notman House, a non-profit organization that offers office, event, and conference space to a large number of entrepreneurial startups in the Montreal community.

The motivation to establish the startup space came from research conducted by the Office of Innovation in the summer of 2016. According to Associate Vice Principal of Innovation Angelique Mannella, an important finding was the need for a startup space on or near campus; a place where McGill-based entrepreneurs could discuss ideas, work on logistics, and network within the greater Montreal community.

“The idea to launch the initiative came from feedback I received from many students and researchers that highlighted the desire for a startup space on campus […],” Mannella wrote in an email to The Tribune. “While there are some great initiatives [at McGill], such as [the McGill] Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship, we definitely need to take things to the next level.”

Campus Director at the Notman House, Emma Williams, discussed the role of the organization in assisting entrepreneurs in the local community, particularly through the numerous services it has to offer.

“The Notman House was created to offer the startup community a physical place to assemble,” Williams said. “It houses offices, event spaces, [and] eight ‘services for startups,’ such as Investors, Accelerators, [as well as] a public café. Its goal is to remove barriers to entry to entrepreneurship by providing startups with an open and collaborative environment where everyone feels welcome.”

Williams also mentioned the value that universities such as McGill bring to the Notman House and to the greater Montreal community, outlining her appreciation for student initiatives in the area.

“We wanted to work with McGill because it’s important for us to have strong partnerships with local universities,” Williams said. “Our main mission is to help develop and promote entrepreneurship in Montreal and we recognize that the next generation of founders and builders are coming out of institutions like McGill.”

A student and entrepreneur, Zoey Li, U4 Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, applauded McGill’s efforts at creating spaces dedicated to entrepreneurs, outlining the importance of a guaranteed physical space for entrepreneurs juggling the challenges of school and running a business. Li is the founder of YUMiBOX, a startup that provides the delivery of whole grain products to customers in order to motivate consumers to base their diets on healthier carbohydrate choices. The foundation of Li’s startup came from her participation in McGill’s Dobson Cup.

“Entrepreneurial initiatives at McGill like the Dobson Cup gave my team the confidence to move forward with our startup,” Li said. “The Notman House space is an amazing idea. Ultimately, every startup needs a place to start and grow, and having a designated place for your business takes off a lot of pressure for student entrepreneurs trying to balance between their initiatives and their schoolwork.”

The McGill Startup Space initiative launched on Saturday, Oct. 1 and will support three to four entrepreneurial groups as a pilot initiative until Jan. 2017.

Legal Information Column, Student Life

How to survive in the McGill ghetto: Noise complaints and neighbourly troubles

by Legal Information Clinic at McGill on

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As the semester unfolds, problems with noise and neighbours emerge. The downstairs neighbour may be excited to have moved away from their parents’ place, and has decided to put together a band. While this in itself may not be so bad, they decide to practice during ideal study moments. To top it all off, the upstairs neighbour is hosting nightly parties. The noise is nearly as unbearable as trying to navigate construction on McTavish Street. While earplugs might work in a pinch, the following are ideas for a more long-term solution to noisy apartments based on what Quebec law says about the rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords.

What can a tenant do when they are faced with noise problems?   

Landlords are legally obliged to provide tenants with peaceable enjoyment of the dwelling. This means that, in certain situations, the landlord may be called upon to correct disruptive situations. For example, noise that is beyond the normal level of neighbourhood annoyance may be considered a violation of the tenant’s right to the peaceable enjoyment of the apartment

According to the Régie du logement, Quebec’s rental board in charge of overseeing residential lease disputes, tenants should initially try to speak with their neighbours and request that they lower their noise levels. That said, the landlord is responsible for trying to remedy conflicts between tenants, and, as a result, may be responsible for the inconveniences and damages suffered by a tenant due to the disruptive behaviour of others. However, because landlords often live elsewhere, they won’t know about noise issues unless informed by an occupant. Therefore, if speaking with the neighbours doesn’t work, a tenant can complain to the landlord, either verbally or through a formal notice by registered mail.

This notice would lay out all the facts relevant to the dispute and formally demand that the landlord take action within a reasonable period of time. It is useful for the tenant to keep a record of when the disturbance occurs and to gather any relevant evidence, such as sound recordings or even police reports. If necessary, the landlord could ask the Régie to cancel the remaining time on the troublesome party’s lease, thereby requiring the noisy individual to move out.

If all else fails

If, after notifying the landlord, the problem persists, a tenant can ask the Régie du logement for a reduction in their rent. The tenant could even ask for their own lease to be cancelled. If the landlord fails to act with prudence and diligence, the tenant may also ask the Régie to order the landlord to pay money to compensate for any injury the tenant suffered, such as emotional stress and expenses incurred in trying to fix the problem that the landlord was ignoring. Finally, when a noisy tenant disturbs other tenants’ enjoyment of their dwelling, a court may find the troublesome tenant liable for damages that result from the disturbance created for other tenants. If a landlord or noisy tenant won’t pay under a court order, the person entitled to the money can follow legal procedures to enforce the court judgement. While taking people to court is possible, tenants must bear in mind that they are required to formally advise the landlord of the disturbance before pursuing legal action.

 

Each borough in Montreal has adopted its own regulations that define the types of noises that are forbidden and the options that are available to assert one’s rights. To inquire about these, or to ask your own legal question, contact the Legal Information Clinic at McGill (LICM) with the directions found on our website. According to the Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, only lawyers and notaries can provide legal advice or counsel. The LICM, therefore, only provides legal information. For legal advice, please contact a lawyer. 

McGill, News

#ConsentMcGill annual campaign teaches students about consent, sexual violence, and healthy relationships

by Domenic Casciato, Julia Metraux, Sara Cullen on

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The #ConsentMcGill campaign kicked off its third year with a week of speaking panels, workshops, and other activities designed to educate members of the McGill community about consent, sexual violence, and how to build healthy relationships. Events were scheduled from Sept. 26 to 30 and covered a variety of topics related to consent on the university campus. Included in the week’s programming was a workshop on how to intervene in cases of sexual assault and a symposium that covered the topic of caring for survivors of sexual violence. Other events included a pottery class that promoted therapeutic self-care and a speaking panel on the power dynamics that contribute to sexual violence at the university.

Coordinated by the Office of the Dean of Students, #ConsentMcGill has been hosting the annual week-long campaign since 2014. The initiative works with students, staff, and faculty, and seeks to promote the three key principles of consent: Ask, listen, and respect. Organized largely by Liaison Officer (Harm Reduction), Bianca Tétrault, #ConsentMcGill is run by volunteers year round.

Consent McGill Panel

The Consent McGill Panel consisted of four speakers, each with different experiences with sexual violence and power dynamics. The speakers included Adrienne Piggott, one of McGill’s harassment assessors; Jason Opal, an assistant professor from the Department of History; Nina Hermes, a floor fellow at RVC and sexual violence survivor; and Claire Michela, the president of the Association of McGill University Support Employees (AMUSE).

The panel’s topics ranged from the responsibility of faculty to create a safe space for students to the efficacy of the university’s sexual harassment policy, as well as the role of witnesses of sexual violence.

“From a professor standpoint, it should be said particularly of professors that whether they like it or not […] they are in a position of privilege,” Opal said. “That privilege therefore means that you have to generate healthy boundaries, and guard healthy boundaries and be there as a form of respect and service to your students.”

Students were invited to ask the panel questions and participate in discussions. Aside from the speakers’ prepared introductions, the conversation was spontaneous with new questions being posed by both the host, the Equity and Diversity Commissioner of PGSS, Angela Yu, and audience members. Students participated in discussions about the role of McGill’s drinking culture, the role of parents in teaching their children about healthy relationships, and the effectiveness of McGill’s policies.

One of the central topics of the night was about the ability of McGill to pursue allegations of sexual harassment. Piggott is directly involved with the investigation of harassment complaints and with redrafting the university’s sexual harassment and discrimination policy.

“[The harassment policy] was written by people, so we adjust as we go,” Piggott said. “We don’t necessarily get it right the first time we draft.”

In response to one of the final questions of the night, however, Michela pointed out that this is not a hopeless message.

“Work together,” Michela said. “Speak up. It took that straw that broke the camel’s back for people to finally get together and be like ‘alright, we’re going to work on [the policy….]’ Make enough noise and you can maybe get that.”

How to Respond to and Support Disclosures Workshops

On Sept. 28 and 29, two workshops, titled “How to Respond to and Support Disclosures,” were hosted by Tétrault.

Tétrault, who has been running this campaign for three years, said it is essential to hold workshops like these because it is important to be prepared to support a survivor of sexual violence.

“Students look to certain members of the community,” Tétrault said. “It’s important to be prepared to support a student.”

In Tétrault’s presentation, she emphasized the importance of supporting survivors, whether as an active listener or as a source to help them to find the right resources. Tétrault also highlighted information on rape kits and important legal details, such as McGill’s current process for dealing with sexual violence.

Susanne Baumann-Moroy, human resources advisor in the Department of Engineering, said that the information shared in the “How to Respond to and Support Disclosures” presentation should be more widely known among the McGill community.

“Information for people who are sexually assaulted, like [the fact that you] only [have] 72 hours to get a [rape kit], is very important and should be common knowledge,” Baumann-Moroy said.

During the workshops, Tétrault noted that she was disappointed with the gender disparity of the attendees. Around 15 people attended the Sept. 29 workshop, but only two were male.

“It really speaks to who the advocates [for] those who are assaulted are [at McGill],” Tétrault said.

Baumann-Moroy believes that presentations like “How to Respond to and Support Disclosures” should be mandatory for the McGill community.


“What we learned today was not only about sexual assault, but also about respecting each other,” Baumann-Moroy said.

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