Issue 12

February 24th, 2014

ELECTIONS| eic@thephoenixnews.com

YOUR 2014 UBCO STUDENT ELECTION GUIDE // CANDIDATES + POSITION BREAKDOWNS + KEY HISTORY

LET THE GAMES BEGIN

UBCO’s Student Newspaper

February 24th, 2014| Vol. 25 Issue 12 ...hail the Helix Fossil since 1989

1

Elections February 24th, 2014

ELECTIONS| eic@thephoenixnews.com

YOUR 2014 UBCO STUDENT ELECTION GUIDE // CANDIDATES + POSITION BREAKDOWNS + KEY HISTORY

1

LET THE GAMES BEGIN

UBCO’s Student Newspaper

February 24th, 2014| Vol. 25 Issue 12 ...hail the Helix Fossil since 1989

Key History p6-7 Candidate Bios p8 Position Breakdown 14-15

LIFE

ARTS

Dread of elections p4 Toastmasters club p5

JP Maurice plays good music p20 Gender Failure a success p22

OPINIONS

SPORTS

Campaigns! Campaigns! p18 Elections! Elections! p19

Heat fall just short of Nationals p24 Chess is a sport p25

Have you heard? Student elections have started. Cool.

Corrections Chynna Howard, we will get your name right eventually.

Also, Frances the dog, if you’re reading this, we’re sorry we got your name wrong, too.

Room 109 University Center 3333 University Way Kelowna, BC Canada V1Y 5N3 Phone: 250-807-9296 Fax: 250-807-8431 thephoenixnews.com

Editor-in-chief Dave Nixon eic@thephoenixnews.com

Interim News Editor My Chemical Romance news@thephoenixnews.com

Events Editor Hanss Lujan events@thephoenixnews.com

The Phoenix is the UBCO students’ free

Managing Editor Alex Eastman ads@thephoenixnews.com

Arts Editor Laura Scarpelletti arts@thephoenixnews.com

Photo Editor Kelsi Barkved photo@thephoenixnews.com

from the UBC institution at large.

Creative Director Cameron Welch

Life Editors Maranda Wilson life@thephoenixnews.com Sasha Curry curry@thephoenixnews.com

Staff Writers Brianna Ferguson

sions from publication for any reason. “Any

Staff Illustrator Asher Klassen

or quality. The Phoenix will not publish

Sports Editor Kaeleigh Phillips sports@thephoenixnews.com

Staff Photographers Ali Young Jahmira Lovegrove

Opinions Editor Kayti Barkved

Production Assistants Lindsay Smith Lynette Oon

creative@thephoenixnews.com

Interim Art Director Cameron Welch

artdirector@thephoenixnews.com

Copy Editor Lauren Wintle copy@thephoenixnews.com

opinions@thephoenixnews.com

press. Editorial content is separate from the University of British Columbia Students’ Union Okanagan (UBCSUO) and

The editorial staff encourages everyone to submit material to the Phoenix but reserves the right to withdraw submisreason” could be material deemed to be sexist, racist, homophobic, or of poor taste materials which condone, promote, or express actions which are illegal under current laws. This does not include articles which provide an in-depth examination of both sides of a controversial subject (e.g. legalising marijuana).

The Phoenix is published, in part, by the UBCSUO and is an active member of the Canadian University Press

NEWS briefs

Surveys on experience of undergrads circulate

Left: Leo Tan; Top Right: Layne Richardson; Bottom Right: Rocky Kim; Not pictured: Jagmeet Khabra

from Facebook.com

They were the slater boys Campaign a day later, boys

David Nixon

Editor-in-chief

The Chief Returning Officer (CRO) of the 2014 UBCSUO elections penalized four candidates for campaign violations, namely slating, before campaigning even began.

Katelyn Fujii, a candidate for President and Senator at Large made a complaint on February 21 regarding photos posted to Facebook of four other candidates, namely Rocky Kim (President),

Layne Richardson (VP Services), Leo Tan (Director at Large), and Jagmeet Khabra (VP Internal).

There was one group photo of the candidates posing together in buisness attire on the steps between the Science building and Library on UBCO campus. The candidates also posted individual Facebook photos taken in the Fipke building with very similar backgrounds and poses.

Slates, an organized party-type system where candidates run on a shared platform, were banned at

A review on the AVP Students’ Office has been released with some strong recommendations for the office going forward. This is the largest administrative office comprising all of the student services on campus.

On our radar

the 2012 AGM. According to election policy 5 a), slating includes marketing materials. The CRO, Curtis Tse, interpreted these as marketing materials that suggested slating, and banned the four candidates from campaigning until February 25 at noon.

They were also given their final warning – any other breaches of the slate policy will result in immediate disqualification.

Kim is one of four candidates for President, and Tan is one of the five candidates vying for a Director at

Peter Wylie wrote in two weeks ago regarding a trend he thought was concerning: the disproportionate drop of arts student enrolment in favor of science student enrolment at UBCO. We are investigating for a follow-up story. In the meantime, read his piece at thephoenixnews.com

Large position. Richardson and Khabra are running unopposed for their positions.

Following the penalty, Kim and Tan changed their profile picture to a different photo, and no trace of the incriminating photos can be found on Khabra’s Facebook account.

Fujii’s identity as the plaintiff was made public by Tse as per UBCSUO elections policy.

The All Candidate Forum, February 26, and the Debate, February 27, will be hosted by The Phoenix and should be a good insight to the quality of candidates running this year. We will publish our coverage soon after those dates.

UBC’s Okanagan campus is participating in two surveys: 1. NSSE: The National Survey of Student Engagement 2. CUSC: The Canadian Universities Survey Consortium’s Survey of Middle Years Students According to Reagan Truscott, Marketing and Communications Strategist for Enrolment Services of UBC, the surveys “relate to experiences of undergraduate students. Results will be used to shape improvements to educational programming and activities for you and future students.”

The Survey dates are February 12 to March 31, 2014, and they are available online.

All undergraduate students should have received an invitation via email in early February with a survey link and login instructions “These surveys are an important source of student feedback,” said Truscott, “and are used to improve the student experience...If students don’t participate, UBC will lack adequate student feedback when considering planning and funding improvements to the student experience.”

Surveys are supposed to take about 20 about minutes to complete. Completed surveys qualify for prizes.

Know something that should be on our radar? Let us know at news@thephoenixnews.com

LIFE

African Awareness week Feb 24 Opening Ceremony 2:30 p.m. / Fipke Foyer

Feb 25 Cooking with Tobe

12:00 - 3:00 p.m. / Aboriginal Collegium UNC 2

Feb 25 AfroZumba

4:45 - 5:45 p.m. / Studio 1 Gym

Feb 25 Movie Night: 12 Years A Slave

6:00 p.m. / UNC Theatr

Feb 26 Intercontinental Soccer Tournament

3:00 - 5:00 p.m. / The Well

Feb 27 Will Night Feat.

Basement Clothing a.k.a. DJ Yaw

9:00 p.m. / Fipke Foyer

Feb 27 Taste of Africa 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. / Fipke Foyer

Feb 27 Debate/Discussion: Socio Economic Affairs of the African Continent 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. / UNC Theatre

Feb 28 Africana Gala

6:00 p.m. / Ballroom (UNC 200)

CRO Curtis Tse Chases our editor Sasha Curry to tell her about the elections

Photos by Kelsi Barkved

How to escape from the dreaded election pushers Sasha Curry

Life Editor

When crawling through the most crippling stage of midterm season, it seems that the election pushers are waiting around almost every corner of campus to ask, “Have you voted yet?” “Can I ask you a few quick questions?” Or the dreaded “We’ll give you a free [insert random trinket or baked good] in exchange for filling out this survey!”

Keeping in mind that these pushers are in fact hard-working students too, sometimes it becomes necessary to excuse yourself from an election confrontation when rushing to an exam, study session, or simply due to an episode of the midterm blues (which can have moody uncharacteristic side effects). Below are some excuses that I whip out when in dire need of an escape:

In any chosen accent respond, “No Englaise.”

Start singing, “It’s going down, I’M YELLING TIMBER!!”

Respond by admitting, “I have really really got to pee…I’m sorry.” If they keep speaking, proceed with, “Starting to pee as we speak.” Waddling away quickly.

Take the pusher’s hand, placing a loonie in their palm. Hold their hand for a moment too long and smile sweetly, before waltzing away.

Walk by quickly wearing dark oversized sunglasses while yelling, “My life is just too complicated right now.” Looking at the ground.

Take a banana out of your bag and start eating it slowly, staring at them in the eyes as they begin their election pitch.

Ask them, “So, what do you do for a living?”

Say, “I really am just fed up with our current political system, and would like to see more of a totalitarianism system introduced.”

Say, “Well, you can start by freeing Bieber.”

While walking by smile widely, wave, and laugh obnoxiously throwing your head back to yell, “ Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Ask, “Okay, do these Uggs make my feet look fat?”

Ask for, “More sex, drugs, and Rock & Roll, please.”

Lastly, there’s the classic: “No, I’m not interested. Nope. No thanks. Not interested. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry.”

Forever Love project near its goal The Forever Love 201314 project began on Chinese New Year with the goal of collecting 1,314 photos of students and others on campus making a heart symbol with their hands. After tabling in several buildings for the past several weeks, the team has collected 949 photos and hopes to get the rest next week. Forever

Love has also been partnering with faculties and campus food services to create posters of staff making the heart gesture to put up in their respective workplaces.

Students can submit photos of themselves making the heart gesture to ubco201314@hotmail. com or to the “Love Forever 201314” Facebook page.

Campus k

ee w e h t b of

Clu

Toastmasters Club Maranda Wilson

Life Editor

What:

“Toastmasters International is a world leader in communication and leadership development,” according to the Toastmasters website There are common misconceptions surrounding Toastmasters and their purpose. The main goal of Toastmasters is to provide opportunities to improve public speaking skills. With that being said, even those who don’t struggle with public speaking can always improve.

When: Established at UBCO around 2009.

How:

Anyone is welcomed to drop in to the meetings. A typical meeting starts with introductions and fun activities to get everyone talking. Members also present their prepared speeches, to which everyone else will evaluate and provide feedback. The goal is to keep the meeting interactive, since a majority of members describe themselves as being shy.

Successes:

The general turnout this year to meetings has drastically improved over previous years.

The club also holds meetings this year in the boardrooms in EME, in order to maintain a more professional appeal.

Troubles:

Many are unaware of the existence of the club; there are plans to do more advertising.

Members:

Currently the club has 15 registered members, and approximately 20 to 30 additional members who attend meetings. Although anyone can drop into meetings, members who pay the membership fee (returning members: $40, new members: $60) are signed up with Toastmasters International and are provided a “Competent Communications” and “Competent Leadership” manual.

In each booklet, there are a series of ten training modules where different skills are practiced. The manuals focus on various skills such as creativity, how to prepare strong speeches, effective pauses, and body language.

The club has also recently started up an incentive program. For new members who complete their first speech (the “Ice Breaker” speech), they are rewarded with a $5 Tim Horton’s giftcard, and those who complete one of their manuals are rewarded with a dinner paid for by the club. (Only one person from UBCO has claimed the free dinner).

Two exec positions are currently open

Events:

Speech Contests: Internal speech contests leading up to national speech contests in partnership with Toastmasters International.

Meetings are Mondays 9:30-10:30, and Tuesdays 1:30-2:30 in the fourth floor EME boardroom (Engineering side).

ARE YOU A MEMBER OF A CLUB ON CAMPUS?

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To get started, visit GrantThornton.ca/freetaxreturn and complete the application form. One of our professionals will contact you shortly after and guide you through the process. But do it soon—the offer ends April 15, 2014.

Conditions apply. See website for details.

Contact life@thephoenixnews.com to make your club the next in our profile series

GrantThornton.ca Audit • Tax • Advisory © Grant Thornton LLP. A Canadian Member of Grant Thornton International Ltd

The Phoenix |

August 29th, 2013

YOUR 2014 ELECTION GUIDE

28

A look back at UBCSUO elections and politics Student politics can be a confusing time for those casting their votes. Historical context is important for making informed decisions about who to vote for, so here’s some background on student elections and politics over the last few years.

The Before Time Slates are legal S4S rules with an iron fist

February 2012 CFS National Day of Action ill-received

March 2012 ACTION slate wins election in landslide

In all UBC Students’ Union Okanagan elections that happened before 2013, candidates ran under a slate system, in which a group of students that share the same views on how the Student’s Union should be run form a team and mould an election strategy. Together the slate chooses who should run for each position, submit their nominations, and then campaign together. Slates work a lot like campaign parties and are usually led by those gunning for executive positions within the UBCSUO.

For many years there was one notable slate called Students 4 Students that dominated up until the 2012 election. While in power, S4S elects often brought in national campaigns from the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS), an organization that provides training and resources for Canadian student unions as well as campaign materials for lowering tuition and other fees.

During the nomination period for the 2012 election, Curtis Tse, Services Coordinator at the time, and Sam Chang teamed up to create their own slate, Students in ACTION. Unlike S4S, ACTION was opposed to a CFS-saturated SU, and they ran with the intention to focus on UBCO-specific issues and make the changes that UBCO students wanted to see.

E L E C T I O N 2 0 1 4

Over the years some students criticized these campaigns, but opposition became widespread and vocal after the February 1st 2012 Day of Action, which featured inflatable amusements alongside speeches from Provincial NDP leader Adrian Dix. UBCO students, particularly those who found little use for left-leaning politics and bouncy castles, began to openly wonder where their fees were being spent.

ACTION beat out S4S by a landslide majority in an election that brought out the highest voter participation in UBCO election history. The 2012 elected Executives were Tse for Financial Coordinator, Chang for External Coordinator, Sabrina Tikhomiroff for Internal Coordinator, and Jesse Baxter for Services Coordinator. Tse was appointed Executive Chair.

2012-2013 ACTION’s year in office brings major change After ACTION won the election, many UBCSUO staff members were fired or resigned, including GM Rob Nagai and Organizer Mark Norris, who had been mainstays in the organization throughout S4S’s reign. Both were heavily involved in the CFS and the NDP; Nagai was campaigning for the NDP at the time of the ACTION takeover.

The major change in employees meant a disorganized year for the new executive. Baxter announced his resignation after seriously injuring his leg, and was replaced

by Nick Dodds. About halfway through the year Chang replaced Tse as Executive Chair, making it the first time in years that the Chair was not the Financial Coordinator. No Organizer was hired for that year, and the new GM, Claude Guerrette, was let go in the spring and subsequently sued the UBCSUO for wrongful dismissal (the suit is ongoing).

August 29th, 2013

| The Phoenix

29

What you need to know about recent years’ student politics Laura Sciarpelletti

Arts Editor with

Cameron Welch

Creative Director and

Dave Nixon Editor-in-Chief

November 2012 Slates are abolished in surprise motion at AGM

March 2013 First slate-less election

October 2013 Impeachment motion against three execs

February 2013 Presidential structure approved

During the 2012 AGM students voted to get rid of the slate system after a surprise motion was launched by Tim Krupa, the Board of Governors representative at the time. This meant that candidates had to campaign individually without a “party.”

Elected executives for the 2013 year were Dodds for Executive Chair and Services, Tim Krupa for Financial, Shaman McLean for Internal, and Alex Gula for External. An impeachment attempt was brought against Nick Dodds at the SGM in March but it failed 48-18.

Krupa, however, left his position before the school year even began and was replaced by appointment by Rocky Kim. Many lesser board positions were also vacant throughout the year, either due to resignations or simply because nobody had run for the position in the spring.

The current SU executive team has had some position confusion, with each member of the executive having significant crossover in their duties. During the fall 2013 semester, an impeachment motion was put in place for Dodds as well as Gula and McLean. The motion, brought forward by Blake Edwards (who had run unsuccessfully for Services in the spring) and Katelyn Fujii (a director in 2012/2013 and more recently the UBCSUO Meeting Chair from approximately October 2013 until December 2013) was dissolved before the AGM.

The UBCSUO passed a new board structure at an SGM just weeks before this coming election, a structure that includes the addition of a President position to the SU roster.

Many involved believe that this is an important step in reaching a more organized student government.

“I believe the elimination of slates is a step forward for the UBCSUO,” said Chang, having had time to reflect on the change since its implementation when he was External Coordinator. “From this, we will be able to see a more diverse team of students leading our Student’s Union in the right direction.”

One of this year’s Deputy Returning Officers, Jesse Shopa, agrees that the abolishment was an important move for the SU. “Slates allow weaker candidates to hide behind their slates and be carried by the stronger members of their slates, so the abolishment really puts the focus on each individual candidate and you get the best of the best from that process,” said Shopa.

There was opposition to the motion as well though, and the decision to rule out slates was made with only a day of debate. Meanwhile, part of the problem with not having slates is that positions can go unfilled - and unfilled positions wreaked havoc with the board this past year. And four equal executive roles being elected in a no-slate system means there is no united platform that they agreed upon, a fact that changed the dynamic of the SU this year.

“[Having a] president really makes sense because there has been no kind of leadership role in the Student’s Union and [Dodds] has had to kind of assume that role,” said Shopa. “Now with the President coming in, it will really provide a lot more focus on student government.”

That same Presidential structure was voted down at the 2012 AGM with voiced concerns about the power a President would have.

As those already involved deal with the changes made this year, election hopefuls prepare to run on their own merits for a place within the new SU structure.

Today You read this time line

30

The Phoenix |

August 29th, 2013

Robyn Giffen Board of Governors

Alex Gula Board of Governors

I am Master’s student in the Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies program. Prior to beginning my Master’s, I completed four year of undergraduate studies here at UBC Okanagan in the Faculty of Arts & Sciences. This past year I was the Graduate Student Representative on the UBCSUO Board of Directors.

My name is Alex Gula and I am in my third year of Human Kinetics. I have been involved at UBCO from the first moment I stepped onto the campus. I organized campus life events during my first year, and was an executive of the second largest club (VOCO) in my second year.

Currently I am the external executive for the students’ union. I am looking for a new challenge where I can have a positive impact on our campus. I am looking forward to representing you at our Board of Governors.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Having spent five years studying in the Okanagan, I have developed an understanding of the specific needs our students have and how to ensure that these needs are met. I have had a variety of experiences that I believe have prepared me to represent the student body on the Board of Governors including working as Residence Advisor, a Collegia Assistant, the Co-chair Volunteers for the Canadian Conference on Student Leadership, and completing an Undergraduate Research Award project. Through these experiences, and my time in graduate studies, I have developed a passion for helping students and improving student experiences at UBCO.

What is your platform?

As a student representative on the Board of Governors, I would ensure that the voices of UBC Okanagan students are heard just as loudly as the voices of those in Vancouver. It can be difficult to develop specific platforms for this position, but some issues I would like to address include the need for additional space on our campus, improved food options at affordable prices, and the ongoing development of campus bike access. Most importantly, I would actively strive to maintain a dialogue with students to receive feedback as the year progresses and other issues arise.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

During my adventures at UBCO I have learned about the campus, however, I found that I learned more about the students. I am approaching my fourth year with strong relationships that reach to every corner of our campus. These relationships vary from faculty and staff to the students themselves.

Being able to connect and relate with every student, whether they are in their first year or in graduate studies is something I excel at. No matter who they are and where they come from, their voice will be heard and positive changes will occur on our campus.

What is your platform?

My passion is to create an active and healthy campus. I have helped our campus by introducing students to the Okanagan in the outdoor club, created an endurance race called “Dirty Dash”, helped create the Karma Bowl which serves organic meals. I promote biking so others use sustainable transportation.

My platform encourages a healthy, sustainable university by advocating for healthier foods. It ensures that our bike lanes will be implemented and that students’ voices will be listened to. I will advocate for more study spaces so that students will not be discouraged to spend time on campus.

David Xu VP External

Shaman McLean VP External

I am David Xu, a third year student in the Faculty of Arts. I am running for VP External. For the past two years, I’ve been working at Campus Life as a Peer Mentor.

I’ve organized events like the Anti-Bullying campaigns, as well as the UBCO Haunted House 2013.

Shaman McLean is a second year Arts student majoring in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics. Serving as the Internal Coordinator over the last year, he focused on lowering food costs for students, delivering a Peer Resource Centre as well as working closely with other students’ unions across the country. Shaman has made it his goal to develop close relations with our Campus partners, lobbying for increased study space, and supporting organizations such as the Alliance of British Columbia Students. Shaman is changing course and running for VP External because he knows he can deliver the results that students deserve and expect.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I’m applying for VP External because I wish to hear what students at UBCO have to say about our campus, like our connection with the community. Advocating for change is a great tool for students and should always be taken advantage of.

UBCO is a dynamic campus where each student’s ideas and opinions are not only heard, accepted, and acted upon, but also valued. I’ll act as a resource for students who are passionate about connecting with the community. In addition, by representing the student population, I’ll act as their voice so others outside of the campus can hear them.

What is your platform?

I will work towards two student committees upon my elected position as VP External: the Committee of Student Affairs, which will tackle issues faced by students every day, such as student fees and housing as well as public transit; and the Community Outreach, which will serve the purpose of connecting students with the community and with organizations outside the campus. As a student myself, I offer an understanding of fellow students at UBCO and will strive to make our goals a reality.

BOARD OF GOVS

V P EXTE RNAL

August 29th, 2013

Sam Chang VP Finance and Operations Hello! My name is Sam Chang and I am running to be your Vice-President, Finance and Operations. I was elected as your External Coordinator in 2012 and spearheaded multiple projects including the creation of the new UBCSUO website and Transit Analysis Survey. Career aspirations include starting my own architect firm.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Our Students’ Union has a budget of over $1.3 million dollars to be spent on students each year. I believe that it has the ability to make a positive impact on the experience of each student on campus with the proper budget allocation. I want to implement an effective design of financial management that will hold the executives and decision makers of the UBCSUO accountable to their spending and promises.

I believe that the Students’ Union should operate with a student-oriented mandate while maintaining fiscal prudence. When elected I will work to ensure accountability, efficiency, and transparency.

What is your platform?

Over the past few years, the union has gone through varying degrees of changes to the structure of the organization. What we need to do now is focus on investing in student services. I want to invest in a student legal fund; a fund set-aside for the sole purpose of aiding students in need of legal advice. I believe that in order for students to get the most from the union, executives must clarify their goals by writing their own budget for their respective portfolios. Departmental budgets will allow for fiscal prudence, responsibility, and accountability. Visit samchang91.wix.com/ votechange for more information.

| The Phoenix

Layne Richardson VP Services

Jagmeet Khabra VP Internal

To say I have enjoyed myself at UBCO these past two year would be an understatement. I have been a Director at Large for this past year as well as on the UBCO Cross Country team for two seasons and in the DJ Club for both years on campus.

In the past years I have evolved as a leader in the Kelowna community and at the University of British Columbia Okanagan with many titles. The titles I have present now are: UBSUO Director at Large, Kelowna Sikh Temple Social Media Coordinator, UBCSUO Policy Committee, Kelowna Sikh Temple volunteer Coordinator.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I applied for the position, Vice President Services, because I believe that there can be a lot of development of Resource Centers and Clubs and Course Unions at UBCO. I believe that there is a way to help students find something they are interested in and give them an opportunity to have a respite from their studies. I also believe that there is an opportunity to step into this position and start planning many events on campus for students, because who doesn’t like to have a little bit of fun while at UBCO!

What is your platform?

UBCO is rapidly growing, and the expansion of the library will be a huge gain for students, however only if done correctly.

It is very important students are getting what they want and what is necessary for success with these additions to campus being made. I will be there for the resource centers on campus when they need assistance as well as advocate for more funding when necessary. Another focus will be events thrown by Clubs and Course Unions and also the events around campus put on by the Students Union!

Why did you apply for this particular position?

In the past years I have become heavily involved in the Kelowna community and at UBCO. As the current Director at Large there are many issues I have noticed which most students are unhappy with.

With that being said, by attending a couple of clubs and course union SGM’s (special general meetings) I know I am now ready for a bigger role with the UBCSUO. Further, being a member of the Kelowna Sikh Temple I can see that overall UBCO’s international community is growing and I want to establish that even these students have a voice.

What is your platform?

Going to many SGM’s for clubs and course unions I have noticed, especially from the new clubs, many were unaware of club policies. The one item I want to target is improving interaction with new clubs that come in. I want to create an orientation package, easy enough for the clubs to understand, which will explain how to apply for funding, booking areas of the school, etc. Further, UBCO is a growing multicultural community and we will continue to grow. I want to build an equity and inclusion committee which recognizes disenfranchised groups.

V I C E PRESI DENTS

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The Phoenix |

August 29th, 2013

Katelyn Fujii President My name is Katelyn Fujii, I am the current president of the Women’s Resource Centre and I am running to be your first UBCSUO President. I have been involved with the UBCSUO since 1st year as a volunteer and as a Director.

Future ambitions include being part of cancer research.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Over the past two years students have voted for a great deal of change, which has created increased conversation around the UBCSUO on campus. What the union needs now is a strong leader that will inspire a team of VP’s to be effective in leading the union to future growth and prosperity. I have an incredible passion for student issues and a strong desire to build our union to work for students. I am confident that with my experience, leadership, and passion I will be able to efficiently work with the board to build our UBCO.

What is your platform?

The focus of the UBCSUO this next year needs to be on growth and stability. Our population has increased dramatically over the past few years and its time for our union to ensure that our services are growing to meet the needs of the students. We also need to ensure that following the changes the union has seen over the past few years steps are taken to stabilize the union so it remains strong into the future. I will lead the Vice Presidents and inspire them to continue to work towards providing the best student experiences on our campus.

Rocky Kim President

Lauren Ruttle-Soon President

A well-spoken student leader with an ability to find creative solutions to tough problems. Achievements and positions held include: UBCSUO Financial Coordinator, UBCSUO Finance Committee, Alliance of BC Students (ABCS) delegate, CFSPNational and CFSPBC delegate, Joseph Chung Scholarship, UBC Chancellor Search Committee, Alumni Association Advisory Council, External Community Advisory Counci

Hi! I’m Lauren Ruttle-Soon. I’m from Calgary, Alberta, but you might know me here on campus as the President of the Biology Course Union or the Course Union Representative on the Student Association Committee. I am a daughter, friend, future paediatrician, auntie, and hopefully future President of the UBCSUO.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

The University of British Columbia Okanagan campus has been home for me for the past four years and there is truly no other place I would rather be. I have spent my time here advocating for student issues and working towards creating sustainable change for the benefit of students. I have the necessary experience to guide the direction of the UBCSUO and ensure that the fiduciary responsibility, I as an elected individual will receive is properly upheld. Strong leadership and experience will be absolutely crucial during this time of rapid transition and I truly feel I am the right candidate.

What is your platform?

Target main issues students face on campus: improved study space/library, reformed food services, and combating student apathy by taking a three-sided approach: 1.) Engage student outreach programs to ensure proper consultation is received for every major decision.

2.) Enhance the ability of the students to act as a collective body. Proper representation at all levels of government, UBC administration, and national and provincial student organizations. Implement procedures for student mobilization to ensure we are a strong proponent in all decision making.

3.) Enrich – Improving services and student initiatives by providing necessary resources and guidance.

PRESI D E N T 2 0 1 4

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Because of the changes that have occurred within the UBCSUO over the past year, we need a different kind of leader. We need a leader who can implement the new policies, bring order to confusion, create cohesion within the Board, and organize everything such that results are reliable and repeatable. Only when the Students’ Union is fully functioning can it positively impact the experience of every student on campus.

I am organized, detail-oriented, and consistent. I can create that fully functioning Students’ Union and allow our students to have a voice.

What is your platform?

The hot topics are always the same: transit, food, and study space. Unlike past executives, I won’t promise things I cannot do. I will promise to continue working diligently to make the students heard.

Together, our 8500 students can come up with far better ideas than I can by myself. If the UBCSUO runs properly, we will actually be able to encourage and respond to student involvement. I want to hear from all of you, and I will respond promptly to my emails.

I will Learn from, Respect, and Serve our students. Vote LRS – Lauren Ruttle-Soon – for President.

Personal Credits Notice

If you received a Common Experience Payment, you could get $3,000 in Personal Credits for educational programs and services.

The Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement.

The healing continues.

Since 2007, almost 80,000 former students have received a Common Experience Payment (“CEP”) as part of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement. CEP recipients are now eligible to receive non-cash Personal Credits of up to $3,000, for either themselves or certain family members, for educational programs and services.

What are Personal Credits? Personal Credits may be used for a wide range of educational programs and services, including those provided by universities, colleges, trade or training schools, Indigenous Institutions of Higher Learning, or which relate to literacy or trades, as well as programs and services related to Aboriginal identities, histories, cultures or languages.

of multiple CEP recipients can be combined to support a group learning activity.

How can I get Personal Credits? Each CEP recipient will be mailed an Acknowledgement Form. If you do not receive an Acknowledgement Form by the end of January 2014, please call 1-866-343-1858. Completed Acknowledgement Forms should be returned as soon as possible and must be postmarked no later than October 31, 2014.

How do I redeem my Personal Credits? Once approved, you will be sent a personalized Redemption Form for each individual using Personal Credits at each educational entity or group. Once the Form is received, How much are Personal Credits? provide it to the educational entity or group CEP recipients have the option of Adequate funds are available for each CEP listed. The educational entity or group sharing their Personal Credits with recipient to receive up to $3,000 in Personal must then complete and mail back the certain family members, such as: Credits, depending on your approved Redemption Form postmarked no later than educational expenses.

• Spouses • Children December 1, 2014.

• Siblings • Grandchildren Which educational entities and groups What happens to unused Personal are included? A list of approved educational entities and groups has been jointly developed by Credits? The value of unused Personal Credits will be Canada, the Assembly of First Nations and Inuit representatives. transferred to the National Indian Brotherhood Trust Fund and If an educational entity or group is not on the list, please consult Inuvialuit Education Foundation for educational programs. the website for more information.

For more information, including how Personal Credits can be Will I receive a cheque? No. Cheques will be issued directly to redeemed by certain family members of CEP recipients that are deceased, visit www.residentialschoolsettlement.ca or call the educational entity or group providing the service.

1-866-343-1858.

Who can use Personal Credits? CEP recipients can use the full amount themselves or give part or all of their Personal Credits The IRS Crisis Line (1-866-925-4419) provides immediate and to certain family members such as a spouse, child, grandchild or culturally appropriate counselling support to former students sibling, as defined in the terms and conditions. Personal Credits who are experiencing distress.

1-866-343-1858 • www.residentialschoolsettlement.ca

August 29th, 2013

| The Phoenix

No candidates are running for the following positions

Felisha Truong Faculty Rep Sciences

Raziya Merani Faculty Rep Sciences

My name is Felisha Truong and I am a second year biochemistry student here at UBCO. I am serving on the Biochemistry Course Union as secretary, and I will be a peer mentor this upcoming year! Sports have always been a big part in my life, especially volleyball and soccer.

Raziya Merani is a second year student majoring in Medical Biochemistry.

She is involved with many different clubs on campus such as acting as the Director of Public Relations for Model United Nations, Team Developer for Relay for Life and Backstage Coordinator for the Rejoice Fashion Show.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I have applied for the position of Faculty Representative of Arts and Sciences with a science focus because I believe it is important for everyone to have an equal opportunity to contribute to UBCO’s Sciences department. I am a hard worker and am fully committed to represent my faculty.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I am applying for the position of Arts and Science Representative (Science Focus) and Student Faculty Representative to Okanagan Senate because I would like to get more involved with the Student Government, and I would like to support my Faculty in whatever way possible.

What is your platform?

What is your platform?

I am a strong believer in building strength and synergy with the school and my friends. My goal is to be someone whom students may look towards as an approachable, friendly peer who will listen to what they have to say, not simply as a figure with a title.

If elected, the issues that I will address are the needs and wants of the Science Faculty within the Student Government. Furthermore, I want to get the voices and opinions of the Science Faculty heard on campus and implement their ideas.

F A C U L T Y R E P S

Harveer Singh Dhupar Faculty Rep Sciences My name is Harveer Singh Dhupar I am an international student from Kenya I have a very open outlook on life, a great personality, and an open mind. I am currently in my fourth year at UBC Okanagan campus in the Bachelor of Science program majoring in general Biochemistry

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I applied for the faculty of Science representative position because I am an upper year student. I can relate with students in the science faculty. I have worked with international students for over 3 years and want to implement some changes to help with the challenges I have witnessed students go through.

What is your platform?

To achieve a more cohesive science faculty. I feel that as science students we lack interdisciplinary cohesiveness. This is a major asset in today’s world where it is getting harder to find research based solely in one field. I plan on implementing policy that helps facilitate the science disciplines working together.

No candidates Faculty Rep Applied Sciences No candidates Faculty Rep FCCS No candidates Faculty Rep Arts No candidates Faculty Rep Education No candidates Faculty Rep Graduates No candidates Faculty Rep Health and Social Development No candidates Faculty Rep Management

33

32

The Phoenix |

August 29th, 2013

Kelly Panchyshyn Director at Large

Beau Loomer Director at large

Arsalan Khan Director at Large

Leo Tan Director at Large

Ryan Singh Kalia Director at Large

This is my third year attending the UBC’s Okanagan Campus, in the Cultural Studies program.

As an Advocacy Representative, I aim to support marginalized groups, strengthen student associations, and drive the growth of the union. This also allows me the chance to promote diverse and accessible methods of education, along with equitable and sustainable practices.

My name is Beau Loomer I’m a third year Psychology major. I work with children with autism and enjoy DJing in my spare time. I am Chairman of the UBCO DJ Club, working with other student to organize events on campus, including the White T-Shirt Party and the annual Snowball.

“We don’t get to choose how we start in life. Real ‘greatness’ is what you do with the hand you’re dealt.” Victor Sullivan. This is a quote I truly believe in.

It speaks a lot about how I think, how I approach things in life and what my perspective is.

I’m Leo Tan, currently enrolled as a 3rd year student in the science faculty (General Science). I’ve been involved with the Create program for the past two years. Recently, I’ve become more aware and involved with the change of food services on and out of campus.

Hey guys! I’m Ryan, a second year student majoring in BioChemistry. Over the last two years I have put forth my best effort to ensure that I not only complete but excel in all my studies/commitments and this will make me shine as a Director at Large.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I applied for this position for the students, to reflect the concerns of the general student population. This position allows me to address the problems affecting the students. Making this place of mind, University of British Columbia Okanagan feel like home, a place where you and I can grow together.

I believe in following through. Applying for Director at Large means representing the general student opinion and not allowing to be pushed over. I will make certain that all concerns are voiced because I won’t be just another board member , I’ll be the voice of the students.

What is your platform?

What is your platform?

My platform will target some ongoing issues we experience, such as: 1. Simplifying student insurance (Pacific Blue Cross) claim process, 2. More study space in the library, 3. Enhancements to the transit system, especially Glenmore and Quail Ridge area.

I’ll address and solve these issues during board meetings. VOTE LT.

Staying active is a huge part of my life so addressing improved walkways/ trails all around campus is a must. I love interacting with others and am very open minded so if elected, will keep all doors open and available to any input, whether it’s through email, text or in person.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Our campus gives students the opportunity to take ownership of their experiences. I am running for Director and Senator at Large, to make the most of this opportunity; strengthening the campus I love through my ability to identify systemic issues and develop innovative solutions.

What is your platform?

If elected, I will focus on the accountability and transparency of both the Senate and the Union. This is central to enhancing the impact and sustainability of our directives, and thus the experience of our students.

For a more in-depth platform, visit my campaign Facebook Page: “Vote Kelly Panchyshyn”.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I’m applying for director at large because I feel driven to represent the students on the board of directors.

Through my experience working with the people on our campus, I’ve gained insight into the wants and needs of the students. I can accurately communicate the voice of the student body.

What is your platform?

My platform for this election is to be the best representative of the student voice there is. I will do this by always being available to listen to and consider every student’s opinion.

By electing me, you are electing yourself! It’s time for the student voice to be heard.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Troubleshooting, predicting outcomes, innovative thinking and breaking down complex situations into smaller aspects are something I strong at. I believe these are some of the building blocks of being a director. I have been doing such duties for over 2 years and have found my foothold in this area.

What is your platform?

My objective is to solidify the bridge between the student union and its students. My plan is to think and implement in the favor of the students not on a micro but a macro level towards a larger goal.

D I R E CTORS 2 0 1 4

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The Phoenix |

August 29th, 2013

August 29th, 2013

VP External

VP Internal

President

VP Services

The Vice-President External is a member of the Executive Committee alongside the President, Vice-President Internal, VicePresident Finance and Operations, and Vice-President Services. This Executive Committee will oversee and administer the Student Union on a day-to-day basis, supervise staff management, carry out directives of the board and further the Strategic Plan of the UBCSUO.

The Vice-President Internal is a member of the Executive Committee alongside the President, Vice-President External, Vice-President Finance and Operations, and the Vice-President Services. This Executive Committee will oversee and administer the Student Union on a day-to-day basis, supervise staff management, carry out directives of the board and further the Strategic Plan of the UBCSUO.

The President is a member of the Executive Committee alongside the Vice-President Internal, Vice-President External, Vice President Finance and Operations and the Vice President Services. This Executive Committee will oversee and administer the Student Union on a day-to-day basis, supervise staff management, carry out directives of the board and further the Strategic Plan of the UBCSUO.

The Vice-President Services is a member of the Executive Committee alongside the President, VicePresident Internal, Vice President Finance and Operations and the Vice-President External. This Executive Committee will oversee and administer the Student Union on a day-to-day basis, supervise staff management, carry out directives of the board and further the Strategic Plan of the UBCSUO.

The VP External’s responsibilities include:

The VP Internal’s responsibilities include:

cacy activities -Liaise, develop relationships with external organizations.

-Represents the Student Union and communicates positions taken by the SU to external bodies in cooperation with the President.

-Coordinates relations between the Student Union and the University with the University’s Equity and Inclusion Officer -Liases and lobbies with governmental institutions to further the goals of the Student Union -Develops and maintains overall external policies.

-Responsible for informing the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of external matters that impact the Members.

internal to the Student Union -Responsible for relations with the membership -Receives complaints and comments related to the Student Union, the University, or any other concerns of members -Ensures adherence with the Constitution, Bylaws and Regulations -Chairs the Policy Committee -Responsible for all membershiprelated publications of the Student Union including newsletters and online social media -Oversees the organization of the Student Union’s general meetings

Applicants: Shaman Mclean, David Xu

Applicants: Rocky Kim, Katelyn Fujii, Kevin Ilomin, Lauren Ruttle-Soon

Applicants: Jagmeet Khabra

-Oversees and coordinates matters

-Oversee and coordinate external advo-

E

The President’s responsibilities include:

-Responsible for the preparation of the

agenda for Board of Director and Executive Committee meetings; -Call these meetings as he/she feels is necessary (will also chair or delegate the chair of these meetings) -Ensures the board’s directives are implemented -Work closely with executives to ensure completion of SU business -Acts as the official spokesperson for the Student Union.

-Coordinate planning of the strategic direction and development of the Student Union, -Oversees planning for orientation for new directors.

-Act as the official liaison with the General Manager and ensure board directives are implemented, human resources are overseen, liaise with the Student Union’s legal counsel, accountants, and auditors as required.

Applicants: Sam Chang

The Vice-President Finance and Operations is a member of the Executive Committee alongside the President, Vice-President Internal, Vice-President External, and the Vice President Services. This Executive Committee will oversee and administer the Student Union on a day-to-day basis, supervise staff management, carry out directives of the board and further the Strategic Plan of the UBCSUO.

The VP Services’s responsibilities include:

The VP Finance and Operations’ responsibilities include:

-Oversee and coordinate the finances of

-Oversee and coordinate the

the Student Union and chair the Finance Committee.

-Ensures the long-term financial stability of the Student Union in cooperation with the General Manager, -Ensures the proper preparation and maintenance of all financial records, and prepare the financial statements and reports, to be presented regularly to the Board of Directors and Executive Committee, in cooperation with the General Manager.

-Assist, as required, the auditors in their audit of the Student Union and develop the annual budget of the Student Union.

-Monitor the business operations of the Student Union and oversee all monies received and disbursed by the SU

provision of services to Members, and oversee the development of new services to the Members and then implement any new Member services.

-Oversee, coordinate, and liaise with the Student Associations and delegate related responsibilities to staff members.

-Oversee, coordinate, and liaise with the Resource Centers and delegate related responsibilities to staff members.

-Be responsible for all matters related to events, initiatives, or projects of the Student Union not included within the duties of other Executive Committee Directors.

S

F

Four Directors at Large will be elected from the membership. These positions are not specific to one faculty and are therefore tasked with the responsibility of providing the board with the perspective of students at UBCO as a whole. This includes marginalized groups on campus. They each have one vote and must sit on at least one committee of the board during their term.

Directors on the Board of Directors has a vote on issues brought before them by UBCSUO members BOG rep and Senate rep have speaking rights but not voting rights

G

A

F

Faculty Representatives Applicants: Felisha Truong, Raziya Merani, Harveer Singh Dhupar (all Sciences)

M

H

E

AS

Eight faculty representatives are to be elected from within the respective faculties in order to advocate for differing students’ needs across the schools. There will be one representative from Sciences, Arts, Management, Applied Sciences, Health and Social Development, Education, Creative and Critical Studies, and Graduate Studies. Each of these members will have one vote, and are intended to present the perspective of their respective faculties, but not vote as if their faculty peers were their constinuents.. The representation is not based on the size of faculties – there is one per faculty despite the disproportionate size of faculties like Arts and Sciences.

Applicants: Alex Gula, Robyn Giffen The Board of Governors is the governing body of UBC. It makes decisions for the strategic direction of both campuses and is in charge of the management, administration and control of the property, revenue, business and affairs of the University. There is only one board for both the Okanagan campus and the Vancouver campus. One Okanagan student is appointed every year alongside two Vancouver student representatives, and the rest of the board is comprised of 4 from administration, 3 from faculty, and 11 appointments by the Province

Applicants: Kelly Ponchyonyn (Panchyshyn), Katelyn Fujii, Lyndon Duncan, Robin Wenger, Shira Sneg, Cody MacKay, Sarah Loreen Smith, David Xu, Sam Chang, Robyn Giffen, Suresh Kumar, Lina Gomez, Jeff Krupa, Natalie Wong, Aalisha Lakdawala, Raziya Merani

Board of Directors

Applicants: Kelly Ponchyonyn (Panchyshyn), Beau Loomer, Arsalan Khan, Leo Tan, Ryan Singh Kalia

Board of Govs Rep

Student Senators

Understanding the

Directors at Large

31

VP Finance and Operations

Applicants: Layne Richardson

P

I

| The Phoenix

S

One student senator will be elected by the student senator caucus to have a non-voting seat on the board of directors. There are 13 student senator positions: 6 for general at-large positions and 7 for faculty-specific positions. The Senate is the academic governing body of UBCO – faculty and administration sit on the Senate and make decisions that affect admissions, course and program curriculum, granting of degrees, academic policy, examinations, and appeals of standing and student discipline. Some key decisions recently that affect students are the release of professor evaluations to students (at the professor’s discretion) and the mandated disclosure of all of those evaluations to dean and department heads (previously professors could choose what to include for the comment sections).

The at large positions are elected from the general membership and the faculty positions are elected only by members of the respective faculties. There is a non-voting senator position on the UBCSUO Board of Directors, which is to be appointed by the Student Senate Caucus after the elections.

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The Phoenix |

August 29th, 2013

Shira Sneg Senate Rep Arts Sciences

Raziya Merani Senate Rep Arts Sciences

Robyn Giffen Senate Rep Graduate

Aalisha Lakdawala Senate Rep Management

Shira continually pursues leadership roles at UBCO. This past year, some roles she has taken on have been the current Student Faculty Senator for Arts & Sciences, the co-chair for the annual Student Leadership Conference, and Create Orientation Leader. She is always here for students, just come talk to her!

Raziya Merani is a second year student majoring in Medical Biochemistry.

She is involved with many different clubs on campus such as acting as the Director of Public Relations for Model United Nations, Tea/m Developer for Relay for Life and Backstage Coordinator for the Rejoice Fashion Show.

I am Master’s student in the Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies program. My focus is linguistic anthropology and my research is a documentation of a language called Nabit spoken in Ghana.

This past year I was the Graduate Student Representative on the UBCSUO Board of Directors.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I am a third year student with interests in Finance and Economics. These interests led me get involved in the UBCO Model United Nations, UBC Portfolio Management Group, UBCSUO Finance Committee and case competitions organized by the MSA. I enjoy making connections and helping people reach their potential.

Being Shira’s second year running for the Arts & Science Faculty Senator, she is here to build continuity so that students will benefit from a knowledgeable voice that is there to represent their interests.

I am applying for the position of Arts and Science Representative (Science Focus) and Student Faculty Representative to Okanagan Senate because I would like to get more involved with the Student Government, and I would like to support my Faculty in whatever way possible.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Why did you apply for this particular position?

During my time as a graduate student, I have developed an understanding of the challenges that graduate students face on this campus. I want to improve student experiences in the graduate program at UBCO, and I believe that representing graduate students on Senate is the best way to do this.

The Management Faculty shares the vision of entrepreneurial spirit. Being a part of a young faculty, we can shape it, create opportunities and therefore, have a degree that delivers exponential returns. These opportunities are the pillars to our success and I am excited to represent the students of this faculty.

What is your platform?

What is your platform?

In this position I will strive to ensure that the voices of graduate students are heard in Senate. Some issues that graduate students are facing that I will specifically be advocating for are additional graduate student space, increased funding for research, and opportunities to develop a graduate student community.

As a Management Faculty Senator, I look forward to addressing student -faculty integration, research and innovative opportunities, upper level financial aid and the current 2+2 academic structure. I will work towards creating a strong foundation for the Student Senate in order to ensure complete transparency, more student involvement and integration.

What is your platform?

Shira believes that awareness of what Senate does is key. Therefore, she intends on continuing to engage students with the Student Senators through social media and on campus.

With increased awareness, Shira will keep advocating for student issues such as informal study space, an online exam data base, and more.

What is your platform?

If elected, the issues that I will address are the needs and wants of the Science Faculty within the Student Government. Furthermore, I want to get the voices and opinions of the Science Faculty heard on campus and implement their ideas.

F A C U L T Y S E N S

Sarah Loreen Smith Senate Rep Health and Social Development

Lina Gomez Senator at Large My name is Lina Gomez and I am a second year Political Science and Economics major.

Throughout my two years at UBC-O I have been able to get involved in clubs such as: Model United Nations, Undergraduate Law Society, VOCO, and the Political Science Student Association.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

I decided to run for this position, as I believe that being on the academic governing body allows for continuing the change that as students we were able to see on campus this year.

What is your platform?

As student I’ve noticed a huge improvement from this year’s Senate in regards to study space (more tables in the library and in the academic buildings). I think to further this progress we should focus on addition of study rooms (whether quiet rooms or for student/faculty booking) and addition of water stations around academic building.

Robin Wenger Senator at Large

August 29th, 2013

David Xu Senator at Large I am David Xu, a third year student in the Faculty of Arts. I am running for VP External. For the past two years, I’ve been working at Campus Life as a Peer Mentor. I’ve organized events like the Anti-Bullying campaigns, as well as the UBCO Haunted House 2013.

Jeff Krupa Senator at Large

Suresh Kumar Senator at Large

Katelyn Fujii Senator at Large

Natalie Wong Senator at Large

Jeff Krupa is a first year sciences student planning to major in Physics. He is interested in research, activism, and politics. He can usually be found studying, riding the bus, walking, or watching House of Cards.

Jeff is excited for his first campaign, and at the potential of representing UBC Okanagan students on Senate.

Enrolled into the faculty of Management, I am a first year international student hailing from Pakistan. As a part of UBC, I have come to realize how diverse our community is, and therefore I have invested my time into initiatives such as Rejoice-the Cultural fashion show and South Asian Society to further this phenomenon by promoting inter-cultural understanding across campus.

My name is Katelyn Fujii, I am the current president of the Women’s Resource Centre and I am running to be your first UBCSUO Senator at Large. I have been involved with the UBCSUO since 1st year as a volunteer and as a Director. Future ambitions include being part of cancer research.

I’m a third year International Relations major – I hope that says something positive; I often get blank stares since most people don’t know what IR is. I’ve involved myself in various leadership and volunteer positions on campus since my first year (second term, once I stopped slacking/ playing Tetris).

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Why did you apply for this particular position?

After being elected to Senate earlier this year I believe that I can continue serving and advocating for students. I am a strong leader and I believe that with my knowledge and experience that I will be able to effectively work with the other student senators to better student life.

I’m always looking to improve things and instead of running to a senator every time I thought of something that could be changed, I figured I should join the senate. Instead of being apathetic, that “voting is pointless because nobody does anything”, I want to be proactive and change that.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Sam Chang Senator at Large Hello! My name is Sam Chang and I am running to be your Vice-President, Finance and Operations.

I was elected as your External Coordinator in 2012 and spearheaded multiple projects including the creation of the new UBCSUO website and Transit Analysis Survey. Career aspirations include starting my own architect firm.

I’m running in this election because too often the interests of lower year students are under-represented. As a first year, I have first-hand knowledge and appreciation for the challenges that younger students face. For example, I was fortunate to get involved in research early on in my UBC experience, and I want other first years to be aware of opportunities like this.

What is your platform?

If elected, I promise to: work with faculty and administration to increase accessibility and awareness of undergraduate research opportunities; organize a meeting with the new president of UBC to make him or her aware of issues facing UBCO students; and ensure that academic excellence remains central to the UBC Okanagan experience.

I want to represent the voice of students’ in terms of their suggestions and feedback through a workable platform such as Okanagan Senate. I believe I have the potential work persistently on behalf of the student body to contribute in formulating policies which will make them better off.

What is your platform?

Whether be it enhancing academic environment, or introducing curriculum changes, I am passionate to raise such issues, and subsequently work on them to bring about satisfaction among the student body. Also, there is a general perception that currently the awards for International students are limited in number, so I would like to address that issue as well.

What is your platform?

Student Senators this year need to work with the administration to ensure that students are kept informed on the changes that occur at senate. I also want to create an exam bank for students. Getting students access to past exams will be a priority for me when am elected.

What is your platform?

I want the lights in the EME atrium to not switch off at 9:05 pm and switch back on at 2:00 am. There are more issues that I’d like to address, so feel free to talk to me in person, where I am not limited to only fifty words!

| The Phoenix

35

Kelly Panchyshyn Senator at Large This is my third year attending the UBC’s Okanagan Campus, in the Cultural Studies program.

As an Advocacy Representative, I aim to support marginalized groups, strengthen student associations, and drive the growth of the union. This also allows me the chance to promote diverse and accessible methods of education, along with equitable and sustainable practices.

Why did you apply for this particular position?

Our campus gives students the opportunity to take ownership of their experiences. I am running for Director and Senator at Large, to make the most of this opportunity; strengthening the campus I love through my ability to identify systemic issues and develop innovative solutions.

What is your platform?

If elected, I will focus on the accountability and transparency of both the Senate and the Union. This is central to enhancing the impact and sustainability of our directives, and thus the experience of our students.

For a more in-depth platform, visit my campaign Facebook Page: “Vote Kelly Panchyshyn”.

S E N S A T LARGE

OPINIONS From the nest Phoenix Editors

Why the Student Media Fee needs to change

Illustration by Asher Klassen

The upcoming referendum will ask students about fee changes in relation to student media at UBCO. Specifically, it will ask to change it from a $5.76 media fee to an $8 Phoenix Fee and a $2 Student Media Fee. Student fees are always increasing; so we get that there will be skepticism. This editorial will explain why the students at The Phoenix believe this change is in the best interest of UBCO students overall.

The Media Fee This year you paid the student media fee of $5.76. This has happened for all eight years of UBCO’s history, and The Phoenix has received the whole media fee each time.

A monopoly on the fee meant for student media initiatives is not a good thing. It is unhealthy for student media at UBCO, because it pits a well-established organization, The Phoenix, against possible candidates.

That’s a huge barrier to entry for anyone hoping to start something like a radio club.

For The Phoenix’s planning it causes another problem as well, because it’s based on a vote each year. If a Radio Club were to surface (which we hope it does), The Phoenix’s budget would be cut off at its knees. That would drastically reduce the ability of The Phoenix to improve from year to year. The Phoenix has outgrown the media fee structure.

A growing Phoenix We made a push for quality this year, and we hope you’ll agree that it has taken the product a long way.

But there is still a long way to go.

Naturally, in order to create the print

and online product you see this year, money was needed. Some of that has come from advertising sales, but with the media fee currently as it is at $5.76, The Phoenix cannot hope to expand or improve upon the service it provides. A ceiling has been reached.

A training ground for students The Phoenix is not just a newspaper, or a website. It’s a training ground where students can come to develop their skills in a real-world environment. There are opportunities for skill development in business (sales, operations, distribution), editing, photography, design, and, of course, writing and journalism. The Phoenix is the only place for journalism at UBCO – there is no program here to support it.

Over just the last four years: two staff have been accepted by UBC’s Graduate School of Journalism, one was accepted into other graduate programs relevant to design, one got a job as a full-time journalist, two Art Directors are now major parts of successful graphic design operations from Kelowna to Copenhagen; and our current Arts Editor, Laura Sciarpelletti, is heading to New York to begin an internship with Nylon magazine.

Funds will help free up time for certain staff to focus on training, instead of continuing in its current informal form. Better training means better journalism, so students will directly benefit from this investment.

An uncertain future for The Phoenix The Phoenix’s future is uncertain.

The stars aligned this year to bring

three generations of Editor-in-Chiefs of The Phoenix together working here at once (plus two more former EICs in town to offer occasional help).

Even so, the staff was stretched thin, and most of them are leaving this year.

With so many senior staff leaving at once, the momentum that was accomplished this year will drop off, and The Phoenix will move backwards. This referendum is an opportunity to correct that before it happens. The experienced staff have prepared the infrastructure needed to make The Phoenix its own Society, like the Ubyssey did long ago at UBC Van. Expenses like a bookkeeper, legal fees, and, most importantly, a full-time staff member are needed. That full-time staff member is key to The Phoenix continuing to grow stronger.

Skeptical? Well the job of editor often requires at least 20 hours per week (and over 40 for leadership positions), and due to our limited budget they are paid a small honouraria for that work. As a result, most need another job. Add onto that a full course load, and their grades suffer, not to mention their mental health.

But The Phoenix also suffers, since students cannot afford to invest the time the job needs with such poor monetary compensation.

While we’ve made strides this year, there are many areas we feel we’ve fallen short. We’ve found that part of what limits us is that we simply can’t pay staff enough to demand the level of output from them that we feel the paper needs.

It’s difficult to attract or retain staff when they have to choose between working for us or pursuing morelucrative, less-stressful opportunities.

In a fight between keeping up with classes, paying bills, and writing articles, students seldom choose Option 3 - and we don’t think it’s fair of us to ask them to. If they no longer need another job, our staff will be more able to focus on doing great work here. If we can successfully attract and employ more staff, that means more campus employment opportunities for you as well as better, moreconsistent content.

Additionally, there is no one paid over the summer. Continuity goes out the window when school ends, and staff scramble to figure things out when they come back. That’s why a full-time position is so important – in fact, it is irresponsible to run such a large organization without someone who is making sure the staff and the paper’s operations ran smoothly. Otherwise the quality of the paper is dependent on the ebb and flow of exams, student turnover, and class schedules.

The Phoenix is not independent The Phoenix has enjoyed editorial independence from the UBCSUO for many years now, but the fact remains that The Phoenix is not an independent entity. It is a line item on the UBCSUO budget. The UBCSUO manages its finances, and that divide has made it difficult to do long-term planning (add onto that the uncertain media fee each year and it becomes impossible).

UBCO students deserve a Phoenix that has a strategic plan, one that has the resources to investigate significant

stories like you’ve seen happen at the Ubyssey this year, and one that enables its student employees to have even better career-shaping experiences.

In summary, students have worked tirelessly this year to set The Phoenix up for long-term success. But the media fee in its current form, a lack of resources, and the departure of senior staff are all immediate threats to the paper. While the increase we’re proposing won’t automatically solve everything for us, and we’ll still have to budget carefully, it will minimize those threats.

Don’t forget that The Phoenix is not separate from students – it is studentrun with the objective of giving the best value possible to UBCO students. It is accountable to students, and it depends on them. In return, it helps keep students informed about what is happening at their university, gives them an opportunity to be published and to learn journalism in a school without a journalism program, and serves to reflect the culture on campus to prospective students and the greater community.

On March 6 and 7, help it continue to do that, and to do it better. Help The Phoenix develop into an organization that UBCO students and alumni can be proud of.

As with any issue we take on in our editorials, we encourage debate. Letters to the Editor will continue to be published the same as they would be for any other subject relevant to UBCO students.

From the nest Phoenix Editors

DEAR READER

Have any thoughts on the upcoming elections? already tired of elections? Elections! write in and tell us about it at opinions@thephoenixnews.com

Our thoughts heading into the 2014 UBCSUO elections

Illustration by Asher Klassen

Illustration by Asher Klassen

Ah yes, student elections, the post-reading-break jumble of excitement where students balance political interests with the newest round of midterms. Here are the five most interesting things we see emerging so far.

Penalizations & Slates Four candidates have already violated the slate policy.

To be fair, a slate called the Leo Tan Dynasty sounds pretty cool, right? Maybe we could have combined all of their names, and called it the Jagleo Richkim Dynasty? Weirdly enough, two of the four candidates penalized by CRO Curtis Tse in this slating debacle aren’t even facing any opposition. Come on guys, get your shit together. Err… rather, get your shit separate.

Consequences of the new board structure We’re seeing one of the first consequences of the new UBCSUO board. The VP race features little to no competition: the VP External position is contested by David Xu and Shaman Mclean, while the other three VPs are unopposed. In the meantime, the President race features four strong candidates. But it seems a shame that many positions feature so little interest, yet there are three strong candidates who will be going home empty handed. It does, however, suggest that the President of the UBCSUO will be tried and tested throughout the election, which is important.

Faculty Reps missing in action There are plenty of holes in the ballot early on, and it’s hard not to mention the ugly buzzword “apathy” at this point. It rears its ugly head particularly where the Faculty Rep positions are concerned. With only Sciences having any representation (again, comically, three candidates ran for Faculty Rep – Sciences, and zero ran for any other faculty), it raises a fair bit of skepticism about the positions themselves. On the other hand, plenty of the Senate Rep positions have been filled. Personally, I’m willing to chalk it up to the newness of these positions, and through a summer by-election they should be filled relatively easily.

Hopefully Course Unions will recognize the importance of these positions in the future and will take a more active role in encouraging students from their respective faculties to run.

Pay attention to the President race With so few positions being contested, one thing it should make for is a pretty straightforward All Candidates Forum (ACF) and Debate, on February 26 and 27, respectively. At the ACF most of the non-contentious positions will likely get more of the spotlight, followed by some fiery Presidential debate the next day. Unfortunately, the uncontested positions give us little choice in those areas. But cross your fingers, we can at least see if they know what they’re talking about. On the plus side, there’s an intriguing set of candidates for the contested positions, so pay attention, get invested, and you may even find yourself enjoying this election.

Krupa Style lives on Jeff Krupa, please, no Youtube videos. That’s all. Thanks in advance.

ARTS UPCOMING Feb 25 FCCS Visiting Artist Elizabeth McIntosh 12:00 - 1:00 p.m. / CCS 223

Elizabeth McIntosh reveals itself through the multiplicity of visual interpretations and understandings, shying away from aesthetic resolution

Feb 25 36? & the Manual Scavengers

8:30 p.m. / Fernando’s Pub

Alt-rock group from Calgary, 36? performing with Manual Scavengers. Cover $7

Feb 26 Spoken Word

7:00 p.m. / Pulp Fiction Special guest poet John Lent and open mic.

Presented by the Creative Writing Course Union

March 1 Trivia Night: Art, Culture & More

6:00 - 9:00 p.m. / Lake Country Art Gallery

Match wits with your opponents on art, culture and more.

Entry $10 and join the Lake Country Art Gallery for their second pub-styled Trivia Night.

Feb 28 Samantha Savage Smith & Windmills 7:00 p.m. / Streaming Cafe Come to this. $5 cover

JP

MAURICE’s

T S E U Q E M FA

FOR

Torin McLachlan Contributor that complement his pop noir onJP “the” Maurice is a big, big star.

Or at least he’s as close to a star as you can get here in Kelowna. He’s not from here, hailing instead from our hippest, most-on-the-mappest coastal neighbor, Vancouver Island, but he comes through town often.

On pre-Superbowl Saturday he was at Doc Willoughby’s, backed by Connor Tkach and Johnny Jansen of Fields of Green, with local acts Windmills and Kyle Tubbs.

It’s easy to see why Maurice is so astronomically popular no matter the venue, no matter the scene.

From behind a coffee cup or pint glass on a (hypothetical) midsummer night’s date, his molded Hollywood features belie a strikingly soft-spoken and coy demeanor – an iconic medley of looks and attitude

stage stylings. When you’ve got this much going on, self-definition can be a bit tricky.

“I’m a wandering troubadour,” said Maurice. “Actually, my friend Jordan, who I was touring with in March, said I should start calling myself the New Elvis. It’s a totally modest description. If I say it it’s not cool, but I think if you can get other people to say that you’re the New Elvis…”

But Maurice wouldn’t be half so remarkable if he weren’t a bonafide pop prodigy – a label to which his top 5 finish in 2012’s Peak Performance Project and “best of BC” win in the Shore 104.3’s top single contest can attest. Since an auspicious majorlabel deal in Hollywood turned sour in his early career, Maurice has gone on an indie recording spree, putting

“Maurice ardently chugs on into more and more imponderable vistas of fame.”

out his third full-length album, “The Arborist” this past September, and working as a producer with Americana-inspired duo Broken Down Suitcase from Golden B.C. among others, with co-production in the works on Peak 102.7 DJ Carly Walde’s debut album.

Maurice ardently chugs on into more and more imponderable vistas of fame. This past fall he completed a two-month European tour with the aforementioned Broken Down Suitcase. The tour was funded in large part by a successful Indiegogo campaign, documented by Jonathan Krauth of Vancouver’s roving Green Couch Sessions, and included shows in the Netherlands, Germany, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, France, and Italy.

“One of the last shows we played in the Netherlands was a house

February 24th, 2014

ARTS | arts@thephoenixnews.com

21

MUSIC

“

e c i r u a M ’ e h t “JP ‘ is the New Elvis and he has

Laura Sciarpelletti Arts Editor

. s k c i d h c n i 0 three 1 ...I just want to be popular.”

”

- JP Maurice

Synth rock band Broken Bells—the genius collaboration between producer Danger Mouse and Shins singer-songwriter James Mercer—recently returned with their follow-up to their 2009 self-titled debut.

After the Disco is a sci-fi synth wonderland, complete with seventies-esque and New Wave synth sounds, as well as stunning violin riff breaks and Mercer’s signature haunting vocal range. The album is out of this world (literally), and its harmonies and chorus breaks stick with you long after the album’s eleven tracks have run their course. “Holding on for Life” is Beegees sounding, and the music video features a Broken Bells’ signature “space girl,” this time being Kate Mara of House of Cards fame, a smart follow up to Mad Men’s Christina Henricks in the first album’s “The Ghost Inside” music video. “Leave it Alone” and “The Angel and the Fool” showcase gorgeous backing chorales and futuristic retro beats, adding to the album’s journey-of-a-time-traveler vibe.

Albums left to right: Young People With Faces, March 2010; Songs in Sea, Oct 2011; Get Mad EP, Feb 2013.

“Most of us struggle ceaselessly to achieve the level of fun that JP seems to attract with ease”

concert right at the end of the tour,” said Maurice. “We played this thing called In De Kringloop, which is like a Green Couch Sessions sort of idea. It’s in this kind of thrift shop in a town called Zwolle, and bands come in you play and they film. This girl Kim was filming it; we got along with her and she ended up letting us stay at her place that night, and when we came back two months later she put on a house concert for us in Zwolle. I was offered this drug called 4FMP right before I went onstage. It’s this weird designer drug that you can get at head shops but they have to sell in little vials marked as “Tape Cleaner.” I’ve never played a house party before where literally everyone was on their feet dancing. I did not throw up. I kept it together. It was intense.”

Although most of us struggle ceaselessly to achieve the level of fun that JP seems to attract with ease, an artist’s work is never done it seems.

“I’ll be playing some shows on Vancouver Island and after that I’m taking a bit of a hiatus from playing shows to try to write more for my next record,” said Maurice. “I’m going to be playing bass with The Matinée, doing some touring with them, and after that off L.A. to do some songwriting.”

And what does such a startling talent reveal to the public when asked to share a glimpse of his true self?

“Hmm, I don’t know. JP “the” Maurice is the New Elvis and he has three 10-inch dicks. I just want to be popular.”

Visit wearemaurice.com for more JP, which you certainly want.

Jeff Bulmer Contributor Welsh reggae/hardcore-punk band Skindred has found some success in North America since the rerelease of debut album Babylon reached #5 on the Billboard reggae charts in 2004. In recent years, however, they’ve mostly fallen into obscurity this side of the Atlantic, even opting not to release 2011’s Union Black in Canada and the States. On February 18th, Skindred returned to North America with Kill the Power, bringing with them a very different sound than when we last heard them. What started as a self-described “ragga-metal” outfit has since incorporated more genres than you can shake a stick at, which Kill the Power showcases beautifully. Their genre-experiments work and they are a blast to listen to. “Ruling Force,” an overtly rhythmic hardcore punk song with a catchy chorus and dubstep-breakdowns is fun just to describe; “More Fire,” a soft reggae song that serves as both a reprise to “World’s on Fire,” ends the album on the best possible note.

GENDER Spo

on (

left

) an

d Co

yot

e (r

ight

)

Rae Spoon and Ivan Coyote bring “Gender Failure” to Theatre26 Laura Sciarpelletti Arts Editor

Wednesday, February 12, marked the first installation in the new queer performance series on the UBCO campus, sponsored by The Jane Rule Endowment for the Study of Human Relationships.

Canadian transgendered performers. Story-tellers Ivan Coyote and Rae Spoon presented “Gender Failure” in Theatre26, a moving and charming show—derived from their new book of the same name— that allows the talented duo to speak in detail about their experiences of growing up as queers with our society’s gender constraints.

Rae Spoon & Ivan Coyote Ivan Coyote has authored eight short story anthologies, one novel, four short films and three CDs. Over the years they have become well known as a seasoned storyteller and performer, often focusing on spoken word and music. Now they tour North America and Europe extensively, speaking at festivals, universities and high schools on the subject of sexuality and gender identity.

Spoon began as a country artist and gradually made their way to adding experimental and electronic elements to their musical style.

Their voice is bright and vibrant and pairs especially well with electronic tracks. Spoon’s latest album, My Prairie Home—the seventh of their solo albums—focuses on the

meaning of home and when it is no longer a place one can return to. Having come from a Pentecostal Christian family on the Alberta prairies, Spoon struggled with the sense of place and belonging.

Spoon was recently the subject of the National Film Board musical documentary My Prairie Home, a film by Chelsea McMullan about growing up the way they did. Their most recent album is used as the score and soundtrack, and the film was recently chosen for the official selection for Sundance 2014.

The book Gender Failure walks the reader through Spoon and Coyote’s various failures in terms of society’s expectations of gender. Spoon tells the reader—and in the performance, the audience—about their struggles with fitting in as a girl, then a man, and ultimately choosing to not identify as a specific gender. Coyote speaks about the people who made them who they are today, from a transgendered woman named Rosie, to the psychiatrist who gave them their assessment for breast removal. The book—which is slated for a release in April—is a beautiful piece of work with heartfelt and honest observations as well as illustrations.

Being in-between Creative Writing associate professor Michael V. Smith—who organizes the new queer performance series—hosted the event, and recognizes the need for transgender education.

“The entire Western world sells gender to us at every turn,” said Smith. “It’s how we sell products, from the color of diapers to the clothes we buy to the foods we eat.

Yet often when we try to talk about gender people roll their eyes: ‘Oh, that old story’. We think we know so much about it, but your average person doesn’t know the difference between sex, gender and sexuality.

They’re conflated.”

That is what “Gender Failure” addresses: why does gender matter so much to us? Shouldn’t we be more concerned about the individual and what they wish to identify as rather than pushing a label on them?

“Gender Failure is a show to talk about those in-between places,” said Smith. “It’s a show that wedges more light into the dark room of what we take for granted.

Having grown up at odds with the blue-collar men in my family, I take great comfort in the kind of gendertroubling these two performers embody. They make space for me, you, everyone, to be a little more comfortable being ‘different’. This is a show that lets us know we are far more interesting than what the stereotypes would have us believe.”

Pronouns & misconceptions Spoon and Coyote have both been in positions to recognize the ignorance and misunderstanding surrounding the topic of transgender while also struggling with how they identify themselves. Spoon prefers to use the pronoun “they,” rather than “he” or “she.” During the performance, Coyote spoke about their experience with taking their girlfriend to a dinner while dressed in a suit, and having the waiter constantly refer to the two of them as “ladies,” a frustrating term for someone who does not identify as a lady at all. From refusing hormones while seeking breast removal, to the constant discomfort with public restrooms, Spoon and Coyote acknowledge that society confusion about transgendered individuals is something they deal with every day.

The performance “Gender Failure” is a multimedia performance, with beautiful animated video to accompany the performer’s stories and music.

Coyote’s spoken word skills were especially impressive at the Theatre26 show, complete with perfect pacing and poetic interpretation of the Gender Failure prose. Their story-telling talent was evident in every part of the show as Spoon provided the perfect musical backdrop to Coyote’s heart-wrenching stories of growing up as queer in a society that is mostly uneducated when it comes to various gender identities.

“I will be your failure,” sang Spoon, urging the audience to sing along. The duo shared their stories in such an honest way that those completely unfamiliar with transgender culture could empathize and feel inspired by the performers’ journeys.

“We’re not obligated to be a woman or a man,” said Coyote. A person is a person.

The well-received queer event will be followed up by “Crotch,” a performance and installation

by Keith Hennessey on Saturday, March 1st.

FAILURE P

The Rest of My Chest When I was young, they were way littler. In my early twenties, all I had to do really was bench press a bit of weight here and there, and they almost disappeared, I worked ’em right down to muscly little apricots with nipples on them, easily hideable with a tight tank top and a t-shirt over top, then a longsleeved shirt and a sweater and maybe a jacket. Then for a while I used Saran wrap, if you can believe that, in the good old days, back in the early nineties, Saran wrap but only for special occasions, of course, not for everyday, just for a fancy dinner or dress-up when you didn’t want them messing up the line of your dress shirt like they do.

Then came the ACE bandages, but lucky for me those didn’t last too too long before I started dating the dancer, and see, dancers mostly dance their breasts right off themselves, but also they have these flat elastic shirt things that the costume designers sew up for them to wear so they all look like androgynous willow trees, and once I got my hands on one of those elastic dancer shirt things, well, I never looked back.

Until my late thirties, at least, when all of a sudden they got so much bigger, and then it was onwards to the double front compression shirt which sounds really heavy and constricting because it fucking is, right, and it is not made for guys like us, nothing really truly

is made for us, it is mostly designed for cisgendered men and their man boobs and not really built to hold these ladies like mine, this pair that I went and grew myself somehow in the last six or seven years or so.

So. So. Nineteen years, I have been binding. Yes, thank you. I realize some of you are thinking, holy fuck, Saran wrap. That dude is old.

And that is okay by me.

Where was I? Anyways, so all of a sudden a guy wakes up on the verge of forty-fucking-three years old and now not only do I have kind of big tits somehow but God being the joker that they are, I also have really nice big tits seriously sweet Jesus I wish it weren’t so.

Some days I look in the mirror and I think, whose are those? They are sweet but whoever left these here will hopefully come and take them away now because I need to put a shirt on and go outside.

That’s the thing, right? I am totally fine with them when I am naked, well, mostly okay, unless you stare or take a side- view picture or touch them like this instead of like this or this, right, and so mostly I am okay with them naked, I suppose, unless you get all weird about them, in which case then I will definitely counter with feeling way fucking weirder, but what I for sure all the time now definitely am not okay with is having these breasts on me unbound with my clothes on. Hard to describe, I guess, for those of you

arck

aul M

by P hotos

by Ivan Coyote

who feel actually attached in some way to all the parts of your body, or okay with every part of your body, because please, I know that it is not just trans people who feel like this about our bodies, but if you in fact feel perfectly okay with all the parts of the body you are travelling in right now then I say good on you, sincerely, I am glad for you, but it is not like that for me, you see, and I have tried and tried and tried for so long now and, well, I am pretty much certain it almost goes without saying at this point that chances are I am most likely not going to wake up one morning and say, okay, turns out it was all just a phase and only today I decided that I am totally fine having tits. In fact, look, look at my tits, I just love having them around.

Excerpt from Gender Failure reprinted with permission from by Ivan E. Coyote and Rae Spoon (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2014).

Gender Failure

SPORTS

R f T

SEMIFINALS

First Round

3

1

1

UBCO

UBCO

Brandon

Bronze MAtch

1

3

UBC van

UBCO

Megan Festival uses all her might against Trinity Western, though the opposing team proved too strong .

3

TRinity

Photo by Bob Frid

HEAT make it to bronze medal match but fall to Trinity Western

Mirella Cullen Contributor Cam Welch Creative Director

The Heat women’s volleyball team came within 2 sets of a Canada West bronze medal and a trip to Nationals. But after suffering backto-back losses Friday and Saturday night, their breakthrough season has come to an end.

The Heat were competing in the Final Four of the Canada West playoffs thanks to a great performance on February 14th against Brandon.

The 6th-seed UBCO Heat, playing in their first-ever CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sport) playoff series,

upset the 3rd-seed Bobcats 3 sets to 1.

Unfortunately, the ladies would end up being the odd one out in the four-team semifinal of UBC, Trinity Western, and Manitoba.

The 1st-ranked UBC Thunderbirds awaited the ladies Friday night, and the Heat did not show any signs of being out of their groove. But even a thrilling comeback in the fourth set by the Heat was not enough to keep the game going as they lost 3-1 (25-17, 22-25, 25-21, 25-14).

With this loss, the Heat battled

for bronze against the Trinity Western Spartans. A close matchup from the get-go, UBCO and Trinity split the first 2 sets before Trinity edged out the Heat in the following 2 sets to capture the 3-1 victory (25-18, 1625, 24-26, 14-25).

A great start to the game by the Heat earned them the first set, but service errors made it hard for them to hold on to possession throughout the game. The Heat had a great opportunity to take a 2-1 lead, as they went up 24-22. But their attempt to take set point was thwarted by a 4-0 run by Trinity Western. Riding the

CANADA WEST All-Star: KATY KLOMPS Katy Klomps became a Canada West all star due to her amazing ability to block; she set Canada West record with 15 blocks against Mt.Royal on Nov.2nd.

Although Klomps is a defensive player she posted a solid attack average of .310 for the season. She had a season best on November 23rd against Winnipeg, with 16 points and a .750 attack rate.

momentum of that run, the Spartans took a decisive victory in the following set.

The ladies performed well in both their games this weekend.

While they only won one series during this year’s Canada West playoffs in Vancouver, the three teams they faced (Brandon, UBC, and Trinity Western) finished the regular season as the top three seeds in Canada West.

Manitoba, who played UBC in the final, were ranked 5th. The Heat ended the regular season outside the Top 10 after a string of losses,

but were ranked top-7 nationally in all but the final week this season.

The final three teams (UBC, Trinity, and Manitoba) now advance to the National Championships in Regina, which begin February 28.

With this 4th-place finish, the season is over for the Heat women’s volleyball team. But they have a lot to be proud of: in only their third year of CIS play they took their first playoff series win by upsetting one of the country’s top teams, and they ended up being the final cut in the toughest conference in the country.

Canada West All-ROOKie: Michelle Jakszuk Jaksziuk is the player from the Heat Women’s Volleyball team to be named to the Canada West All-Rookie team. She showed strong potential this season, and gained valuable experience during the Heat’s playoff run. Jakszuk had her season best over the course of two games against Trinity on January 17th and 18th,with six kills, seven digs and two block assists.

CAMPUS

Left: Omy using his mental strategy to dominate the game, pondering the use of his favourite pieces, the pawns.

Above: Omy posing in chessappropriate garb; a classy guy for a classy game.

Below: Omy the Knight riding his horse to success.

Photos by Lynette Oon

“i have a dream for a chess team” Omy’s passionate encounters with the game of chesS

Kaeleigh Phillips Sports Editor Two UBCO students, Omkrishna Shah and Matthew Levasseur, took part in the B.C Open Chess Tournament 2014 on February 8th in Richmond B.C. I met up with Omkrishna—or Omy as friends refer to him—to discuss the tournament and get the nitty-gritty of chess itself. Let me paint a picture of the fateful day: Omy stares intently at the chess board, pondering his next move as his opponent patiently waits. The game requires great concentration as many chess matches are not won nor lost until at least four hours have passed. The crowd avidly waits as Omy protects his pawns religiously.

Closing in on the opposition’s Queen,

Omy wins the game. His opponent bows his head in dismay as Omy victoriously rises from the table.

Omy took 3 wins in his first B.C Open tournament, lost 2 games, and drew 1. This was a very successful first run for this talented chess player as he obtained the ratings necessary to compete in future tournaments. 68 people took part in the BC Open and although the UBCO students weren’t eligible to place in the tournament because they did not have previous ratings, they proved they were worthy competition.

When asked what drew him to chess, Omy explained, “I enjoy the mental game. It trains my brain. I never memorize plays, I just go with

the moves. I like exploring different moves in the game; you never know what you can learn from each game you play”.

Omy’s genuine enjoyment of the game has helped him become a very strong player and a credible opponent. His interest in chess began when he was in school in India; Omy hails from Nepal and attended boarding school in the neighbouring country. He practiced 8-10 hours per day to become a champion chess player and his dedication took him to many tournaments, some with over 500 players! Omy became the best player in the West zone of India and even played with the World champion of Chess, Vishwanathan

Anand.

Omy has been the president of the Chess club at UBCO for three years. Upon moving to Canada, he was surprised to find that “Only old people play Chess in Canada, it’s not nearly as popular here”.

This didn’t stop Omy from following his passion for the game though, and as club President he hosted two tournaments this past year, which helped to raise the funds for Levasseur and himself to attend the B.C Open. Even though the popularity of chess is limited in Canada, Omy did note that “Canadian players are still a challenge to play”.

Omy also shared a tip for closet chess fans out there:

“I like the pawns better than anyone else. Pawns are more important than anything else. In the end game, those are the pieces that tell me a lot”.

(Pawns can be promoted to any piece if they reach the board’s other side.)

Omy hopes to expand the activities of the chess club and increase its popularity by obtaining more consistent means of funding. “I’ve got a dream for a chess team,” he declared. Omy’s passion and skill for the game is inspiring, and I hope to see him play in many more matches as the UBCO chess club competes more consistently in tournaments.

Stay tuned for the Annual Memorial Tournament on May 17th as Omy takes his knight to battle once again.

BASKETBALL

The last home basketball game occurred on February 16th, 2014 and saw seven senior athletes graduating, including Yassine Ghomari, Mike Zayonc, Landry Ndayitwayeko, Ed Dane Medi and Brad Quellivon (on the left). The Heat had many supporters arrive, including Heat Soccer players, Nick Gonzalez and Tanner Brydges (above). Senior athletes, EddieFranchize and Krystal Shouten play hard in the final home game of the season (to the right).

Photos by Lynette Oon

The Women’s Basketball team poses for a final photo with Senior athletes, Krystal Shouten and Laura Marcolin.

The Women’s team had a challenging season, yet always supported each other.

Kayla McFadden played her final game of the season but showed she is a strong player for the Heat.

Beautiful Heat fans got into the spirit for Senior’s night as they sport team colors (above). Landry makes a beautiful shot in his final homegame for UBCO (to the right).

The Men’s Volleyball team also showed their support, sporting team colors (below). From left to right, Olivia Johnson from the Women’s Basketball team, Connor Loewen, Leo Schober, (lower row), Jim Bell, Jeremy Fostvelt, Lars Bornemann and Alex Swiatlowski. Both Heat teams lost against TRU on Senior’s Night yet the Heat Men’s Basketball came back and won their final game in Kamloops.

Editorial Will the real Heat fan please stand up?

Kaeleigh Phillips

Sports Editor and the

Phoenix Editorial Board

My initial thought on the “Fire if Toronto Maple Leafs fans showed Brigade” that traveled 10 hours in the level of support that UBCO did one day to UBC to cheer on the Heat this past season, those tragic hockey was, wow, UBCO really knows how players would have most likely to support its athletes. Though this thrown themselves into Niagara initiative was reflective of the dedi- Falls by this point.

Considering the fact that the cation to UBCO Athletics of one of its organizers, Simon Bullock, I have Heat’s homebase is lacking the doubts about the sincerity of our stamina needed to support its teams campus as a whole when it comes from the stands, Bullock’s attempts to garner team support at UBC Van being a truly supportive fan base.

On Senior’s Night on February are bordering on heroic. Talking to 13th, the Women’s and Men’s Bas- this (extremely busy) young man ketball teams unfortunately lost helped me realize that he and the against TRU teams with a much bet- SU worked their butts off to make ter chance of success in those final this “raid the coop” event happen. games of the CIS season. After the Firstly, they pulled the funds from UBCO students raid the Thuderbirds’ coop. men lost by a mere five points, the the Student’s Union, as they didn’t Images provided by Simon Bullock crowd had no words of encourage- want to depend on the slow moment and not even a round of ap- notony of the paperwork hole from hell (the bureaucracy of UBCO) and plause for the gradding athletes.

Five senior athletes are graduat- didn’t want students to miss out on ing this year, including Ed Dane a great opportunity. Thirty-eight Medi (who had been playing for the good folks made the one-day jourHeat for five years!), and not one ney and documented it on the Instafan had the respect to stand up and gram stream #raidthecoop.

This bus trip originally arose from shout, “we love you man, thank you an incentive earlier this year called for your hard work”.

Yes, they lost. Yes, they are a strug- the Fire Brigade. That project was intended to create of dediglingFocused team and it was not a - great 0427 RPGP RN Prevention - Aboriginal AD -Individualized Janice Murphy - 10.44in Wideax group 6in High (Includes the printing of black boarder) - 02for Final Ready teams.

PDF But cated Heat fans in order to raise season thePress basketball

morale for the teams. Though there are 451 members on the Fire Brigade Facebook group (which clearly merits a name change to “Farenheit 451”), I could count on my fingers the amount of “Fire Brigade” shirts at Senior’s Night.

Where were many of these dedicated fans? Why did the graduating seniors not receive the fan support finale they deserved?

Though these organizations have the right idea, Heat fans disappointed on Senior’s night. A loss does not discount the players on the team, and no matter what the true fan cheers on anyways. And while the team hasn’t had much success in these past two years of CIS play, some of those senior players were part of successful Heat seasons in the BCCAA and deserve recognition for both their past and current efforts.

Here’s hoping that the recent developments of the “Fire Brigade” and “Raid the Coop” become gamechangers for UBCO’s fan base and the younger students that these groups are geared towards can bring some real heat to The Furnace.

Maintaining Balance: Education, Awareness & Change Responsible & Problem Gambling Program Free gambling awareness, education and counselling for Indigenous Peoples.

For free services call Janice Mercredi Murphy. 250.308.9956 | 1-855-437-8521 janmurphymercredi@gmail.com Funded by the Province of British Columbia

Edited and Formatted by Gary Leung 2014 604 267 2113

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February 24th, 2014