Budgets, burnout, and a new vision for clubs were at the forefront of the second AMS Assembly of the month.
AMS Assembly met on March 24 in Goodes Hall for approximately two hours before moving into a closed session, where only the 38 Assembly voting , Assembly Speaker, and Secretary, were able to attend. Assembly met earlier this month for a Special Assembly, called by President Owen Rocchi back in January.
Islamic Relief at Queen’s University (IRQU) began the meeting in recognition of Women’s History Month. IRQU has chapters across Canada to raise awareness about various humanitarian events worldwide, including issues like the civil war in Sudan, and fundraise for social issues. During their presentation, they highlighted their focus on recognizing women’s struggles, both locally and internationally.
“We recognize that instability in countries disproportionately affects women and girls. Therefore, gender-based policy is required for sustainable development,” the IRQU spokesperson said.
In February, IRQU collaborated with other Canadian chapters to host the Rise to Relief event, where they gave out blankets, socks, warm meals, menstrual products, and other necessities to unhoused individuals in Toronto.
ORT Budget
At Special Assembly earlier this month, the AMS brought the orientation budget as a discussion item, requesting $137,500 from assembly for their $400,000 overall budget.
READ MORE: March AMS Special Assembly discusses orientation fees and Bus-It
ORT Coordinator Ali Haider, HealthSci ’26, briefly spoke to Assembly again about some changes they’ve made to the budget since meeting earlier in the month. The Journal followed up in an e-mail on March 25 for clarification on the changes but didn’t receive a response in time for publication.
Assembly voted unanimously to approve the budget.
Changes to the Clubs Commission
Assembly approved a proposal to the AMS Board of Directors outlining several changes to the Clubs Commission for the year. These changes include a shift in the structure of club ratifications and a reallocation of responsibilities within the commission, as detailed in motions six and nine.
One of the proposed changes involves the club ratification schedule, with AMS-ratified clubs now required to undergo the re-ratification process every two years instead of annually.
Vice-President (University Affairs) Ruth Osunde, whose portfolio directly oversees the Clubs Commission, spoke on both motions, saying she’s seen great for changing the ratification cycle to every two years from club executives. Stephanie Sahadeo, ArtSci ’25, resigned as clubs commissioner in February, leaving Osunde as acting commissioner,
Osunde proposed that all AMS ratified clubs would be randomly divided into two cohorts with each cohort alternating going through the ratification process every year. This means that clubs would only have to go through the ratification process every two years.
Assembly also approved the proposal for the Clubs Commission to undergo structural changes for the 2025-26 academic year, with the current team of five employees being taken away and replaced with three new positions who all report directly to the Club’s Commissioner.
The new positions include a Clubs and Policy Supervisor who is responsible for club ratification and ensuring compliance with AMS policies, a Clubs Communications & Development Supervisor who manages events, professional development, and marketing, and a Clubs Operations & Finance Supervisor who oversees space allocation and financial edits.
With the implementation of these new positions, the AMS will scrap all of the current roles that report into the Clubs Commissioner including the roles of Assistant Commissioner, Clubs Communications Deputy, Club Outreach Deputy, Clubs Communications Assistant, and Clubs istration Deputy. All but the Club Communications and Outreach Deputies were paid positions.
The Clubs Commission Restructuring Proposal stated the push for changes is coming after a high level of burnout from the prior Club Commissioner and the overall sentiment of AMS clubs feeling uned—with the hope being that these changes will address those issues. While Osunde can’t predict the future, she hopes, upon approval, the delegation of tasks will help.
“Everything has been designed in a way where we’re not running into the issue of needing a centralized person to delegate responsibilities out,” Osunde said.
At the end of Assembly, moved into closed session where media was asked to leave due to privacy concerns.
On March 27, AMS President Owen Rocchi PSAC 901 strike.
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