Notes from Council: Plans for the October referendum

Senior Manager (student events and services) Delane Howie, presented on what Week of Welcome (WOW) 2026 will look like at the August 18 University of Alberta Students’ Union (UASU) Students’ Council meeting. Howie explained that new student orientation would span two full days on August 30 and 31.

New students would also get a chance to attend up to four conference sessions. These sessions would include “welcome to Edmonton, getting involved, … finances and personal wellness, … [and] computers and libraries.” The conference sessions haven’t been done since 2016, Howie said.

Another new event would be happening this year as well. The WOW After Party will be happening at Main Quad on September 4. “It’s something that’s really special and new this year. And honestly, depending on how it goes, if it’s too loud, we might never be allowed to do it again,” Howie said. If there was only one evening event that should be attended, it’s this one, she urged.

Howie explained that they’ve introduced a “This is Your UASU Week” to ease students back into classes after WOW is over. Students will get a chance to engage with the UASU and learn more about it.

Additionally, they can participate in activities and events throughout the second week of classes. The week will finish off with a Red Bull Turn it Up DJ event.

Referendum response

Angel Raina, vice-president (external), presented on the UASU referendum response. The goal is to have students engaged in the October referendum. The referendum poses 10 questions, including one on separation and five on immigration.

In September, the UASU will emphasize tabling and teaching students how to vote in the referendum.

“A lot of people … [will] be voting for the first time, and it’s not an election — it’s a referendum,” Raina said. “We want to give students accessible, credible, and nonpartisan information on just the fundamentals of how to vote.”

A series of educational resources will also be released to students. The resources will talk about the referendum questions, which will include] plain language summaries of the questions. Additionally, Raina plans on collaborating with different student associations.

Starting in October, there will be a “Get Out the Vote” aspect and a shift in the educational aspect. The educational approach will move from being about the logistics of voting “to now more strongly encouraging students to delve deeper into what the questions entail, and what it means for them.” All without telling them how to vote, Raina added.

A “what happens next” event held at the Meyer Horowitz will occur in early October, Raina said. The event will go over what October 20 will look like if you say yes or no to certain things. Additionally, it will cover what the everyday implications would be of answering these questions in a certain way.

As plans are finalized, a list of guest speakers for “what happens next,” and other events for the referendum will be announced.

Executive committee and BoG reports

During the reports, UASU President Joseph Sesek talked about his work on extending library hours, one of his platform points. He attended a meeting with the new Chief Librarian, WeiWei Shi. “We had some good insight into where the librarians and the university are at in regards to [his] goals,” Sesek explained.

Susan Huseynova, vice-president (academic), has been escalating the pushback on the Course Materials Access (CMA) program. Once the plan has been approved by the executive committee she’s “more than happy to share [it],” she added. “We [the council] can discuss what that means for us and what that can look like for potentially all winter term in 2027.”

Huseynova has also been working on ways to promote the Undergraduate Research Initiative (URI). Especially to students in more humanities-based degrees.

Vice-president (operations and finance) Logan West shared her work on launching a new program. The Student Representative Associations (SRAs) PERKs survey initiative will allow SRAs to “access their students through what we call sub-committees.” The 2025–26 executive committee started the initiative, but it won’t be launched until this year.

Next, Paige Wall, vice-president (student life), shared that she’s been continuing her work on accessibility maps for campus. She’s also been working on plans for World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10, and a residential school memorial on September 29.

Board of Governors representative Amaan Khan has been working on tuition affordability advocacy with the Board. He aims to inform students about what their tuition actually gets them by creating more clarity and transparency on what tuition provides.

First-Year Council Second Principles passed

At the August 27 Students’ Council meeting, Faculté Saint-Jean councillor Sophia Sparks and West moved to have the Second Principles for the creation of First-Year Council (FYC). The motion was passed unanimously.

West and Huseynova also moved to discuss the Terms of Reference for FYC. The Terms of Reference for FYC look at how the body will function.

During the discussion, science councillor Nabeeha Irfan asked why there would be an election held within the council itself after the appointment of the councillors. Huseynova explained that “essentially, it’s an opportunity for FYC to function independently of Students’ Council.” FYC is designed to expose first-year students to governance at the university and how it functions.

As the 2026–27 academic term continues, the role and function of the FYC will continue to be fleshed out, especially by FYC members themselves.