2017 Recap

I cannot be the only one who feels like it was March all of 4 days ago. Yet here we are with the New Year right around the corner. Where did the year go? What happened? I can barely remember what I had for lunch 3 hours ago.

Here’s my best recap of what happened this year as remembered by me (and other staff that randomly walked by my desk while I was typing this)...

JANUARY 2017

Nicki, the KSA’s new Policy and Political Affairs Coordinator starts. She has no idea what is coming around the corner for her in May (re: provincial election). We took part in Orientation and visited all 4 campuses for Welcome Week.

FEBRUARY 2017

KSA Elections happened and a new Council is elected. No one can remember anything else from this month.

MARCH 2017

The KSA Council made Ryan Reynolds an honorary member of the association at our Annual General Meeting…..

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…

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…. Yeahhhhhh, let's just not talk about that one.

APRIL 2017

The parking lots started to clear up. Hooray for the upcoming Summer semester! April was also the month of the KSA/KPU Volunteer Recognition Dinner, where we celebrated hard working Kwantlen volunteers.

MAY 2017

The big news this month was the BC Provincial Election! 

JUNE2017

The KSA Executives mysteriously disappear. They say they were at numerous conferences meeting with other student associations, learning, growing and networking... no one knows for sure. Someone show me proof!

The BC Provincial Election is stillllllllll going. We cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel, everyone is confused, this hasn’t happened before!

JULY 2017

The BC Provincial Election is basically figured out. But more importantly, this beautiful creation (KSA blog) started to become a thing.

Read our blog post on how the BC Provincial Election is the worst tinder date you've ever been on here.

AUGUST 2017 -- BIG MONTH!

August was a big month for the KSA.  

First, one of our own became a local celebrity! Our VP External Caitlin was featured on the FRONT PAGE of the Georgia Straight newspaper. It’s no Time Magazine Person of the Year but heck I’ve never been on the front page of anything, have you?

Secondly, Kelsey our new Records Coordinator and Archivist started, 1 week later she was buried underneath approximately 376 boxes of old files and re-evaluating her life decisions.

Lastly, we published our first post here!

SEPTEMBER 2017

September was a blur of student BBQ’s and putting tents up and doing events and talking to students and talking to more students and SO MUCH TALKING TO STUDENTS (we love it, we really do, but September is a lot).

OCTOBER 2017

October was a really funny month because we thought that we would get a break from all the talking and events and tabling in September but HA HA HA… October was essentailly September all over again minus a few burgers.

Let’s be real for a minute: September and October were incredible months for #KPUcampuslife we held a large number of events across various departments and really focused on student engagement.

NOVEMBER 2017

We had a stat holiday, made some bath bombs and watched Harry Potter. Our Marketing Coordinator also bought a Marshmellow gun, it only kind of worked properly (you win some, you lose some). More important than all of those things though, dogs came to campus as a part of Stress Relief Week!

DECEMBER 2017

I thought it was November for the first 5 days, we decorated our offices for the holidays... and I wrote this!

Note: These things really did happen, but we did so much more this year than what is listed above. For example… We ran numerous campaigns on issues that affect students such as housing and mental health. Throughout the year we hosted a large number of events focused on a variety of student interests (from mental health to sustainability to inclusivity to physical fitness). We attended some really great conferences and brought back innovative ideas to initiate here on campus. We supported Kwantlen students to attend conferences and workshops so they can learn, grow and bring back ideas of their own. We helped student clubs and provided student engagement opportunities through our 3 volunteer programs. We sent students to Victoria to speak with the government, did yoga in the garden, took students concerns to University staff and ate wayyyy too many burgers.

See you in 2018!

-- Kendell

Embracing The Winter Season

It’s that time of year again, that cold-grey-never-stops-raining season that we always seem so surprised with (I don’t know why, it happens every year). I will be the first person to say that I love the sun and warm weather, but living in the lower mainland, that simply isn’t a reality for 5 (okay more like 7 or 8) months of the year.

Rather than match my mood to the weather (aka miserable) I decided that this year I was going to try my hardest to embrace winter and lean in to the season. Below are some of the ways that I plan to enjoy the next couple months of winter here in Vancouver/Surrey/Langley/etc. I've tried to include spots that are located across the Lower Mainland, because we don't all live in Mount Pleasant (even if we wish we did).

Stay Inside

If nothing else, the gross weather outside acts as the perfect excuse to stay inside and be lazy cozy. You know how all you want to do at the end of the day is binge watch that new Netflix series?.. do it! Grab some warm socks and blankets (heck, invite some friends over if you’re feeling social) and have a Netlflix Night. Want to switch it up? How about a movie marathon or watch a Christmas movie if that’s your jam. 

Want to get out of the house, but still not ready to brace the winter weather outside? Hit up a cute café or local brewery! They’ll be warm, get you out of the house, and maybe it’ll even be a little fun. Need recommendations? I would recommend these local cafes here and here. And this brewery. On my list to explore this season: here, here and here.

Step Outside

On those days where the weather isn’t filling up the streets with puddles, there are some really cool winter activities you can take part in. Plus they say if it’s raining down here, it’s snowing in the mountains, right?(I actually have no idea if that is a credible saying).

If you’re looking to hit up the mountains, there is the classic skiing and snowboarding, but if you want to do something different you could try your hand at snowshoeing (here) or snow tubing (with Active KSA December16th). Both options more affordable than the classic lift pass.

Want to stay more local? You could always check out the Bear Creek Park Christmas Train, Ice Skating at a local rink or sledding (if we get more snow).  

Get Festive

As we enter the month of December, we are also entering full force into the holiday season. Whether you celebrate a holiday this time of year, or not, it’s still fun to get a little festive. While the Surrey City Hall Plaza Christmas Tree Lighting has already happened, the tree will still be lit over the next few weeks to visit. Living closer to Langley? Similar to Vancouver’s Enchant, Langley will be home to GLOW this year. There are also lots of Holiday markets set up from Abbotsford to Vancouver that are sure to be a great time (and are not all ‘Christmas’ focused).

Even if you are stuck on campus studying for that seriously hard exam coming up, there is still a way to lean into the winter season. Listen to a soothing Jazz or Hygge playlist on Spotify, and order a festive drink from Grassroots Café while you cram (you’ll also get a student discount there).

For some of us, the winter season can be a tough (Vitamin D deficient) time, but as I told myself in early November, everyone has a choice. You can match your mood to the weather (aka miserable) or you can lean in and embrace the few delights that can only be done during the cold weather months. I mean you can’t snowshoe in July, at least in Vancouver.

Stay warm out there folks!

-        Kendell

Council Recap: November 24th, 2017

The last meeting of the Kwantlen Student Association was held on the Cloverdale campus, also know as KPU Tech.  Did you know they have horses at Cloverdale (for the farrier program)?

Here are the FIVE things you NEED to know from this week's’ Council:

#5

Four KSA staff members - Nicki Simpson, Policy and Political Coordinator, Kendell Kitt, Clubs and Outreach Coordinator, Stephanie Chee, START Coordinator, and Kelsey Silk, Records Coordinator & Archivist - presented to Council about their roles. Nicki and Kendell accused Stephanie and Kelsey of being keeners, because they made powerpoint presentations.  But really, how do you do a presentation without slides?

#4

The meeting schedule for the Spring semester was set.  Council will meet five times in the spring, including a special meeting on April 3rd. Council meetings will be on January 26th, 2018 at 10 am, February 23rd, 2018 at 10 am, March 23rd, 2018 at 10 am, April 3rd at 10 am, and April 6th, 2018 at 10 am.

#3

Vice President, Student Life Jay Reedy presented his report on attending the Canadian Federation of Students Annual General Meeting in Gatineau, PQ.  His report was not favourable, but President Tanvir Singh did remark that having a good number of representatives from dissident schools did allow for the minority to hold the executive accountable.

#2

A representative from Vancity attended to present on the state of the KSA’s financial investments.  Earlier this year, Council approved a Credit Union Policy, and began the process of transitioning all account from our previous bank to Vancity.  It is the belief of the KSA that credit unions generally have ethical and environmentally sensitive investment portfolios that include investing in the local economy which supporting jobs for KPU students and graduates.

#1

Four students were appointed to student member positions on the Student Life, Finance and Operations, Governance and Environmental Sustainability committees.  Did you know that all the committees of the KSA have student positions?  You can apply by emailing appointments.chair@kusa.ca, and directly influence decision making at the student union.

The full minutes of this meeting, and all other KSA Council and Committee meetings, are available after approval on kusa.ca/committees.