Author: Nicole

Caucus meeting: Oct. 29 @ 4:30pm

Catch the next caucus meeting on October 29th at 4:30pm (PST). The Zoom link will be distributed via email in the coming week.

Caucus is still looking to recruit for several positions, including Communications Coordinator and two Hiring Committee representatives. If you’re interested, come to the next meeting to express your interest! If you are unable to attend the meeting, you can email the co-chairs at gradcaucus@gmail.com.

Please note that those interested in becoming a Hiring Committee representative must read the updated departmental policy, which has been sent out via email. If you have not received a copy, please feel free to reach out to the co-chairs.

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation 2021

In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) released 94 Calls to Action, which call upon on governments, educational and religious institutions, civil society groups, and all Canadians to learn about and participate in the work of reconciliation.  Call to Action 80 “call[s] upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, to establish, as a statutory holiday, a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.”

UBC will be observing the Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, 2021. As such, classes will be cancelled and university employees who are normally entitled to provincial and federal holidays will receive this day off.

Read the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action

Learn about “The Story of Orange Shirt Day” (The Orange Shirt Society)

Explore the public archives available through the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR)

Learn from resources suggested by the UBC Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre

Engage in UBC events that provide more opportunities to learn about and participate in reconciliation

 

Rescheduled Caucus Meeting: Oct. 1 @ 3 pm

The upcoming caucus meeting has been rescheduled from September 30 to Friday, October 1 at 3 pm PST. As a reminder, elections for caucus representatives will be happening during this meeting. Please check your email for the Zoom invite and check out this earlier post for the available caucus positions. Feel free to send an email to gradcaucus@gmail.com for more info.

Upcoming Caucus Meeting: Sept 30

Hello to our new and continuing students! Our first English Graduate Caucus meeting for the 2021–2022 academic year is scheduled for Thursday, September 30th at 3 p.m. PST on Zoom. Please check your inbox for an invitation sent through the “English Grads” mailing list.

Elections for this year’s caucus representatives will be held during this meeting, so if you’re interested in taking up a position, please either attend the meeting on September 30 or send an email to gradcaucus@gmail.com in advance so your name can be included during elections.

If you’re not interested in being a caucus representative, please consider attending anyway! Attending the monthly caucus meetings is a great way to get involved in the department and meet your fellow grads.

Available positions include:

  • Caucus Chair (or Co-Chairs)
  • Communications Coordinator
  • Finance Committee (with at least one returning grad student)
  • Conference Committee
  • Social Committee
  • Department Representative(s)
  • Graduate Student Society (GSS) Representative
  • Union Representative
  • ACCUTE Representative
  • Graduate Well-being Committee
  • Fundraising Committee
  • License Coordinator
  • Graduate Student Spaces Representative
  • Softball Captain
If you have questions about any of these roles, please feel free to send an email to gradcaucus@gmail.com or inquire during the meeting.
See you there!

Online group counselling available to UBC students

If you’re experiencing emotional hardships and would like to connect with students experiencing similar challenges, UBC Wellbeing offers various group counselling programs. The available support groups include the graduate student group, student-parent group, the international student group, and the racism and resilience group.

Click here to register and find out more about UBC Wellbeing’s group counselling programs.

Thrive Month

November is Thrive Month, a time when the UBC community can come together to discuss and support our mental health.

The English Graduate community is invited to attend the screening and peer round table of The Great Disconnect on Monday, November 30. 

For more information and to sign up, please check out the GSS event page.

“The Great Disconnect is a timely documentary that invites us to reflect on the relationships we have with those around us and raises the question: is it possible to overcome our modern culture of disconnectedness and rediscover how truly essential we are to one other? As in-person meetings have become difficult under current events, we hope that the screening and peer discussion of this documentary can be inspiring in re-establishing social connections and relationships.”

– Zhishu, Well-being Committee Representative

CGS-M Application Workshops

Thinking of applying for the CGS-M Scholarship?

The Center for Writing and Scholarly Communication at the UBC Library is hosting a workshop on how to write a research proposal (October 20 at 10 am) . Check out the event details or register for the workshop here.

You can also attend a workshop organized by the Graduate Pathways to Success Program about the CGS-M competition details and application procedures (October 26 at 10 am). Learn more or register for this event here.

You can also learn more about the CGS-M Scholarship in our previous post!

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