Broken Promises, Lost Tradition — University of Alberta Lister Residence Changes

News Staff - Mon Jul 30, 2012

The Administration has continued to stonewall students with its proposed changes to Lister Centre. In response to student requests for a collaborative look at improving Lister, the Administration has cited unspecified “health and safety” matters as the reason that the Memorandum of Agreement between the Administration and student residence associations was ignored, along with Board of Governors' motions that required the Administration to work with, not against, student residence associations. As of today, July 30, it has been a week since the Administration first unilaterally announced the changes. Despite our request last week to view the evidence by today, the Administration has continued to withhold specifics of what “health and safety” concerns exist in Lister. Statistics show a significant reduction in disciplinary incidences over the past three years in Lister, leading the Students’ Union to be skeptical of the Administration’s unsubstantiated claims.

The University Administration reports to the Board of Governors, and it is should be troubling to all Albertans that the Board of Governors of a public institution seems to have been completely sidestepped in these matters. It is equally troubling that an institution so outwardly committed to collaboration with students, staff, alumni and the broader university community has continued to burn bridges by ignoring its mandate to consult with these groups. This proposal features no fewer than eight changes to the operations of Lister, most of which have never been discussed with the Lister Hall Students’ Association or the SU. The University of Alberta can do better.

Thousands of alumni, thousands of current students and generations of future students have been affected by these unilateral changes to their home. The SU is working with the LHSA to collect postcards from all of these affected constituent groups at www.PostcardsForLister.ca to send to U of A President Indira Samarasekera and ask her to reverse the changes and work with students to create positive change in Lister.

Attachment 1: Response and Resolution to the Residence Changes Proposed by the University of Alberta
University of Alberta Students’ Union / Lister Hall Students’ Association

Attachment 2: Residence Consultation Framework
University of Alberta Students’ Union / Lister Hall Students’ Association

Attachment 3: Response from the University to the Above Proposals
University of Alberta (student concerns annotated inline by University of Alberta Students’ Union / Lister Hall Students’ Association)

For more information, please contact:
Simon Yackulic
External Communications & Media Advisor
University of Alberta Students’ Union
P: 780.492.4236
E: ecma@su.ualberta.ca

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