Dear CIIS Community,

It has been an honour to serve the student body on the Board of Trustees throughout the past semester, and I look forward to continuing to represent the student body throughout the the Fall 2010 semester. It has been inspiring to be part of what I see as a growing movement towards a sustainably politicized student body at CIIS, one that works collectively with student groups, faculty, staff, and administrators. I have seen students and student groups continuously labour to hold space for student voice and collaborative governance, not only because they see it as a responsibility, but because they care about the place in which their education occurs.

Numerous student-initiated steps have been taken to better communication amongst and between different constituencies at CIIS. Student participation in various arenas is continuing to grow. From Breakfasts with the President to the formation of Student Alliance Subcommittee Groups, students are continuing to show up as a form of care. Nonetheless, we still have a long way to go, towards improving both communication and participation. I look forward to continuing to work towards this with the student body, Student Alliance, different administrators, and the Board.

This semester promises to hold potential for such work. I look forward to helping facilitate in the solidification of student subcommittees, increased student participation in different spaces, and more accessible mechanisms of transparency from different decision-making bodies. Through such work I hope that we can collectively create a culture of accountability and responsibility in the school that we all care so much about.

Erin McElroy, Student Representative to the Board of Trustees