U of R President address the concerns after URSU fee collection cut

After a loss of confidence in the University of Regina’s Student Union, the university will no longer be collecting fees for the union. Students on campus have raised other concerns about the University of Regina Student Union (URSU). Dr. Jeff Keshen, president of the U of R, joins Evan to address the concerns being brought to light.

Listen to Dr. Keshen on the Evan Bray Show:

EVAN BRAY: What is the Women’s Centre?

KESHEN: I’d say that it’s the Women’s Center and UR Pride. They’re groups that advocate on behalf of the issues that are of importance to women. They’ll bring speakers onto campus. They’ll provide resources, they’ll provide advice and they’ll provide a space for women to get together as well, to go over issues that they think are pertinent for the university to discuss. So, that’s essentially what they are. They have a space like UR Pride does on the campus, and they receive funding to put on programming and to provide support for, in this case, women.

The University of Regina ended their fee agreement with URSU?

KESHEN: Each year, when students pay their tuition, they’ll have a number of fees that are specified to go to the University of Regina Student Association. These support clubs, for their dental and health fees and for the U-Pass. We collect those fees on behalf of, in this case, URSU. We still have the mechanism to collect those fees that are determined under a 1989 agreement that the university had made with the student association. We have to provide, in this case, three months’ notice to stop those collections of fees and essentially end our relationship with URSU.

What’s the mechanism going to look like for URSU to collect these funds after August 31?

KESHEN: They won’t have the means to collect those funds. They don’t have the mechanism to do so. But more than that, the current and the existing and the acclaimed leadership of URSU, the university no longer has confidence in either for their financial stewardship of the funds.

These are student funds, the student money to govern that and to properly govern their association. We’ve had concerns for some time with them and by doing this, we’re simply saying, ‘Well, we have to work with a student group with whom we have confidence that they’re going to properly govern and steward those funds on behalf of the things that are essential.’

I should point out that the trigger for all of this was an auditor’s report that pointed to a material uncertainty in URSU operations. Meaning the trend lines we knew between their costs and their revenues were heading in a bad direction. They were running huge debts and the auditor, by pointing out this material uncertainty, indicated that the organization itself may not be financially sustainable going forward.

This is a fairly significant step by the university. What does this mean long-term for the students’ union?

KESHEN: We want a vibrant student union. We want an independent student union. It’s important that exists at the university, a student union that would make comments on what’s important to students, hold administration accountable, all those things that good student unions do.

But we insist that before we transfer funds that are approved by the board to the student association that represents our students, they need to have trust that those funds are used responsibly, that there is transparency, that there’s proper reporting and there’s good governance.

With that petition that’s going forward right now, that petition has asked that URSU be dissolved.

We await a student association like the ones that exist at other universities that went down this path,

For example, the University of Ottawa had a student association with whom we have confidence that they’ll properly oversee. Those funds will be for the student association going forward.

Until such time when that happens, we will continue to collect fees, especially after August 31 for the fall term. The student health plan, the U-Pass and all those activities will be fully funded. The university will just have to ensure that it pays those bills.

The University of Regina Students’ Union not only denies involvement in that Women’s Center disruption, but they sent out a statement that alleges that after a video was circulated online.

I think everyone’s seen the video of that disruption in an Instagram post, there has been racial profiling, xenophobic commentary and public bullying of victims.

Is this the notion that the best defence is a good offence? What’s happening here?

KESHEN: They’ve made those allegations. They haven’t been proven. On the other hand, we instituted an investigation of what happened at the Women’s Center through our internal auditor.

The internal auditor has indicated that there are grounds for further inquiry under our Respectful University Conduct Policy with respect to that group that was chanting outside. I don’t want to specify that they’re insincere in their comments, but there’s no evidence to suggest that what they’re saying has any validity.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.