January 16, 2015

In order to make it easier for undergraduate students to attend the SGM on January 21st, the university’s Senate (the governing body for academic matters) is encouraging professors to allow undergraduate students to miss class in order to attend the meeting.

The official motion approved by Senate is as follows:

In recognition of the Simon Fraser Student Society’s commitment to ensuring that all members of the Society are able to attend and participate fully in the upcoming Special General Meeting taking place on January 21st from 1:30-3:30, Senate encourages all instructors to accommodate, without academic penalty, any students who communicate in advance their intention to participate in the Special General Meeting. 

Here are some things that you need to know:

  • Professors have been encouraged by Senate to allow you to miss class for the SGM, but they haven’t been mandated.
  • You must ask your professor in advance if you want to miss a class that conflicts with the SGM.
  • You may be asked by your professor to confirm your attendance at the SGM. The SFSS will keep a record of all students who sign in.

In order to help you ask your professor in advance, we have created a template email that you could modify and send to your professor:

Subject: Excusal for attendance at Jan. 21 SFSS Special General Meeting

Dear Professor,

My name is __________ and I am an undergraduate student in your __________ class.

The Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) will be hosting a Special General Meeting (SGM) on Wednesday, January 21, 2015 from 1:30 – 3:30 pm. At this meeting, undergraduate students will vote on a number of important issues including a change to the SFSS bylaws and the approval of a loan to finance the Build SFU project. I wish to attend this important meeting, but it conflicts with our scheduled class. I am requesting that you excuse me from class to allow me to exercise my democratic right to vote on these important matters.

Senate, SFU’s highest academic governance body, made the following recommendation on January 5, 2015:

“In recognition of the Simon Fraser Student Society’s commitment to ensuring that all members of the Society are able to attend and participate fully in the upcoming Special General Meeting taking place on January 21st from 1:30-3:30, Senate encourages all instructors to accommodate, without academic penalty, any students who communicate in advance their intention to participate in the Special General Meeting.”

In light of my desire to attend the meeting as well as Senate’s recommendation, I am requesting that I be excused from our class on January 21st to attend the meeting. At your request, I will be able to obtain confirmation from the SFSS that I attended the meeting.

FOR SURREY AND VANCOUVER STUDENTS ONLY:

As a student based at the Surrey/Vancouver campus, this provision is especially important to me. The meeting will be held at the Burnaby campus and technical limitations do not allow for me to vote through video conferencing. If excused from class, I will be able to attend this meeting where I otherwise would be unable to.

Thank you for your consideration,

___________________

Student # __________