SBA Programming and Events
- Office Closures
- QT2sBIPOC Discussion Series
- SBA Nomination Period – Extension!
- Annual General Meeting – Save the Date
- What’s Left? Countering the Alt Right
- Disorientation – Call for Volunteers
Community Events and Resources
- Support Parkdale Rent Strikers
- Canadian Hearing Society Scholarships
- CWTP York is looking for new Collective Members!
SBA Programming and Events
Office Closure
Please note the following closures:
- Early closure Friday May 26th, 2017 at 5pm
- Monday June 12th, 2017 – All day
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QT2sBIPOC Discussion Night
Students for Barrier-free Access (SBA) invites you to join us for the first summer meeting for our series of events that works to create space for community building, critical conversation, and support for Queer, Trans and Two-Spirit, Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (QT2SBIPOC).
As organizers of this space, we recognize that this event will be taking place on the territories of the Huron-Wendat and Petun First Nations, the Seneca and the Mississaugas of New Credit. We are here because this land is occupied. As organizations located within the University of Toronto, it is our responsibility to acknowledge that we are all treaty people that live, work and organize on occupied land.
We also recognize that this University is a space that many of our community members experience violence, including the violence of settler-colonialism, anti-black racism, white supremacy, homophobia, transphobia, transmisogyny, ableism, sanism, classism, Islamophobia and the violence of rape culture. Recent events on campus have highlighted the ongoing presence of these forms of violence. As a collective, we work to challenge these forms of violence in our communities and in our everyday practice.
We have a strong commitment to creating anti-colonial community space that rejects ableist and sanist ways of relating. We are committed to building meaningful and reciprocal relationships between Indigenous, Black, and POC communities and to acknowledge that this requires difficult conversations to be had. Through the QT2SBIPOC Discussion Night Series, we strive to hold a space for these conversations.
Date: Tuesday June 20, 2017
Time: 6:30 p.m. -8:30 p.m.
Location: SBA Centre, 215 Huron Street, Suite 924, on the 9th floor.
Please note that the front doors to 215 Huron Street lock at 5:30pm. Event organizers will wait at the entrance to let people in from 5:50-6:00pm. If you arrive later, please call 416-967-7322 and one of us will let you in.
Wheelchair accessible. Accessible and all-gender washroom located on the same floor as the event room.
Please note that the SBA Centre is a scent-free space.
Snacks, including vegan and gluten-free options will be served.
If you require ASL to participate in the event, or if you have any other access needs please contact Nadia at sba.advocacycoordinator@gmail.com
***This is a QT2SBIPOC only space. As always, we appreciate the support we receive from our white allies by respecting this space and by sharing this event information with their networks.***
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SBA Board Nominations – Extension!
Students For Barrier-Free Access (SBA) is a student-run non-profit organization that advocates for access and the rights of students with disabilities at the University of Toronto. We work to encourage new ways of thinking that challenges dominant understandings of disability and to advocate for education that is socially, environmentally, and financially accessible. In order to be informed and vigilant about barriers and disability-related issues on campus and to be an effective stakeholder in university decision-making, we work with students, faculty, other social justice groups and allies to build an accessible campus and a strong diverse community.
If you would like a chance to shape and expand on some of these great initiatives, consider joining the Board of Directors!
The nomination period runs from Wednesday May 24th, 2017 to Wednesday June 14th, 2017 by 5:30PM. Please have your nomination packages submitted by this date and time.
For more information and for a copy of the nomination package, please visit: uoftsba.com . You may also pick up your copy at the SBA Centre (215 Huron St, Suite 924) during regular office hours (Mondays – Thursdays 11:30am – 5:30pm and Fridays 12:30pm and 5:30pm).
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Elections and AGM – Save the Date
Save the Date! Students for Barrier-Free Access will be having our Annual General Meeting and elections on June 28th, 2017. It is a great opportunity to meet with outgoing, returning, and newly elected SBA Board of Directors.
Time: 6pm – 8:30pm
Location: OISE Room 5150
Access information: ASL, captioning, a light supper, and TTC tokens provided. Accessible and gender neutral washrooms available on the same floor. Please note that this is a scent free space. For any accessibility needs or if you have any questions, please email sba@utoronto.ca.
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What’s Left? Countering the Alt Right
The Toronto Research and Action Community Exchange (TRACX) is a two part program started by Opirg Toronto to build space for student and community research on social and environmental justice issues. The first component is a research portion. Through this research we work to facilitate connections between campus resources and community organizations working for social change. Through the TRACX program, community organizations can develop research projects useful to their campaigns and long-term strategies while being matched with students interested in completing the research for credit.
This year’s symposium is tentatively titled “What’s Left? Coalition-Building and Countering the Alt-Right” and will be co-hosted by Opirg Toronto and Sba Centre along with the Toronto Research and Action Community Exchange collective. The symposium portion is organized to showcase research with a community organizing focus from students, non-students and community groups. We want to problematize and challenge perspectives on research, and build networks between socially-conscious students and grassroots community organizations to develop research proposals led by the community group’s needs and priorities. We hope you can join us in helping facilitate this process as we focus on how we resist fascism, racism and oppression in our relationships, in our workplaces, and in the institutions and systems that govern our daily lives.
This year’s symposium will include both a skills-based component for developing the practical tools for conducting and disseminating research, and a thematic set of panels, keynotes, group discussions and presentations on anti-fascist work in Toronto and its intersections with other movements. This symposium is motivated by a need to reflect on our understanding of anti-fascism in the era of Trump and what the practice of anti-fascist organizing looks like. How do we cultivate an understanding of what anti-fascism means, and how do we employ it in our organizing work? We will explore how it intersects with other movements (like anti-racist organizing, migrant justice work, trans rights, and disability justice work) and what the antifascist organizing of the future might look like. Students attending the symposium will be exposed to a variety of social and environmental justice causes in the city of Toronto and will be able to network with community organizations about their research interests in the areas that the community groups work in. Students and community members will also have an opportunity to learn more about issues in the communities surrounding the campus and learn how the resources of the University could be utilized to assist with community projects.
September 30 – October 1
University of Toronto
Find this event on facebook
ACCESSIBILITY
We are committed to providing ASL and captioning and are currently working on organizing other accessibility related logistics such as childcare and gender neutral accessible washrooms. Full details around accessibility will be posted along with the schedule
SCHEDULE TBA
The submissions period for panels, keynotes, and group discussion sessions opens June 1st, 2017 and closes August 1st, 2017
For inquiries around accessibility, schedules, how to propose a session and how to get involved (volunteer or join the organizing committee) email opirg.toronto(at)gmail.com
Are you interested in supporting us? If you appreciate our programming initiatives and have the capacity to do so, consider making a donation of any amount here: https://www.youcaring.com/tracxproject-793042
All donations, big and small are greatly appreciated!
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Disorientation Week – Call for Volunteers
DisOrientation is an alternative orientation week that educates students about social and environmental justice issues while fostering student activism and connecting campus and community issues. The full event lasts for a week and includes panels, workshops, performances and other events intended to expose students and community members to critical analysis, insight and research about a range of social and environmental justice campaigns. OPIRG Toronto is looking for volunteers and like minded
campus organizations
interested in collaborating
to help make the next DisO week our best one yet. Are you passionate about social and environmental justice? Are you interested in learning more about political campaigns happening here in Toronto and around the province? Are you involved with a student service or campus group thats looking to host social or environmental justice themed programming for the new school year? Looking to develop your organizing skills while getting involved in campus politics and/or community organizing? We want you!
Note:
This years DisOrientation Week will be structured and focused on hands on, arts, DIY, skillsharing and participatory workshops from September 18th – 22nd. We would encourage groups interested in proposing panels, keynotes and discussion spaces to instead submit or volunteer with the TRACX symposium happening the following week on September 30th and October 1st. For more information on the TRACX symposium email racheleopirgto@gmail.com.
Here are some specific roles for interested volunteers:
• Event Logistics
– Set-up and clean up at events
– Moderating and/or liaising with facilitators about workshop needs
• Outreach & Promotion
– Tabling at clubs day and outreach at campus events
– Distributing flyers at community events
– Postering on and off campus
– Assisting with publicizing Disorientation through online social media and listservs
– Assisting with coordinating class talks promoting Disorientation
• Media
– Liasing with any media interested in recording or writing about events
– Video or audio recording our events
– Photographing events for the Disorientation archives.
To get involved in organizing Disorientation 2017, please fill out the volunteer form here.
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Community Events and Resources
Support the Parkdale Rent Strikers
On May 1, 150 tenants in Parkdale began a coordinated rent strike to pressure their landlord, MetCap Living, to withdraw its “Above Guideline Rent Increase” applications (AGIs) and to complete the hundreds of outstanding repair requests.
Today, these tenants need your help to ensure the success of this critical campaign.
Very soon, MetCap can file applications to the Landlord and Tenant Board to evict each of the striking tenants. The Board can charge each tenant with the landlord’s $190 filing fee associated with each application.
In order to avoid eviction and ensure the success of the rent strike campaign, each of the striking tenants will need to pay this $190 fee.
This is why your support, today, is so vital to this campaign.
If you’re a union member or a member of another organization interested in making a larger donation, please contact parkdaleorganize@gmail.com
For more information and to donate, please visit:
GoFundMe:
https://www.gofundme.com/support-parkdale-tenants
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The Canadian Hearing Society Scholarships
The Canadian Hearing Society is proud to introduce a National Scholarship Program to help break down barriers to higher education and build brighter futures for Deaf and hard of hearing students.
Scholarships of up to $3,000 a year are available to those pursuing full-time, part-time or distance learning at accredited post-secondary institutions, inside or outside of Canada. Students may be awarded in more than one academic year, and awards may cover tuition, residence or educational resources.
For more information, including eligibility, please visit: http://www.chs.ca/scholarships
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CWTP York is looking for Collective Members!
The Centre for Women and Trans People at York University is seeking new Collective members from both York University and the larger Toronto community.
We actively prioritize the contributions that individuals from marginalized communities bring to our organization, and invite First Nations, Metis and Inuit people, black people, people of colour, members of racialized groups, Muslim people, two-spirited people, low-income people, queer people, trans people, sex workers, gender variant, gender fluid, and genderqueer people, working-class people, single parents, migrants, disabled and mad people, and members of the D/deaf community to apply.
Deadline to apply: June 30th
The Collective
CWTP is governed by a volunteer feminist collective. The Collective is fully responsible for the smooth operation of CWTP and acts in accordance with its constitution, vision statement, mandate, collective agreement and other relevant centre policies. The Collective takes responsibility for staffing, policy, programming, services, development, budgeting, and other initiatives and operates within a non-hierarchical model of consensus decision-making. The Collective is especially looking for people with a demonstrated commitment to feminist, anti-oppressive politics (challenging cis-sexism, racism, anti-black racism, ableism, etc.) strong communication and leadership skills, and experience with non-profit organizations.
Collective Member Responsibilities
- Be familiar with and act in accordance with the Centre’s constitution, vision statement, mandate, and other relevant centre policies as well as have a working knowledge of the Centre, itsoperations and resources
- Be familiar with the Collective Agreement with CUPE 1281 and fulfill duties of the employer
- Commit to collective membership for a minimum of one year
- Prepare for, attend, and contribute during Collective meetings 2-4 times per month.
- Complete annual mandatory Centre training sessions and Collective development workshops.
- Facilitate/lead 1 committee and participate in other committees (Hiring committees) and roles (such as Staff Liaison) as necessary. Standing committees include Library & Resources, Collective Development & Training, Programming & Outreach, Finance and Space Maintenance, Policy, Peer support, Trans Integration, or any other portfolio deemed necessary by the Collective.
- Hold office hours 2-3 hours twice week.
- Complete mandatory relevant training offered by the Centre, as outlined in the constitution
- Ensure that the Centre is a safer space for all members including staff
- Self-advocate within the consensus decision-making model
- Support the Centre’s space through two weekly office hours
- Attend weekly collective meetings. They shall be responsible for their own presence at meetings and in the event of their absence, conveying their regrets in a timely fashion.
- Organize two events or workshops, whether collectively or individually, on behalf of the organization for the fall and winter semesters
- Join local committees and/or coalitions on behalf of the Centre, to develop community relationships and help in an advisory capacity
Experiences:
Required:
- Minimum of 6 months working or volunteer experience in relevant organizations.
- A commitment to creating a welcoming and safer space for all of our members, one that is rooted in challenging settler colonial violence, racism, anti-black racism, xenophobia,islamophobia, anti-semitism, fatphobia, classism, ageism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, misogyny, mysoginoir, transmysoginy, ableism and sanism, discrimination on the basis of religion/spirituality, and institutionalized oppression within the university setting and in the wider community.
Asset:
- Prior non-profit/ student based board experience
- Previous anti-oppression and trans* 101 training
How to Apply:
- Submit a written application form comprised of a completed Member Application Form, and a 1-page Statement of Intent.
- If the Collective accepts your initial application, you will be invited to attend an interview.
- The collective will invite all applicants successful in the interview process to attend 2 consecutive Collective meetings and to participate in Collective responsibilities for 1 month.
- After 2 meetings, you will review your experience and involvement with current collective members and mutually decide whether you may begin your full, 1-year term as a full Collective member.
Forms:
Collective Membership application form available HERE (WORD), PDF
- Printed forms are available at the Centre as well. (4700 Keele Street, 322 Student Centre, York University).
- Applicants can drop it off in person, or e-mail their application to cwtpyork@gmail.com
All information provided on this form will be accessible only to staff, and collective members for the purpose of recruiting collective members. Submitting an application does not guarantee your acceptance as a Collective Member.
Thanks for your interest!
For more information
cwtpyork@gmail.com
Please come by 4700 Keele Street, York University Room 322 Student Centre
or visit our website at http://cwtpyork.ca/announcements/
Students for Barrier-Free Access 