TWUSA VP resigns
Council will finish the term short-handed
March 8, 2006
Sarah Weigum
Andrea Norrish has resigned from the position of Student Council vice president, citing personal conflict between her and President James Moes as the reason for her departure.
“I have really different ideas about how an organisation should be led than James,” said Norrish. “James and I have been working on our relationship since last spring and the disagreements we had got to be too difficult for me to handle.”
Norrish told Council of her decision at the February 16 meeting. Moes said that the possibility of Norrish’s resignation had been brought up several times during the year.
“We’re definitely going to miss having her around, because she’s a huge part of the whole Council, but I’m glad that she has made a decision,” said Melanie Spaulding, VP of Student Relations. “She’s been kind of going back and forth and it’s been difficult for the rest of Executive to know what to do.”
Norrish said she leaves Council feeling like she has accomplished her objectives for the year, which included a governance project. Norrish chaired the January 26 town hall meeting that Council hosted in order to gain feedback from students in regards to representation to the Board of Governors. Norrish, along with other members of Council Executive, presented a report compiled by student Jay Dorey to the Governance Committee of the Board. The report contained several recommendations for promoting greater transparency within the authority structures of Trinity Western University.
Norrish said her other key goal was to develop a council that was supportive of each other. Moes said that Norrish “embodied her goal of affirming the rest of Council, even upon her departure.” Last month Council members set their goals for the semester.
“I don’t think they need me,” said Norrish, but added,“there will be some inconveniences at meetings and with discipline issues.” Norrish’s position on the Undergraduate Academic Committee was passed to Humanities and Social Sciences Rep Kristin Vanderhoek prior to her resignation. Education Rep Kerala Levitt will take Norrish’s responsibility on the Curriculum Review committee.
Concerns were raised in January over Norrish’s eligibility to hold a Council position because she was only taking three semester hours at TWU. Council bylaws state that members must be enrolled in at least nine semester hours during their term in office or they forfeit their position.
In addition to her three semester hours at TWU, Norrish is taking 12 semester hours at Kwantlen University College. Because the bylaws do not state that those semester hours have to be taken at TWU, Council Executive decided to interpret the stipulation literally, and accept Norrish’s status at Kwantlen as fulfilment of the required nine semester hours.
Although Norrish did not forfeit her position, questions were raised about the Executive’s decision at the February 14 Council meeting, when Moes presented a motion for Council to give the Executive authority to interpret the bylaws.
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