KPU cancels space for KSA’s special general meeting due to security concerns

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Kwantlen Polytechnic University administration have temporarily cancelled the space for the Kwantlen Student Association’s special general meeting (SGM), which was scheduled to take place this Thursday at the Richmond campus’s Melville Centre for Dialogue, where council would have proposed changes that limit students’ involvement in the association. 

The Runner anonymously received a copy of the letter KPU wrote to KSA council and the executive director, stating the university is no longer allowing the student association to use the Melville Centre for Dialogue due to safety concerns. 

“The safety and security of KPU students is the university’s top priority and we were very concerned about the safety of students attending the KSA’s special general meeting scheduled for September 26,” Joshua Mitchell, associate vice-president of student affairs, wrote in an email statement to The Runner. 

The KSA had requested an additional 18 security staff to supervise this meeting, according to the letter, which KPU found concerning and indicating “a high potential risk to the safety of students attending the meeting.” 

“This decision was not taken lightly and it stems from our concerns for student safety,” the letter reads. 

According to the KSA’s bylaws, all general meetings should occur on at least one of KPU’s campuses.  

KPU also raised concerns about the SGM and its proposed motions in the letter, stating they view “the Proposed Bylaws as a reduction in the rights of KPU students to maintain the society in a manner that best benefits them.”

As previously reported by The Runner, the KSA was proposing to delete and replace their bylaws at the SGM. The new bylaws would bar students and the media from council meetings, remove student involvement in standing committees, and allow non-active KPU students to remain members of the student association, including executive positions, so long as they pay the KSA’s semesterly fees. 

Other changes include extending the council’s term by two years, meaning the current council would stay in power until 2027, allowing them to conduct business without an executive director, and limiting students’ ability to hold petitions, call meetings, and vote on regulations. 

The proposed bylaws limit the amount of seats on council, add two new executive committee positions, and permit slating, among other changes. 

In the letter, KPU states many of these proposed changes contradict or violate the KSA’s constitution or the Societies Act, which the KSA is governed by. 

As per the proposed bylaws, KSA council would also be allowed to borrow money from a third party without student consent, which KPU raised concerns about in the letter.

“This could significantly affect the transparency and accountability expected of a student-led organization and could jeopardize the short- and long-term financial well-being of the KSA and its members,” the letter reads. 

KPU also raised concerns about “allegations of financial coercion” among certain members of KSA council, which they are urging the association to investigate. 

“Should these allegations prove accurate, they may constitute serious violations under both the Societies Act and criminal law,” the letter reads. 

The university also wrote they’ve seen no evidence of KPU students requesting the proposed bylaw changes, nor evidence that the KSA consulted students before “bringing such far-reaching changes” to an SGM.

The KSA did not meet their bylaw requirements in terms of providing proper notice about the bylaw changes to students, according to the letter. 

“The notice contains a hyperlink with no description of the proposed changes or a comparison with the existing bylaws, which is insufficient and lacks the necessary transparency,” the letter reads. 

KPU has requested the KSA show that they can hold a safe SGM, investigate the financial coercion allegations, work in compliance with the Societies Act, and engage with KPU students to ensure they understand the proposed bylaw changes. 

“Failure to address these issues could result in further action, including legal and regulatory reviews, and may lead to continued restrictions on your use of University resources and facilities,” the letter reads. 

KPU has also invited KSA executives and the executive director to have a meeting with the university and their lawyers to further discuss these matters. 

“The university has raised concerns it has been made aware of with the KSA on multiple occasions and will continue to do so,” Mitchell wrote to The Runner. 

“The university is open to rescheduling the booking, but first expects the KSA to take its concerns seriously and act in the best interests of its members.”

The Runner reached out to KSA President Yashanpreet Guron and Executive Director Timothii Ragavan for a comment but did not hear back before publication.