Please note that an emergency AGM was held on April 5th, 2019 to discuss a proposed change to the current TDSA fee structure. Please see below minutes for more information. 
New! TDSA Food Bank
Please note that the TDSA has started a donation supported Food Bank. If you have any extra supplies you would like to donate please visit the TDSA office in room 122.

If you are in need of any supplies please stop by our office or email admin@mytdsa.ca for more details!
TDSA TALES
Here is the second, long awaited, blog posting from our Vice President of Campus Life, Nick Ryan. Please enjoy!
Picture
Check our our Bell Let's Talk Wall posting in the Library hallway!
Our new hoodies are here! We have charcoal (shown in image), green, and maroon. The price is $45, and they were made in Canada! Come by the TDSA Office, Room 122, to purchase yours! 
Thank you to all who participated in our Bell Let's Talk Week fundraising! In total, we raised $3188.85 for Durham Mental Health! Congratulations to all of the lucky raffle basket winners!
Follow the link to tell us your story!
​https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdun2c8ttqEce6lvE45LmeyyY6Dt_Ovq6ZmyHcNfsyMNFmo6g/viewform
The referendum for the new TDSA Board of Director positions has passed and has been ratified by the current Board of Directors. 

​The results are as follows:
Total Votes: 218
Yes: 183
No: 16
Abstain: 19

Please see updated policies and bylaws for changes. 

Thank you to all who voted and had their say in the way your student government is run! ​
​THE RESULTS ARE IN!!!
Your brand new directors areee

VPUA: Elizabeth Lindsay
Yes: 205
No: 14
Abstain: 39

First Year Director: Holly McAlpine

Fazila Shaikh: 29
Gennet Campbell: 40
Hafsa Hannan: 63
Holly McAlpine 67
Abstain: 59

Director of History: Alexander Rookes

Yes: 203
No: 15
Abstain: 40

Director of Sociology: Jamila Alleyne

Yes: 212
No: 8
Abstain: 38
TDSA TALES
Introducing our new blog series! This will be a series of posts by our Board of Directors and student employees about their lives on the board or working in the TDSA. This first blog post was done in by our Vice President of Campus Life about the struggles he faced in the first three months of the job. And a big shout out to our Director of Communications and Critical Thinking Rayna 'Potatoes' Porter for editing the first post.

 ​Statement From the Trent Durham Student Association Board of Directors 
Due to an unfortunate circumstance that took place within the 2017/18 election period, the Board of Directors have declared the election of the Vice-President of University Affairs compromised. As such, it has rendered the current appointment to VPUA as invalid. This means we are required to hold a bi-election in September.

There is no proven knowledge at this time that any of the candidates were aware of the tampering and all three VPUA candidates have been invited to move forward in good standing with the TDSA.

Transparency is crucial to a fair and democratic election. This was the option that best preserved student confidence in the voting process for the TDSA. We look forward to the involvement of the student body during the September bi-election following changes to the election policy to better ensure a fair and secure election process.
If any student has questions or concerns please contact the Chair to the Board of Directors, Don-Pierre Burnett.     

Statement From the President 
It is from the unfortunate actions of others that the TDSA 2018 Vice-President of University Affairs election process has been compromised, affecting all involved parties, including Daniel Salmers.

In no way should these actions reflect the reputation of Daniel, as there is no evidence revealing he partook in the election tampering. From the beginning, Daniel demonstrated his dedication to the organization and his excitement to advocate for our students. I enjoyed working with Daniel every moment he was in office, collaborating with him on multiple occasions. Daniel demonstrated honesty and maturity throughout the election, during his training and when in office.

If there are any questions or concerns regarding this issue please do not hesitate to reach out and contact me.

Sincerely yours
Karen Albrecht 

Statement From The Vice President of Campus Life
​Hello students
By now you have read the public statement and perhaps the statements of my colleagues. However it would be remiss for me to not speak my mind. During his time with the organization and throughout the entirety of the proceedings Daniel Salmers conducted himself in line with the highest standard of moral and ethical integrity. There is no proof that he had any knowledge of nefarious acts that have taken place. During his time in training and in serving with him Daniel has earned nothing but my highest respect. Daniel is the victim of forces outside of his control and deserves nothing less than the respect of his co-workers and fellow students. I thank Dan for his hard work and dedication to the organization and will miss his presence in the office deeply. If any student has any questions or concerns please email myself or the President or stop by the office.
Regretfully yours
Nick   


Unofficial Elections Results
February 17th, 2018

*Please note that these results will become official once ratified by TDSA Board of Directors at the February meeting* 

Congratulations to all running candidates for your hard work! You should all be very proud.
President: Karen Albrecht
Karen Albrecht (147 votes)
Alexandra Manikas (132 votes)
Abstain (63 votes)
Vice President of University Affairs: Daniel Salmers (Invalidated by BoD)
Daniel Salmers (112 votes)
Rachel Ball (111 votes)
Elizabeth Lindsay (79 votes)
Abstain (40 votes)
Vice President of Campus Life: Nicholas Ryan
Yes (290)
No (17)
Abstain (35)
Chair of the Board of Directors: Don-Pierre Burnett
Yes (283)
No (16)
Abstain (43)
Director of Anthropology: Christy Chabassol
Yes (261)
No (15)
Abstain (66)
Director of Business Administration: Hema Tikaram
Hema Tikaram (152 votes)
Halima Mohammadu (118 votes)
Abstain (72)
Director of Child and Youth Studies: Taryn Gilchrist
Yes (260 votes)
No (16 votes)
Abstain (66)
Director of Communications and Critical Thinking: Rayna Porter
Yes (273 votes)
No (8 votes)
Abstain (61 votes)
Director of English: Jessica Watters
Yes (276 votes)
No (5 votes)
Abstain (61 votes)
Director of Media Studies: Sabeela Bakridan
Sabeela Bakridan (164 votes)
Jagjot Samra (94 votes)
Abstain (84 votes)
Director of Psychology: Alyssa Petsinis
Alyssa Petsinis (141 votes)
Jessica Oosterholt (127 votes)
Abstain (74 votes)
Director of Social Work: Mackenzie Prine
Yes (271 works)
No (16 votes)
Abstain (55 votes)
Transfer Director: Julia Derdaele
Yes (274 votes)
No (9 votes)
Abstain (59 votes)

**Athletics Referendum** (Passed) 
Yes (252 votes)
No (36 votes)
Abstain (54 votes)

YEAR END REVIEW
April 26, 2017

Our executive have published the TDSA's first ever complete Year in Review document. Please click here for the PDF to see our summarized year of accomplishments. Enjoy your summer!

Health & Dental Plan Referendum
March 21st, 2016

The Trent Durham Student Association is conducting a referendum to improve the Health & Dental plan. The current TDSA  Health  and  Dental  Plan  is  funded  by  a  premium  each  student  pays  through  ancillary  fees.  If  students  show  proof  of  external  health  insurance  coverage,  they  can  opt-­‐out  of  this  plan  and  receive  a  reimbursement.      

The  cost  of  our  current  Health  and  Dental  Plan  is  increasing;  current  claims  made  by  
our  membership  far  exceed  (by  about  10%)  the  total  amount  of  funds  our  current  
provider  receives  to  offer  us  these  benefits.  The  TDSA  needs  student  approval  for  
fee  increases  in  excess  of  5%.  If  students  do  not  approve  the  fee  increase  of  
$62.00,  benefits  will  be  reduced  significantly.  

TDSA  is planning to  use  a  fee  increase  as  an  opportunity  to  seek  out  a  new  Insurance  provider  and  to  improve  and  rebrand  TDSA’s  Health  and  Dental  Plan  service  to  better  serve  our  membership  and  make  the  most  of  the  premium  they  pay  for  this  service.  

C&C  Insurance  (“VIP”)  is  our  new  Insurance  provider.  They  are  the  current  provider  
for  Trent  Central  Student  Association  (TCSA).  By  partnering  with  C&C  and  TCSA,  
TDSA  is  able  to  offer  our  membership  a  significantly  better  Health  and  Dental  Plan  
while  maintaining  a  “low”  premium  and  remaining  autonomous.  (For  instance,  
without  TCSA’s  partnership,  the  “new”  plan  would  actually  cost  the  TDSA  
membership  a  premium  of  $320+  so  while  we  are  approving  an  increase,  we  
are  still  getting  a  great  deal  on  this  new  plan).  C&C  Insurance  has  demonstrated  
their  commitment  to  a  responsible  business  philosophy  to  both  TCSA  and  TDSA,  and  
so  TDSA  is  looking  forward  to  this  new  partnership.  
 
The  TDSA  Health  and  Dental  Plan  Referendum  will  begin  March  23rd and  will  
conclude  March  30th. It  will  be  conducted  online.  Students  will  receive  an  
email  with  a  link  to  the  referendum  question. Email admin@mytdsa.ca for more information.