Advocacy memberships
Alberta
Alberta Graduate Provincial Advocacy Council
The Alberta Graduate Provincial Advocacy Council (ab-GPAC) is an inclusive, student-led, non-partisan organization that advocates to public, private and plural organizations on behalf almost 16,000 Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and Non-STEM graduate students. ab-GPAC comprises the Graduate Students’ Associations of Athabasca University, the University of Alberta, University of Calgary and Concordia University of Edmonton. Our vision and mission is to enable the highest-quality post-secondary graduate education experience for our cohort to position them as the future global leaders to improve society.
The University of Calgary GSA has played a key role in ab-GPAC ever since its incorporation in March of 2015. Since that time, the U of C GSA has collaborated with ab-GPAC on multiple advocacy efforts including the submission of position papers to the provincial government on the subjects of labour relations, tuition and fees, funding model, and more. Every year, ab-GPAC also collaborates with its members to submit provincial budget recommendations, and attends regular meetings with both the Ministry of Advanced Education and its undergraduate counterparts the Council of Alberta University Students (CAUS) and the Alberta Students’ Executive Council (ASEC). In 2019, ab-GPAC will hold its first provincial advocacy days as a way to engage provincial politicians and bureaucrats on graduate students’ priorities.
ab-GPAC works closely with its members to advocate for quality post-secondary graduate education and strives to improve the experience of graduate students in the province.
At the UCalgary, the GSA President, Vice President External, and Chair of the External Advocacy Committee have traditionally served as board members on ab-GPAC.
Canada
Canadian Alliance of Student Associations
CASA is a national voice for Canada’s post-secondary students. Established in 1995, CASA is a non-partisan, not-for-profit student organization composed of student associations from across Canada. We represent undergraduate, graduate and polytechnic associations.
At its core, CASA advocates on behalf of post-secondary students to the federal government. When Canada’s leaders make decisions affecting our post-secondary education system, they turn to CASA for solutions.
