AMS Annual Report, 2013-2014

Publication
Credits
Editor-in-Chief: Mackenzie Biddie

Editorial Board :

Photos By:

Printed By:

Tuba Chishti
Greg McKellar
Lyn Parry
Annette Paul
Justin Reekie
Allison Williams
Greg Black
The Publishing &
Copy Centre
Alma Mater Society

John Deutsch University Centre
Queens University
Kingston, Ontario
K7L 3N6
Tel: (613) 533-3001
Fax: (613) 533-3002
Website: www.myAMS.org
Alma Mater Society
Editors
Note
The Alma Mater Society (AMS) of Queens

University is one of the most engaged, vibrant, and
active student governments in Canada.
Representing the needs of over 15,500 students
from a range of faculties and schools at Queens
University, the AMS has a multi-million dollar
annual operating budget and is the only
exclusively student-run organization of its kind in
the country. This report represents the hard work of
over 1,000 volunteers and 600 paid staff, who
collectively have complete oversight of the
Societys activities. Included within this report are
overviews of the operations and activities of all the
commissions, offices, and corporate services of the
AMS, as well as explanations of the AMS
governance structure, mission and mandate, and
strategic goals. Although the focus of the Annual
Report is to review the previous year, where
appropriate it identifies emerging challenges,
trends and strategic objectives
Annual Report 2013-2014
Alma Mater Society
Alma Mater Society

Table of Contents
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58
Society
Commissions
Offices
Services
Financials
Society Directory 2013-2014
Alma Mater Society
Overview of the Society

The Queens Universitys Alma Mater Society (AMS) was founded in 1858 and is the oldest
student government in Canada. The AMS was incorporated in 1969 as a non-profit organization without share capital.
The Alma Mater Societys Constitution takes priority over all other student societies and
organizations to which its members may belong. The Societys highest legislative body is
the AMS Assembly which consists of representatives from all of the following AMS member
societies:
Arts & Science
Undergraduate Society
Physical & Health

Education and Kinesiology
Students Association
Commerce Society
Engineering Society
Nursing Science Society
Concurrent Education
Students Association
Aesculapian Society
MBA Student Executive

Council
Computing Students
Association
The voting members of the AMS Assembly also comprise the voting members of the
Corporation, and in this capacity annually elect a Board of Directors. This board is responsible
for overseeing the management of the Alma Mater Societys corporate services and associated financial affairs, and more broadly, for ensuring the financial viability of the Society.
Membership in the AMS is automatically extended to all students of the University who are
enrolled in at least one course in one of the member faculties/programs listed above, and
who have paid the full slate of AMS mandatory student activity fees. Each student normally
belongs to a member society as well as the AMS, and enjoys the rights and privileges of both
societies.
AMS members enjoy the right:
to vote in all Society elections and referenda;
to hold offices or positions within the Society, subject to the restriction of the office or
position, as outlined by Assembly and/or Board Policy;
to attend meetings of the Society subject to the rules of procedure as prescribed by the
AMS Constitution;
to move or second motions at such meetings;
to speak for or against any motion;
to vote at Society Annual Meetings or Society Special General Meetings;
to gain admission to and/or actively participate in any Society sponsored event and/or
program subject to any restrictions of the particular event and/or program.
SOCIETY
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Alma Mater Society
10
11
15
18
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Mission Statement & Mandate

Brief History of the AMS
AMS Assembly
Board of Directors
The AMS Executive
Mission Statement & Mandate

AMS Mission Statement
To serve and represent the diversity of students at Queens University.
AMS Mandate
1. To represent Queens University students within the university and externally by working to
further the best interests of the members of the AMS, giving particular concern to representation on issues related to education.
2. To provide services and activities to students, as well as to act in a facilitating role for services
and activities where appropriate.
3. To cultivate a sense of social awareness and responsibility in its membership.
4. To serve as a liaison between the various affiliated student societies.
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Alma Mater Society
Brief History
The Alma Mater Society is the oldest student
association in Canada and, in fact, is nine years
older than Canada itself. Growing out of the old
Dialectic Society, a debating group founded in
1843, the AMS was established as the central
student government at Queens in 1858. The
original objectives of the society were the defense
of students rights, the facilitation of discussion,
the promotion and encouragement of learning,
and the furtherance of the general interests of the
University.
Until virtually the end of the 19th century, the AMS
remained essentially a debating society,
conducting weekly meetings where essays were
read and debates took place after any official
business was conducted. Nevertheless, during the
1860s the AMS was responsible for securing a study
week prior to examinations and for securing some
space for athletic activity. In 1877, a new
constitution was created which reflected the
importance to the AMS of preserving the
attachment of alumni to the University and
maintaining the bond between all members of the
University. Interestingly, during this period, the
AMS president was required to be either a Queens
graduate or a professor, and at least one of the
three vice-presidents had to live outside of
Kingston. In fact, it was not until 1920 that the AMS
President could be a student, provided they were
in their final year of study. In 1948, the constitution
was amended to require the AMS President to be a
student.
By the turn of the century, the AMS Constitution
had been amended to underscore the shift toward
the on-campus constituency and away from the
1877 emphasis on alumni. The AMS primary
purposes were now the cultivation of literary,
scientific and musical tastes, the encouragement of
athletics, and the publication of the Queens
Journal.
The Alma Mater Society had now begun to assume

its modern role of having full responsibility for
administering and financing the large number of
special interest student societies that had emerged
on campus, and for representing the views of
students to the Senate.
One of the most important developments in AMS
history also transpired in 1898. This was the
official delegation of responsibility for
non-academic discipline to the Alma Mater Society
and its new AMS Court (now known as the AMS
Judicial Committee). Previously this responsibility
was held by the Senate under the Royal Charter
that created Queens, although informally, the AMS
had been delegated increasing jurisdiction in this
area throughout the 1880s. Later, in 1936-37, the
AMS introduced a system of student constables to
maintain order at student functions. Both of these
essential elements in student life remain to this
day.
The 1930s brought one highly significant
development. Beginning in the early 1920s there
was persistent discussion surrounding the
introduction to Queens of the fraternities and
sororities that were so popular in the United States.
The opposition to them was strong, however, and
was based primarily on the concern that loyalty to
fraternities would diminish loyalty to Queens and
that the very nature of fraternities and the
exclusivity of their membership might jeopardize
Queens democratic traditions. The AMS was in the
forefront of these discussions and in 1930-31
revised its constitution to ban fraternities.
Respecting students right to self-government, the
Senate had remained relatively quiet throughout
the issue. But in late 1934, in response to the strong
AMS stance, passed a motion forbidding students
who register at the University to form or to become
members of any chapter of any externally-affiliated
fraternity or sorority at or near Kingston. In 2013,
the AMS revisited this issue with the Assembly
ultimately retaining its strong opposition to any
presence of fraternities and sororities within the
Queens community and strictly prohibiting any
11
Brief History
access by these groups to Society or University
resources and space. However, the Assembly
accepted prevailing legal opinion that it could no
longer ban membership in such organizations by
students living off campus.
During World War II, the AMS established a war aid
commission to raise money for the war and other
war related activities. The AMS levied a dance tax to
raise money for the War and sold corsages for the
Arts formal. During WWII, over 3,000 AMS
members, alumni, and staff left Queens to fight in
the war, with 164 not returning.
Throughout most of the 1900s, the AMS operated
primarily as an amalgam of standing and ad hoc
committees but in response to the rapidly
expanding scope of its activities, it underwent a
major restructuring in 1969. It was at this time that
the commission system was created. The original
commissions, designed to carve up AMS activity
into distinct spheres, were Education, Services,
Campus Activities, Judicial, External Affairs, and
Budget and Finance. The commissioners, along
with the AMS president and vice-president,
comprised what was then known as Inner Council
which carried out the basic day-to-day work of the
AMS.
The AMS legislative body, comprised of
representatives from all the faculty societies, was
known as the Outer Council. Inner Council and
Outer Council are now respectively known as
Council and Assembly. The commission system
continues to thrive today, albeit with many
modifications from its original form.

Chief among these modifications were the
creation of the Academic Affairs Commission in
1991 in order to house responsibility for both
learning environment issues and external funding/
tuition/student aid lobbying issues in one place;
and the creation of the Municipal Affairs
Commission in 1994 in recognition of the
important and diverse nature of student
interaction with the Kingston community. In the
early 1990s, the focus of the Education Commission
12
gradually shifted away from academic issues and

towards a wide range of social justice and equity
issues. This proved to be a lasting change and that
commission has been renamed Social Issues. In
recognition of the growing concern among
students regarding a wide range of environmental
issues both on and off campus, in early 2011 the
AMS established the Commission of the
Environment & Sustainability.
In the mid-1970s, the AMS began establishing and
operating significant commercial services on behalf
of its members. Alfies Pub (originally known as the
Underground) was created in 1976 and constituted
a substantial expansion and relocation of the first
AMS-run pub, founded in 1969. Alfies was soon
followed by the Queens Pub (then the McLaughlin
Room) in 1978.
Additional major new services followed with the
creation of the Publishing & Copy Centre and
Walkhome in 1988; the Used Book Store in 1994;
and The Common Ground Coffeehouse in 2000.
In response to longstanding requests from The
Queens Journal for new and separate space, in
1990-91, the AMS purchased a house on Earl Street
in which to relocate the newspapers operations. It
has since been relocated to 190 University Avenue
to make room for the Queens Centre. In 2005, the
AMS purchased a longstanding card and stationary
store in the JDUC which evolved into the creation
of a major clothing, travel and used book retail
service known as the Tricolour Outlet.
The AMS established a Housing Service in 1968
which operated throughout the 1970s until the
AMS divested in 1982. By way of a contractual
agreement with Queens University, the AMS sublet
a number of university owned houses and
apartments and acted as a landlord. The AMS
administered all aspects of owning a house
including collecting rent, arranging for repairs and
running an annual housing lottery. The primary
reason for the service was more student friendly
handling of traditional landlord/tenant issues.
When the AMS pulled out it oversaw 56 housing
units serving hundreds of students.
Alma Mater Society
Throughout its evolution and growth, the AMS has

maintained its longstanding commitment to
traditional activities central to student life by
facilitating Orientation, overseeing Model
Parliament since 1946, and overseeing Model
United Nations since 1987.
In 1969, the AMS also created a corporation without share capital under the name of Alma Mater
Society of Queens University Incorporated. One of
the most significant structural developments over
the past two decades has been the evolution of the
role of the AMS Board of Directors in overseeing
AMS services and managing the financial affairs of
the corporation.
The AMS conducted a comprehensive examination
of the entirety of its operations in 1995-96 through
a cross-section of student leadership known as
Vision 2000. This group was responsible for
creating the current AMS Mission Statement which
is: To serve and represent the diversity of students
at Queens. The Vision 2000 group identified three
words critical to the AMS mission statement:
Serve reminding us that at all times we are
working for students; in essence the AMS is
servant to student needs
Represent - in representing students the AMS
is acting as their agent articulating their views
to groups both inside and outside the
university
Diversity underscores an AMS organizational
imperative to serve and represent students of
different ethnic backgrounds, ages, faculties,
sexual orientations and socio-economic levels.
AMS participation in federal external student
federations has been limited. It has never been a
member of the current Canadian Federation of
Students, established in 1981, nor its predecessor,
the National Union of Students that operated from
1972 to 1981. The AMS did, however, become a
member of the Association of Student Councils, a
not-for-profit organization incorporated in 1973
to provide discount travel. Provincially, the AMS
became a member of the Ontario Federation of
Students in 1974 and maintained that membership
until 1992 when Queens students voted to leave.
The AMS subsequently became a founding

member of the Ontario Undergraduate Student
Alliance, which it left in 1995 only to rejoin in 2000.
In 2009-2010, the AMS held observer status in the
Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA) a
federal student lobby group. The AMS decided to
not align federally.
Since its inception, the AMS had represented all
students attending Queens University. However,
that changed in 1981 when the Graduate Students
Society, an AMS member society formed in 1962,
voted by referendum to secede from the AMS. This
secession was extremely amicable and grew out
of a gradual, long-term, mutual recognition by the
AMS and GSS that graduate students should have
separate and autonomous representation.
Subsequently, the AMS has seen both the
Theological Society and the Law Students Society
depart for membership within the GSS, known now
as the Society for Graduate and Professional
Students (SGPS). In 2006, the Rehabilitation
Therapy Society departed for the SGPS when that
program evolved into a graduate program. In 2009,
the Education Students Society voted to depart the
AMS.
With the completion in 2009 of the initial
component of the Queens Centre project, the AMS
began discussions with the University
administration designed to fulfill its decades-old
desire to assume responsibility for operating and
managing the student life space on campus. These
discussions became serious negotiations over
the 2010-11 academic year and culminated in an
historic operating and management agreement
signed in early 2011 that would transfer from the
University to the AMS, administrative control over
this important space. Effective May 1, 2011, the
AMS would now oversee the John Deutsch
University Centre, Macgillivray-Brown Hall, the Grey
House (51 Bader Lane) and the non-athletic
student life space within the new Queens Centre.
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Brief History (contd)

Currently the AMS represents roughly 15,500
students. It has grown to operate a wide range of
retail, hospitality and media services employing
over 600 students, and six commissions with over
1,000 student volunteers participating in advocacy,
event organizing and charitable efforts.
Relying entirely upon the extraordinary efforts and talent of a

singularly dedicated student body, the Alma Mater Society remains
true to its roots, working diligently on enhancing both the academic
and extra-curricular experience of its members while fostering
important connections with the surrounding community.
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Alma Mater Society
AMS Assembly
Assembly is the highest legislative and
decision-making body for the undergraduate
student government at Queens University. It is
comprised of roughly 40 representatives from the
member societies, AMS Council, the Chair of the
Board of Directors, the Rector, the Student Senate
Caucus Chair, and the Undergraduate Trustee. The
Assembly fulfils its mandate by debating reports,
recommendations and motions as submitted by
Council, the Faculty Societies, or any individual
AMS member. It is constitutionally- empowered to
direct the Executive, Council or Board of Directors
as they carry out their duties consistent with the
best interests of AMS members. All AMS members
are welcome to attend the bi-weekly Assemblies
and submit motions.
This year most meetings were again held in Wallace
Hall continuing the shift in location from the longstanding venue of the McLaughlin Room. However,
the Society did hold two meetings in historic Grant
Hall, one in Sutherland Hall and maintained the
tradition of a fall meeting in Kingston City Hall. In
an effort to increase exposure to Assembly and to
generally raise awareness of its activities, a Bring
a Friend to the Friend Assembly event was scheduled in the fall term with over 100 participants in
attendance. In a related effort, Assembly approved
the creation of four assembly volunteer positions
to work with the Speaker and Commissioner of
Internal Affairs to conduct marketing and outreach
initiatives next year.
In the fall term, Assembly duly approved the goal
plans and budgets for all Commissions and
conferred exclusive jurisdiction to the Board of
Directors over the AMS Employee Policy and
Procedures Manual, along with Corporation
oriented sections of the AMS Hiring and
Appointment Policies and Procedures Manual. The
Assembly also approved the creation of the first
AMS policy and procedures in the area of NonAcademic Group Discipline. This policy included a
definition of hazing.
At a Special Assembly called in September, the
Assembly met to endorse The Rising Tide: An En-
rolment Policy Paper from the Alma Mater Society

and simultaneously approved a large number of
recommendations detailing the AMS position on
enrolment issues.
Consistent with most years, Assembly approved a
large number of amendments to the AMS
constitution and policy manuals. These were wide
ranging and included significant committee
restructuring in the Campus Activities and Social
Issues commissions; the creation of a Student Arts
Council ; the return of the Student Maintenance
and Resource Team (SMART) to the Municipal
Affairs Commission; club policy changes; and
changes to student activity fee policy designed
to significantly enhance financial oversight by the
AMS VP-Operations and Commission of Internal
Affairs within this expanding and critically
important area of extracurricular student life.
In October, the Assembly unanimously approved
policy calling for Faculty Societies to have sole
jurisdiction over the composition of the hiring
panels for all of their Orientation Week positions.
Later in the fall term, the Assembly adopted policy
opposing the presence of tanning beds on campus.
In November, the Assembly passed a motion
expressing its gratitude to the Sydenham District
Association, law student Kevin Wiener and all other
participants who acted in support of the AMS
successful appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board
for genuine electoral representation of postsecondary students in the City of Kingston.
The 2013-14 Assembly was particularly notable for
its approval in February of an unprecedented number of student fee changes. These included
increases to the AMS Specific, Queens Journal
and CFRC mandatory fees; the conversion of the
Queens TV optional fee to mandatory; and the
establishment of an optional fee for a local charity
effort.
In March, Setting Sail: A Policy Paper on Innovation
and Entrepreneurship was endorsed and a large
number of specific recommendations were
15
AMS Assembly (contd)

adopted as official policy in this increasingly significant area of university life.
Later in March, a group of concerned students
brought forth a motion to de-ratify the Mens
Issues Awareness Society, an AMS club. The group
argued that a speaker from the University of Ottawa,
whom the club intended to bring to campus, would
advance unsupported views that would publicly
undermine feminism and anti-rape culture discourse
on campus. After a long and contentious debate the
Assembly voted against de-ratification.
March also brought the establishment of an Assembly
Finance Committee, which in conjunction with some
constitutional changes relating to budgets, is
expected to enhance financial management and
reporting within the Societys Government side
activity. The AMS Annual General Meeting took place
on March 18, 2014 and was held for the first time in
Humphrey Hall auditorium with an approximate attendance of 200 AMS members. The agenda
consisted of five confirmation motions for student
activity fee changes previously approved by the
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Assembly. After extensive presentations and

debate, all five motions were confirmed.
Presentations by Rector Nick Francis and Judicial
Affairs Director Apollonia Karetos were very well
received.
Notable Assembly guest speakers included
Donald Drummond, Professor in Policy Studies and
former federal Assistant Deputy Minister, TD Bank
Chief Economist and Chair of the Commission on
the Reform of Ontarios Public Services, Jill Scott,
Vice-Provost of Teaching and Learning, Kingston
Mayor Mark Gerretsen, Queens Head Librarian
Martha Whitehead, representatives from the
Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance and
members of the Campus Master Plan Advisory
Committee. Principal Woolf appeared as a guest
speaker during an Assembly training session held
in early September.
For the second consecutive year, the Assembly
appointed former Dean of Student Affairs Bob
Crawford as Honorary President. The Assembly did
not grant any Honorary Life Memberships in the
Society.
Alma Mater Society
AMS Assembly (contd)

The AMS Assembly is comprised of the members listed below. Note that not all Assembly members
have a vote on motions. Those who do not have voting privileges are marked by an asterisk.
Alma Mater Society

President
Vice-President (Operations)
Vice-President (University Affairs)
Academic Affairs Commissioner*
Campus Activities Commissioner*
Commissioner of Internal Affairs*
Municipal Affairs Commissioner*
Commissioner of the
Environment and Sustainability*
Social Issues Commissioner*
Hospitality & Safety Services
Director*
Retail Services Director*
Media Services Director*
Nursing Science Society
President
Vice-President
Engineering Society
President
Vice-President (Student
Development)
4 Elected Representatives
Commerce Society
President
Vice-President (External)
Vice-President (Internal)
Arts & Science Undergraduate
Society
President
Vice-President
Aesculapian Society
President
Computing Students Association
President
Concurrent Education Students
Association
President
Physical & Health Education &

Kinesiology Students
Association
President
Vice-President (Operations)
MBA Student Executive Council
President
Vice-President
Residence Society
President
Vice- President
Other Ex-Officios
Undergraduate Student Trustee*
Queens University Rector*
Student Senate Caucus Chair*
Board of Directors Chair*
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Board of Directors
The Alma Mater Society of Queens University Inc.
Board of Directors is the body that has been entrusted to manage the affairs of the Corporation by its
members. The Board serves three main roles according to the recently updated policy manual: a strategic management role, a financial role, and a human
resources role. Operating under this umbrella, the
Board of Directors undertook various successful internal projects this past year while also approving key
changes to our corporate services that were deemed
necessary for the long-term viability of the AMS Inc.
Internally, all five of the Boards committees were
quite active. The Finance & Audit Committee conducted a review of the AMS Specific Fee and reccomended an increase of $9.26 that was approved
at the Annual General Meeting. The Governance
Committee did a complete overhaul of the Board
Policy Manual and the AMS Inc. Bylaws. The Personnel Committee created a new salary grid that
increased salaries across the board by an average of
10%. The Long-Term Strategic Planning Committee
approved a strategic framework containing guiding
principles and strategic objectives for each of the
Services to follow when conducting their annual
goal planning exercises. Finally, the Permanent Staff
Committee reviewed and created new or amended
job descriptions for our Permanent Staff. In terms of
our Corporate Services, the Board played a key role
in approving changes to positions, removing and
approving positions, approving capital expenditures,
and approving the entire re-branding of some of our
Services.
Some of the biggest changes that took place pertaining to personnel were the introduction of flexible
terms for many of our salaried staff, giving people
the flexibility to work 10-month terms as opposed
to a full year. The Business Manager compensation
structures for our media services was changed to a
commission based model. Finally, a few other positions were redeveloped and/or newly created. The
Marketing and Communications Office was merged.
Regarding the permanent staff, the Board approved
the creation of an Information Technology Support
Officer Staff position and eliminated (as per the
recommendation of the Journals Editors in Chief )
the Administrative Assistant position for the Queens
Journal.
The Board also approved various capital expenditures
and re-brandings. The biggest and most noticeable of
these were the re-branding and renovation of Alfies
to The Underground, the change from CoGro Ex-
18
press to The Brew, the installation of air conditioner

at Tricolour Outlet and the Queens Pub, the purchase
of espresso machines for the Brew and CoGro, and
the purchase of a new printer for the P&CC. The Board
decided to curtail the one year tenure of the Student Maintenance and Resource Team (SMART) as a
corporate Service, returning it to the Municipal Affairs
Commission.
The AMS had another successful year managing the
Student Life Centre. Advances were made for the
renegotiation of the management and operations
agreement with Queens University and the SGPS, but
no agreement was reached. Similarly, progress was
made towards filling the vacant commercial spot in
the lower JDUC, with a tenant expected to move in
this coming year.
The audited financial statements contained within
this report illustrate the positive financial foundation
that has been established by previous managers and
adequate support and oversight from the Board of
Directors. It is the Boards intention to see that this
prudent financial management continues well into
the future. Given the recent increases to salaries,
minimum wage, and addition of full-time employees,
the Board expects that the AMS Inc. will be posting a
deficit in the coming years. These changes will most
likely draw down our operating fund before we are
able to fully adjust to the changes. The AMS Specific
Fee will therefore need to be evaluated once again
in three years to ensure that we continue to be in a
financially stable steady state while keeping our notfor-profit status.
Finally, the Board changed its committee structure to
three committees: a Finance, Audit, and Risk Committee, a Personnel Committee, and a Rotational
Committee. The Rotational Committee is a yearly
rotation of the Governance Committee, Long-Term
Strategic Planning Committee, and the AMS Specific
Fee Review Committee. For 2014-2015, there will
be a heavy emphasis on continuing to review our
policy, on evaluating the risks that we are exposed
to as a corporation, and on continuing to ensure we
have sufficient information to adequately support
our employees. The Board should adopt a long-term
focus by ensuring that the goals within the Services
goal plans contribute to our guiding principles, and
that progress is made towards the strategic objectives outlined in the AMS Strategic Framework. The
Board will strive to continue making decisions to best
reflect the core values of the AMS as an institution
that serves students interests.
Alma Mater Society
19
AMS Executive
The three-person AMS Executive is comprised of the President, the Vice-President (Operations),
and the Vice-President (University Affairs). Together, they are elected in the winter term for a period of one year and are responsible for representing the interests of all AMS members and for the
day-to-day management of the Society.
The Executive is elected annually during the winter term.
The President is responsible for the external representation of the Society and is ultimately accountable for
ensuring the fulfilment of the Societys mandate and
mission. The President also acts as the Chief Executive
Officer of the Corporation and thus has a fiduciary
responsibility to oversee the governance of the Society
and its roughly $16 million of annual financial activity.
The President directly oversees the Communications,
Marketing, Human Resources and Information
Technology Offices and presides over Presidents Caucus,
consisting of the member society presidents.
The Vice-President of Operations is responsible for all
day-to-day operational and financial matters of the
Society. The VP (Operations) oversees the three directors
who in turn supervise the retail, hospitality, safety, and
media services of the AMS. Additionally, the VP
(Operations) administers student activity fees, the AMS
Health & Dental Plan, the Bus-It program, and the
consolidated budget for the Society.
The Vice-President of University Affairs is responsible
for all political and educational matters of the society,
research and policy development, internal academic
issues, and university administration affairs. The VP
(University Affairs) oversees the six commissions and
serves as one of two Queens representatives, along with
the Academic Affairs Commissioner, on the Ontario
Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA)
consultation in preparation of the AMS case and the

building of relationships with permanent resident
groups. The process ended successfully in October
when the Board issued an unequivocal ruling in
favour of the AMS position. The AMS benefited from
the invaluable assistance of Queens law student
Kevin Wiener, the Sydenham District Association and
from generous financial support from the Queens
University Faculty Association which helped defray
the high legal costs. The Executive was also active in
the preparations for the return of Homecoming. The
Executive hosted an AMS Alumni event in Wallace
Hall, helped facilitate the Lets Not Fuck It Up
campaign video to encourage responsible student
participation; and proposed the idea of the Tricolour
Festival, a large scale Saturday night event designed
to facilitate informal exchanges between students
and alumni and to shift the focus towards viewing
Homecoming as a singular opportunity to celebrate
what unites the Queens community. Although the
last initiative was not implemented by the University, there is room for optimism that it may be in the
future.
In terms of physical infrastructure, the Executive

made a strategic decision to not spend the $1 million
JDUC revitalization fund until a 5-10 year plan for the
JDUC was created that included student input and
was compatible with the recently approved Queens
University Campus Master Plan. This plan would still
entail expenditures from the fund but importantly, it
would contain a long term vision for the building. An
The 2013-14 Executive, President Eril Berkok, VPOPs
Nicola Plummer and VPUA Thomas Pritchard successfully agreement was made with a local architectural firm to
addressed a large number of internal and external issues develop the plan and efforts were initiated with the
and undertook significant projects and strong advocacy Office of Advancement to establish JDUC
revitalization as a fundraising priority. In a related
across the full spectrum of the student experience.
development, the Executive extended the term of
The year began with the filing of an appeal with the
negotiation for the renewal of the Management and
Ontario Municipal Board, an action which had been
Operations governing agreement for the Student life
approved in principle by Assembly at the conclusion
Centre. By year end, a number of understandings had
of 2012-13.This fundamentally important appeal was
undertaken to overturn a Kingston City Council revision been reached and missing institutional
of municipal electoral boundaries that excluded students memory of the original agreement and process had
from municipal population counts. A roughly five-month been restored.
process ensued that entailed extensive legal
20
Alma Mater Society
AMS Executive
Internally, a large number of important reforms were
made to greatly improve the function of the AMS,
particularly in the area of finance. A more transparent
consolidated budget and restricted funds schedule was
produced that included a fairer process for the
allocation of administrative fees to services. The AMS
commissions were switched to project accounting,
which introduced much needed additional detail and
accountability to Government-side finances. An
Assembly Finance Committee was established to make
recommendations to Assembly on matters related to the
Governments financial management and reporting. The
student activity fee process was modified to improve
accountability. Measures were put in place to increase
scrutiny of groups receiving fees to ensure they were
complying with the conditions of their fee approval
before their funding was released. An extra week was
inserted in both of the referendum periods to allow
more time to evaluate the eligibility of groups seeking
student fees. Notably, the waiting period for the release
of student activity fees was reduced from previous years.
Finally, an AMS Membership Bursary restricted fund
was created to be henceforth funded by uncollected or
unallocated student activity fee monies.
This marked the first year of the official separation of
CFRC from the AMS. The Executive worked to ensure
both parties continued to enjoy a constructive
relationship. The AMS retained representation on the
Radio Queens University board and provided
administrative services and other assistance as required.
Structurally, the Marketing and Communications
Offices were merged with a strong emphasis placed on
the utilization of institutionalized annual surveys to elicit
feedback and data to better inform the AMS of
student priorities and preferences and to ensure the
AMS was aligned accordingly. Services under the
Directors portfolios were redistributed; commission
structures were modified and several committees were
eliminated, merged or restructured. Lastly, in order to
enhance the quality and consistency of annual
knowledge transfer from year to year, a number of
changes were made to transitioning and training that
are expected to be phased in over the next couple of
years. These included templates for transitioning and
operations manuals, a shift to a learning outcomes
based transition model; and the splitting of training
week into several parts to better accommodate
schedules during the summer.

The Executive, with support from Council, submitted a
number of amendments to the Queens University
Campus Master Plan, a document that will guide
campus development for the next 10-15 years. They
were intended to ensure the plans principles were in
support of the Universitys academic mission and that
the University was forward thinking in its approach to
sustainability, accessibility, safety and the preservation
and development of student life space. This
constituted a valuable contribution insofar as most of
these amendments were incorporated. The
Executive also contributed to the Universitys
long-term strategic enrolment framework, pushing for
a greater breadth of issues to be considered, a more
prescriptive plan and the development of a template
for annual enrolment plans.
On the permanent staff front, the Executive enjoyed
an excellent first year transitioning with the new AMS
Executive Director and restoring the loss of significant
institutional memory. Early in the summer, the
Executive welcomed Maria Haig to the AMS
permanent staff team as the new Administrative
Assistant. At the end of the winter term, the
Executive concluded an extensive recruitment and
hiring process to welcome Dave Mayo to the newly
created position of Information Technology Support
Officer.
Finally, the Executive undertook a highly active
approach to establishing the AMS as the primary
advocate for the Queens broader learning
environment, that diverse array of experiences and
opportunities outside the classroom that greatly
enhance student life, learning and skill acquisition.
The Executive stressed the critical importance of
preserving student autonomy and genuine
responsibility in delivering key programming and
services. These efforts culminated in late April with
the unanimous endorsement by Assembly of The
Transformative Factor, a policy paper that defined the
AMS position on a broad number of issues germane to
this quintessential component of the Queens student
experience.
21
COMMISSIONS
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Alma Mater Society
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Academic Affairs
Campus Activities
Internal Affairs
Municipal Affairs
Social Issues
Environment and Sustainability
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Academic Affairs Commission

The Academic Aairs Commission (AAC) was
created in 1991 when its functions were separated from
the Education Commission and the External Affairs
Commission. The AAC is responsible for educating
students on relevant post-secondary issues, advocating
on behalf of their interests both internally and
externally, and facilitating student needs through
various committees, programs, and services.
Both internally and externally, It was an exciting year for
the AAC, as it actively engaged a wide range of
critical issues including enrolment, program closures,
ancillary fees, and innovation and entrepreneurship, and
produced significant and strong policy documents. The
year began within a context for higher education that
found the Province at a crossroads with students
paying more for their degree than ever before; the
Province demonstrating an unprecedented level of
involvement in the sector; and with Queens being
asked to carefully consider the relevance of its mandate
through the negotiation of a strategic mandate with the
Province. It is within this context that the AAC worked
closely with its external partners, including the Ontario
Undergraduate Student Alliance, the VPUA and fellow
Queens students in navigating the challenging and
changing landscape of postsecondary education.
At the institutional level, proposed enrolment
increases emerged as a central issue as the
University worked to establish a 10-year Strategic
Enrolment Framework. The AAC partnered with the
University to host two successful town halls on this
issue, which generated feedback that was ultimately
incorporated into the final document produced by the
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Strategic Enrolment Management Group.

Additionally, an AMS policy paper outlining the
student position on enrolment was authored
largely by the Commissioner and circulated to all
senior Queens governance bodies and the
Province.
The AAC contributed constructively to the implementation of the Provosts New Budget Model; to the
auditing of ancillary fees across all
faculties and to the creation of an approval
mechanism for the establishment of future fees.
Notably, the AAC authored new AMS policy and
vision in support of promoting the development
of a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship at
Queens.
Internally, the Commission underwent restructuring
to ensure it remained responsive to student needs.
Academic Caucus was reinvigorated to include
Faculty Society academic representatives in
important discussions, and the Teaching Issues
Committee was remanded to the University Issues
Committee to engage students on issues pertaining
to their education. The AAC expanded the scope of
many events and services, with the Teaching Awards
Committee and Last Lecture Series boasting record
levels involvement. This was complemented by the
redevelopment of the whatswhat.ca website as a
year-long planning tool for students that would assist
in the process of course selection, budgeting, and
studying. Finally, the AAC instituted a strong and
hopefully lasting policy process to ensure all
advocacy and programming is student-driven and
supported by research.
Alma Mater Society
Campus Activities Commission

The Campus Activities Commission (CAC) is committed
to enriching students academic pursuits by offering a
wide range of student-focused event programming and
activities with the intent to help shape a positive and
memorable Queens experience. The CAC exemplifies
the AMS ethos of by students, for students and as the
oldest commission, it enjoys a proud and rich history of
serving students.
The CAC continues to be a commission that must evolve
and adapt the activities it offers. A number of changes
were introduced this year designed to better facilitate
the development of adaptable and flexible
programming and to ensure that there is no obligation
to run an event unless there is demand from students.
Capture the Faculty, Catch Me If You Can and the
University District Hockey league were merged into the
new Recreation Committee in an attempt to improve
responsiveness to students interests by allowing for
more flexibility in selecting and organizing participatory
events. Charitable Events was altered to become the
new Outreach Committee to allow for the provision of
multiple events rather than the single major event
traditionally offered. It is thought that these changes
will also significantly improve the volunteer experience
by engaging volunteers throughout the year and
empowering them with more choice and decision
making.
The most notable addition to the CAC was the creation
of the AMS Student Arts Council, a centralized body of
representatives from various student arts groups on
campus. It is intended to provide a platform for arts
advocacy, to increase accessibility to campus art, and
to enhance awareness of art on campus. Arts Council
members were enthusiastic about opportunities for
further expanding the Arts Council, indicative of its

tremendous potential for growth in the coming year.
The CAC received another important new addition
when the Queens Media and Journalism Conference
was shifted to it from the Media Services portfolio.
This conference is designed to respond to students
interested in the field of journalism need for
information, resources, networking and career advice
from industry professionals.
The CAC once again achieved success in delivering its
flagship events. Orientation Week was widely
regarded as a tremendous success. Model Parliament,
Model UN and Model Court were all well-attended
and delivered the high quality student experience
that has come to be expected. With the return of
Homecoming, the Commission participated in
discussions on programming and facilitated a
successful AMS Alumni event held in Wallace Hall on
the Saturday evening of the first weekend.

The Commission introduced restructuring changes
to Orientation Roundtable to increase efficiency and
better distribute responsibilities. The Commissioner
facilitated passage of an Assembly motion asserting
that faculty societies should have sole jurisdiction of
the composition of their hiring panels for
Orientation Week positions. With the Senate
Orientation Activities Review Board conducting an
internal policy review, strong advocacy efforts were
undertaken on the importance of retaining a
genuinely student-run Orientation Week
The year ended with the CAC being very well
positioned to be more receptive and responsive to
students and thus ultimately to serve them better
in the coming years.
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Commission of Internal Affairs

The Commission of Internal Affairs (CIA) oversees matters relating to the internal operations of the AMS Assembly, the
student-run Non-Academic Discipline system (NAD) which includes the Judicial Affairs Office (JAO) and the Judicial
Committee, elections and referenda, archives, and the administration of over 250 clubs and extracurricular
organizations.
Over the academic year, the JAO processed a total of 60 cases. The CIA was pleased to see incidents of student
misconduct on the decline and in particular was pleased to see a reduction in the number of cases involving malicious
blue light activations in light of the information campaign it undertook regarding this offence. The CIA also sought to
educate students about the Code of Conduct. In relation to the last few years, the JAO saw an increase in the percentage of complaints coming directly from Queens students suggesting the confidence Queens students have in a
peer-administered system. Highly notable was the Commissions creation of a framework and process for
administering non-academic discipline for student groups and organizations. This was approved by Assembly,
thereby filling a large gap in NAD policy and addressing what had been an area of concern for over a decade.
The Clubs Office continues to be the largest area of growth within the commission. The CIA undertook a range of
initiatives to reach out to clubs and support their day-to-day operations, going beyond the solely administrative role
traditionally performed by the Clubs Office. In its fifth year of being a salaried position, the Clubs Manager has proven
to be extremely beneficial to the operations and success of the commission. A new committee was created, the Clubs
Street Initiative, as well as a series of roundtable discussions between club executives to promote inter-club
collaboration. After an extensive review, the CIA worked to fill many administrative gaps in clubs policy which should
enhance the operational efficiency of the office in future years. The fall Clubs Night was replaced with the hugely
successful Tricolour Open House. This event served to promote all extracurricular activities as it offered a single time
and location for students to access resources and get involved in the Queens community.
Elections and referenda this year were exceptionally well conducted thanks to the commitment and skill of the
volunteer Elections Team, particularly the Chief Returning and Chief Electoral Officers. There were minimal technical
issues with a 33% voter turnout for the winter electoral period and 16% for the fall referendum. To enhance voter
turnout, the commission spearheaded a successful My First Time voting campaign in collaboration with the Marketing
& Communications Offices. Election and referenda policy were reviewed by the CIA in consultation with the VPOPs
and amended to bring administrative improvements and greater oversight to student fees by adding a new validation
period.
AMS Assembly engaged in meaningful discussions on the issues facing students and the AMS. Overall, members
worked to maintain a high level of decorum that contributed to a positive, welcoming space for students. A training
session was held prior to the first meeting to acquaint members with the policy and protocols surrounding Assembly.
This year the Assembly was given its own logo, which now appears on all official Assembly documents. Efforts to
improve meeting efficiency and initiatives to foster awareness of Assembly in the student community should
continue.
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Alma Mater Society
Municipal Affairs Commission
The Municipal Affairs Commission (MAC) seeks to fulfill three primary objectives: to lobby on behalf of students
to the City of Kingston; to present meaningful volunteer opportunities for students in the Kingston community;
and to provide resources on off-campus housing. This year, the MAC also exerted a strong presence in building
better town gown relations. The MAC continues to grow, and with its seven committees, over 300 volunteers and
a newly-founded Housing Grievance Centre, it constitutes the largest commission in the AMS.
Externally, it was a strenuous yet successful year for the MAC. The Commission contributed significantly to the
efforts supporting the AMS appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board in which the AMS contested Kingston City
Councils unfortunate decision to exclude post-secondary student populations from its electoral boundary
counts. The AMS successfully appealed this decision in partnership with the Sydenham District Association.
Though this partnership was forged by unfortunate events, the appeal has nevertheless served to bring
community partners together in common effort to bring effective representation to the city. Evidence of this
constructive new relationship continuing beyond the electoral boundary issue, was apparent when the MAC was
successful in gaining the citys and community partners endorsement of its efforts to positively re-brand the
University District. Due in large part to the outreach and communication efforts of the Commissioner, a
historic motion was passed at City Council to implement attractive new street signage in the University District
area bounded by Collingwood, Johnson, Barrie, and King St.
Other notable successes include the implementation of the Housing Grievance Centre to act as an effective
resource for student concerns and complaints across a wide range of housing and landlord issues. An agreement
was reached contracting the services of the online subletting platform known as HousingAnywhere.com in order
to significantly enhance student-to-student renting. Once again the annual Golden Key Award was presented to
an exceptional landlord, as well as the newly-established Civic Responsibility Award. Several policy changes were
made including the absorption of the Student Property Assessment and Dwelling Education (SPADE) Committee
into the Housing Grievance Centre, and the disbanding of the Kingston Opportunities Officer position which
had proven ineffective. Finally, the MAC was integrally involved in the discussions and strategies surrounding the
return of Homecoming and contributed to the creation of the well-received Homecoming
messaging campaign.
The Student Maintenance and Resource Team (SMART) will be returning to the MAC for 2014-15, as the services
purpose truly serves the mission of the MAC in working with community partners to improve quality of life in the
University District.
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Social Issues Commission

The AMS Social Issues Commission (SIC), originally known as the Education Commission until 1996, was created
in 1969. The mandate of the SIC is to educate and advocate around issues of equity and oppression at Queens
through educational and awareness based events, providing resources, and providing a safe space for students
through its programming, office space, and services provided by the Food Centre and the Peer Support Centre
(PSC).
Recognizing a lack of dedicated Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer (LGBTQ) space on campus, the SIC addressed
this issue by utilizing the opportunity provided by the move of the Education on Queer Issues Project(EQuIP)
office from the Grey House to the John Deutsch University Centre (JDUC). It reopened the space in the Grey
House as a LGBTQ drop- in space. An operations manual was created for the office and EQuIP committee members and chairs were trained in how to operate the space. Those staffing the office also received Positive Space
training from the Human Rights Office.
The publications portfolio was significantly restructured. The five independent publications were combined to
create a single publication entitled Collective Reflections that retains the identity of each of the existing
publications as sections within. This has been a well-received and beneficial change for the portfolio that
dramatically improved operations and logistics in order to facilitate the publication being completed and
distributed in a timely fashion.
To enhance the internal operations of the SIC, both the Religious Affairs Committee (RAC) and the Education
on Gender Issues Committee (EGI) were eliminated. Both committees had not been operating as effectively
as hoped for over the past few years and it was felt that with a number of clubs/groups/committees active at
Queens providing similar programming, the SIC would better serve students by focusing on supporting existing
groups promoting equity at Queens rather than competing with them.
The Food Centre made a number of improvements to its operations this year, including keeping more consistent
records, introducing a check-list of tasks that volunteers on shift must complete, and creating a standardized
form for item requests from patrons of the Centre. The Peer Support Centre enjoyed a successful year as it built
upon the significant policy changes introduced last year and employed a number of outreach events and greater
consistency in its operations. Some minor improvements included changing hours of operation, making the
decision to no longer offer support via phone, and switching to the WhenToWork system of scheduling. The
newly formed Peer Support Centre Advisory Board proved helpful in guiding the PSC and ensured it operated
appropriately and effectively.
The Commission allocated Equity Grants this year to several groups that demonstrated a genuine commitment to
equity on campus. Notably, Queens Pride Project received $865, Good Times Diner received $100, The Canadian
Undergraduate Conference on Healthcare received $660, and the Kahswentha Indigenous Knowledge Initiative
received $750.
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Alma Mater Society
Commission of the Environment

and Sustainability
The Commission of the Environment and Sustainability (CES) aims to create a culture of sustainability and
environmental consciousness throughout the student and wider Queens community. The CES organizes
awareness programs on sustainability issues, offers concrete services and events where students can engage in
sustainable practices on campus, and works with the administration to help shape the universitys practices and
policies.
In its third full year of existence the commission continued to expand its programming. Youth Mentoring Youth
visited ten different local schools and two community youth groups; Greenovations retrofitted over fifteen
houses and Students Taking a Responsible Initiative Towards a Viable Environment (STRIVE) was able to complete
the long overdue waste audit project in the JDUC. The Commission was also able to assist with the
implementation of the Student Life Centre (SLC) organic waste program. The Sustainability Action Fund (SAF) had
an extremely successful year using the funding from its $2.00 optional student fee to give out $18,000, the
entirety of this years fund, to various sustainability initiatives across campus. In the fall term, the policy
governing the SAF was amended to improve its granting structure by expanding eligibility and creating a
summer granting period to ensure each years funding was fully allocated.
Bikes and Boards, the on-campus bike shop, was a major focus for the commission. Beginning with a
significant relocation from Macgillivray-Brown Hall to the lower ceilidh in the JDUC, the store underwent a
significant re-branding throughout the summer. The service enjoyed unprecedented success, serving over 400
unique patrons, allowing the shop to stay open throughout the winter. It benefitted from the unwavering
commitment by its large group of dedicated volunteers. These achievements have facilitated the introduction of
a salaried Summer Director position allowing the shop to remain open May-August.
The CES found success with several internal governance sustainability initiatives. In January, SLC Council passed
the first Energy Management Policy in the history of Queens University. The document gives a policy backbone
to the Energy Management Working Group. It resulted in a lighting efficiency retrofit project for the JDUC
breezeway and has sparked new interest from Physical Plant Services. The Commission also drafted the
Responsible Investment Policy which seeks to ensure that the AMS invests in accordance with its values,
recognizing risks and opportunities associated with environmental, social and corporate governance issues in
its portfolio. This policy outlines the membership and responsibilities of the Financial Ethics Review Committee
within the AMS Board of Directors policy. Overall, this was an extremely successful year for the CES, as this still
young commission developed successful programming for years to come.
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OFFICES
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Alma Mater Society
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Communications
Marketing
Information Technology
Human Resources
Student Centre
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Communications Office
The Communications Office (CO) works to ensure consistency of AMS content and promotions as well as brand
recognition across all society communication content. Accessibility and visibility are a primary focus throughout
everything the office strives to accomplish. Working both independently and in tandem with the government and
corporate side of the AMS, the CO provides support by reaching out to students in promoting events, conducting
interview preparation and training, drafting press releases and helping to communicate opportunities and
resources within the Queens community.
The CO focused on emanating a professional yet casual tone in communication style, in the hope that students
would find the AMS more accessible and thus be more receptive to the messaging of the society. In its efforts to
connect with students the CO focused on the website, blogs, social media,
newsletters, and videos.
The CO worked hard to create effective, relatable informational campaigns designed to reach both students who
follow the AMS on social media and those who do not. In order to achieve this, there was a large focus on creating
viral promotional material, which included the relevant content but with an element that would also make
students want to share.
The AMS Homecoming campaign featured a video and promotional campaign centered on the theme Lets Not
Fuck It Up. With over 30, 000 YouTube views, and incredible feedback from current students and alumni, all
components of this campaign contributed to spreading the message about the return of Homecoming while
highlighting the successful initiatives of students in the community. In order to encourage students to participate
in elections and voting, the CO in partnership with the CIA conducted a campaign called My First Time. This
campaign received a lot of positive feedback, for being both relatable and funny, and for the widespread
sharing of the message. Both of these campaigns proved to be successful in terms of relating to
students thereby tangibly extending the AMS reach.
With continued focus on leveraging the AMS strong visual identity standards, graphic design remained an integral
aspect of sharing information on campus. Alongside the Marketing Office, the CO worked with Yearbook & Design
Services to develop and promote visually appealing promotional material that left an impression and strongly
resonated with students.
With its strong and consistent emphasis on connecting with students, this year the CO was able to
generate meaningful dialogue on campus and thus to facilitate more students participating in events and issues
related to student governance and their Queens experience.
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Alma Mater Society
Marketing Office
The AMS Marketing Oce exists to conduct

marketing research for services, commissions, and
the Society to gauge student preference and
opinion; to facilitate communication between the
AMS and its members through brand management;
and to support advertising through graphic design.
The Marketing Oce works with the
Communications Oce to enforce the AMS Visual
Identity Standards (VIS), ensuring that all materials
produced by the AMS and its aliated organizations
conform to AMS brand standards. Largely a support
oce, Marketing also assists AMS affiliates in the
development, coordination and execution of their
advertising and promotional campaigns, as well as
conducting marketing campaigns to independently
publicize the AMS brand with the intent of
engaging students.

In its fourth year of operation and third year
offering a 12-month, full time position, the
Marketing Oce is still young, but maturing. The
Marketing Oce was created to alleviate some of
the Communications Oce duties and explore new
marketing opportunities. This year, the oce
further developed its role with regards to marketing
research by building upon existing research tools
and expanding research capabilities on both the
government and corporate side of the Society. The
Marketing Oce collected more comprehensive
survey-based information and data to ensure that
AMS services, programing, events and advocacy
efforts were informed by student priorities and
preferences. The office also conducted research with

each retail service to evaluate customer experiences. In
support of these initiatives the office will be introducing
policy entrenching an annual requirement to conduct
both AMS brand perception surveys and annual surveys
to better inform Commission goal plan. Ultimately, the
year saw marketing research data being used by AMS
services to better serve students, and by its commissions
to better represent all AMS stakeholders. The office
enjoyed notable success with its By Students For
Students campaign which effectively captured the
essence of the AMS Queens experience.

The Marketing Oce worked closely with AMS
subsidiary groups, serving as a consultative resource to
develop ecient marketing and outreach campaigns
and visually appealing promotional material. Visual
consistency and graphic design was an important aspect
of this years portfolio. Alongside the Communications
Oce, the Marketing Oce worked with Yearbook &
Design Services to create more appealing and
informative graphics that resonated more strongly with
students to help the spread of important information.
In late February, a decision was reached to merge the
Marketing and Communications offices and thus to
conduct the winter hiring period for 2014-15
accordingly. The new entity will be known as the
Marketing and Communications Office and it reflects the
priority being attached by the AMS to an engagement
with its members based on reliable information and data.
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Information Technology Office

The Information Technology Office (ITO) works to
support the entire AMS IT infrastructure, consisting of
both equipment and services, on which virtually all
aspects of AMS activity are dependent.
The growth in demand on IT services and support,
and the need to adequately address security
considerations have led to increasing capacity strains.
To address this, a significant restructuring of the
offfice was undertaken to improve efficiency and to
ensure the ITO has sufficient personnel and capacity
to support the Society. The Board of Directors
approved the creation of a new permanent staff
position, the Information Technology Support Officer
(ITSO). It is anticipated that this full-time presence will
facilitate longer term strategic planning,
dramatically improve institutional memory and
substantively increase capacity. In addition, both
assistant manager positions were eliminated, shifting
the responsibilities of the Web Applications
Developer to external companies and the
responsibilities of the Technology lead position to the
ITSO.
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Recognizing that the AMS is a fast paced organization

which requires its employees to be well connected,
the ITO undertook a number of measures to improve
operations. In order to deliver information
technology services by retrieving resources from the
internet through web-based tools and applications,
rather than a direct connection to a server, the ITO
moved its mail services to the cloud, with a roadmap
of migrating file services to follow closely. The move
to Office 365 that was planned in 2012-13 was successfully executed this year. This move will enable
AMS employees to work more efficiently and from
any location that is convenient for them. They now
have fast and reliable access to cloud-hosted email
with support for document sharing and editing.
Also noteworthy was the purchase of a help desk
system to better address needs, the transfer of the
audio/visual rental service to the Student Life Centre
and the initiation of discussions with the Universtiy to
better address privacy considerations.
Alma Mater Society
Human Resources Office

The Human Resources Office serves as a support for
both the government and corporate branches of the
Alma Mater Society. The Human Resources Office
oversees the recruitment, hiring, training,
development, progressive discipline, transition and
appreciation of the societys student employees and
volunteers.
A large focus of the 2013-2014 year was updating
policies and contracts. In conjunction with the VP
(Operations), the full-time employee contracts were
amended to more accurately convey the
expectations for AMS employees. During the
summer, it was determined that suspension of
part-time employees was ineffective and counter
to the discipline policys mandate to correct and
improve, not punish. Consequently, the demerit
system was restructured, resulting in the removal of
suspensions as a disciplinary measure. In September ,
both the Board of Directors and Assembly approved a
change in jurisdiction over the AMS Employee
Policy and Procedures Manual and the AMS Hiring and
Appointment Policy and Procedures Manual.
Previously, amendments to these documents required
joint approval but henceforth amendments tothe Employee Policy and Procedures Manual and to sections
7, 8, 15, and 25 of the Hiring and Appointment Policy

and Procedures Manual only require the approval of
the Board. . Finally, the Human Resources Officer introduced new policies needed in the areas of recruitment, overtime, resignation, and accommodations.
During its thirteenth year, the HR Office underwent
two significant structural changes. First, the
Human Resources Officer moved from reporting to
the Vice-President (Operations) to the President. With
this migration, the Human Resource Officer had the
opportunity to look more strategically at HR
practices across the society, and in conjunction with
the President, conducted an extensive review of
policies surrounding full-time employee training and
transitioning practices. This led to significant changes.
Secondly, it was determined that the Opportunities
and Outreach Coordinator position (in its second year
of existence) would be more effective in its recruiting
efforts as a 12-month, 20 hour per week position, and
moreover that the title of Talent Acquisition
Manager would be a more accurate reflection of the
role. With this 4-month expansion, the Talent
Acquisition Manager will have May through August
to plan and budget recruitment campaigns, leaving
September through April for execution, analysis and
evaluation of each project.
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Student Centre Office

The Student Life Centre Office is responsible for
the management and operations of the
campus buildings encompassing the Student Life
Centre (SLC) and the many services therein. The
SLC includes the John Deutsch University Centre
(JDUC), the Queens Centre (QC),
MacGillivray-Brown Hall, 51 Bader Lane (the Grey
House), and Mackintosh-Corry Student Street.
These facilities are dedicated to enhancing the
quality of student and campus life at Queens
University by providing exclusive space for
societies and clubs, bookable spaces for
meetings and performances, and public spaces
for a wide range of student and community uses.
This was the third year of the Student Life Centre
under the management of the AMS through the
Management & Operations Agreement signed
with Queens and the Society of Graduate and
Professional Studies (SGPS). This agreement,
initially for a period of two years, was extended
for an additional year while the parties
negotiated the terms of the renewal.
During the summer the SLC worked to improve
internal efficiencies in order to provide better
customer service. Key and equipment sign-outs
at the information office were streamlined in
order to be faster and more secure. Upgrades
were also made to the organization of key
systems in the office and key security in the
building The SLC changed its reservation system
so that it is hosted by an offsite company with
secure servers and backup redundancies.
The SLC continued to develop the services it
provides to students through a number of new
initiatives. In October, the SLC took over Audio
Visual Rentals from the AMS Information
Technology Office, thereby streamlining the
process for customers by making the SLC the
primary point of contact for event planning. The
SLC also installed charging stations in common
36
areas in the JDUC and the QC and these have

seen frequent use.
Throughout the year the SLC increased its focus
on sustainability. The SLC promoted and
established regular hours for the Room of
Requirement, a space where school supplies can
be donated and reused by other students. New
waste diversion stations, including compost
stations, were installed throughout the JDUC and
QC. . Outdated lighting fixtures on the lower
level of the Erikson wing of the JDUC are
scheduled for replacement with new, more
efficient fixtures. In January a new energy
management policy was passed by SLC Council,
reaffirming the SLC commitment to the
environment.
Throughout the year the SLC worked to fill the
vacant commercial space in the lower JDUC after
the closing of Signatures Hair Salon. This process
benefitted from the assistance of Campus
Planning, the Vice Principal Finance &
Administration Office, and a commercial real
estate broker. An offer to lease to a new hair care
facility has been made and lease negotiations are
ongoing.
The volume of room reservations in the SLC has
steadily increased in the Student Life Centre
buildings and in response a new salaried
position, Reservation Coordinator, has been
added to the 2014-2015 management team. This
structural change will allow for faster processing
times and more reliable service.
Alma Mater Society
37
SERVICES
38
Alma Mater Society
40
42
44
46
Retail
Hospitality
Safety
Media
39
Retail Services
Publishing & Copy Centre
Established in 1988, the Publishing and Copy Centre (P&CC) underwent a rebranding this year as it celebrated its
25th Anniversary. There were also minor renovations done to alter and refresh the physical layout of the store.
These resulted in a layout better equipped to handle increased volume and foot traffic.
The service purchased a photoprinter which diversified its revenue stream and exceeded budgeted revenue by
more than 200%. A new color printer was also purchased in order to increase the capacity to complete large scale
production jobs.
This year brought further uncertainty regarding CoursePacks in a changing market where online resources are
more readily available. For the last three years, the P&CC has been unable to solicit the volume of CoursePacks for
reasons that include losing the trust of professors in previous years. This year the service focused on rebuilding
and maintainingrelationships with long-standing professors who make CoursePacks with the store.
The P&CC continued to improve the awareness of the variety of products and services that it oers to
organizations, clubs, and new students in order to oset the decreased revenue from the production of
CoursePacks. The rebranding helped to create excitement around the services offered and this was reflected in an
increase in volume and fulfilling budget targets despite having decreased prices. Now that the physical space has
been altered to best accommodate customers, the P&CC will continue to work with its supplier, OT Group, the
AMS ITO, and service sta to further enhance the customer experience.

Tricolour Outlet
Tricolour Outlet (TRO) was formed at the end of 2009-2010 from the amalgamation of the AMS Merchandising
Services (TAMS), which operated the Used Bookstore and Tricolour Outfitters, and Destinations.
Last year, great strides were made to improve the financial situation of Tricolour Outlet, its overall brand
recognition and place within the Queens community. Over the summer, TRO underwent a series of renovations
both physical and operational. By developing a strong brand identity and recognition on campus, it has helped
TRO increase its visibility on campus, furthering its importance to the Queens student body.
This year, the focus of Tricolour Outlet was on further establishing the brand as a consistent identity, as well as
continuously refining and improving operational aspects that would tackle the problem of seasonality in its
business. The construction of a large and highly accessible storage room and the addion of bookshelves and wall
fixtures, allowed for a significant increase in the volume of items on the floor, and allowed for easier restocking
capacity. These changes helped improved customer service and resulted in an increase in September and October sales by 24.4%. In addition, by introducing a simple to navigate, informational, and consistently-updated
website, TRO was able to keep its diverse customer base more conveniently informed.
TRO is a service that continually requires teams to think outside of the box, challenge what is currently accepted,
and strive for bold new ways to capture students attention. There is still so much room for growth within the
service, and the refinement of its operations. After a year of experiencing the highest volume of sales to date,
TRO should be better prepared next year to build upon its successe in order to both maximize efficiency in peak
periods, and to creatively increase foot traffic during slow periods.
40
Alma Mater Society
Student Maintenance and Resource Team

The Student Maintenance and Resource Team known as SMART was created in 2011 to provide contract work for
landlords and general clean-up services in the University District. Initially operating under the Municipal Affairs
Commission (MAC), at the conclusion of the 2012-13 year, considerations relating to its administration and
remunerated management/staff led to its conversion to an AMS corporate service placed under the Retail
Services portfolio.
The service has developed an excellent reputation throughout the wider Kingston community as it provides
tangible evidence of Queens students responsible commitment to maintaining their residential area. SMART
enjoyed considerable success this year in providing clean-ups after traditional party weekends, particularly in the
University District immediately following the festivities after both Homecomings.
The summer months generated opportunities for SMART to provide consistent lawn maintenance service at a
competitive price for University District landlords. However, activity understandably declined significantly in the
winter months and thus the recommendation has been made to operate SMART for seven months only. There
will be a renewed focus on attracting absentee landlords as clients. The service ended the year with a very small
deficit.
In recognition of SMARTs popularity in the city and thus its natural ties to the advocacy and community building
efforts of the MAC, SMART will be moved back to the MAC for the coming year.
41
Hospitality Services
Common Ground Coffeehouse
Common Ground (CoGro) was created in 2000 as a student service to offer consistent food and beverages at a
reasonable price in a welcoming atmosphere. Being fully student owned and operated allows CoGro to provide a
unique service on campus that is quite different from its many competitors.
The service focused primarily on increasing efficiency and consistency across operations. At CoGros main
location, there was an emphasis on multiple small-scale improvements with great attention to detail. The
streamlining of the roles of employees by creating a permanent prep team, the purchase of an efficient
automated espresso machine, and the creation of a premade version of the CoGros trademark Turkey Apple
Cheddar sandwich were some of the more significant changes which contributed to providing a more effective
service.
Additionally, there was a significant focus on the rebranding of The Brew, formerly known as Common Ground
Express. Located in the JDUC, The Brew achieved a level of popularity and sales far beyond what was anticipated.
With a focus on revitalizing the space through renovations, painting and re-decorating in order to create a
comfortable and unique satellite to the main Common Ground, The Brew tripled in sales compared to the
previous year and the budgeted projections.
Financially, the Common Ground was able to significantly decrease wages while increasing overall sales. It
exceeded the budgeted surplus for 2013-2014 and hopes to have set a foundation for continued success in coming years.
42
Alma Mater Society
The AMS Pub Services

The AMS Pub Services (TAPS) provides a safe environment on campus for all students to experience quality
service, aordable prices and the spirit of Queens. The service consists of two separate establishments
The Underground (formerly Alfies Nightclub), established in 1976 and the Queens Pub (QP), established in 1977.
Financially, TAPS experienced a signicant downturn in overall sales from the previous ve years which can be
entirely attributed to the poor attendance experienced at The Underground. The club was re-branded over
the summer to try and overcome last years poor financial performance and in respect to its original namesake
Alfred Pearce. First semester was not as successful as predicted, leading to further changes in second semester.
The nights of operations and marketing strategies were analyzed and changed. Throwback Thursdays a new
night introduced in second semester - became a popular choice for Queens students. However, the remainder
of nights generated little support. The ultimate goal for next years team is to return the club to its former glory
making it an attractive spot for students while truly fulfilling its social goal of safe drinking on campus.
The QP was again very successful with consistently great sales and attendance. One of the years highlights was
the QPs involvement in Homecoming when it aired a live stream of the Gaels football game with the assistance
of QTV. Although, little was changed at QP this year. However, there were a few new initiatives such as Bachelor
Mondays, which brought greater turnout on one of the pubs slower nights. The management team continued
with charitable efforts, supporting causes such as Movember and Queens Health Outreach. The QP continues to
be a popular, fun and affordable on-campus option for students.
43
Safety Services
Queens Student Constables
Queens Student Constables (QSC) have been serving as an essential safety and support resource for students
since 1936. The QSC strives to provide high quality peer supervision and support that ensures a safe social
environment for Queens students, while upholding AMS and University regulations. Each year, sta participate
in a 40-hour training course and complete a test allowing them to be certied as security guards according to
Ontario standards. Student Constables can be found working at The Queens Pub, The Underground Nightclub,
Clark Hall Pub, athletic events, Orientation Week events, semi-formals, and innumerable other Queens University
events both on and o campus.
In response to a steady decline in applications over previous years, the service sought to promote recruitment
and retention. . To support this goal, QSC included pamphlets in orientation packs to inform incoming students
about the service, its uses, and the benefits of becoming an employee. The service was successful in receiving
more applications for both new hires and rehires than it had in previous years. Moreover, over half of the years
staff reapplied for positions with the QSC for the upcoming year. A high retention rate is very beneficial for the
service, and contributes to a reduction in training costs, ensuring knowledgeable staff, and maintaining the
integrity of the service.
The QSC placed a strong emphasis on customer service and care for patrons, focusing on expanding its scope
from a security service to a support service. The service worked to enhance its cooperation and positive relationship with management teams both within the AMS and with Clark Hall, and remains committed to ensuring that
the Queens Campus provides a safe environment for all its students.
44
Alma Mater Society
Walkhome
Walkhome was established in 1988 and has since grown to become the most used safewalk program in Canada,
providing escorted walks home to students at Queens. There is an increasing demand for the service, and this
year has seen a general increase in the average number of walks per evening.
The heightened demand for the service, resulted in an increase in the wages paid out to staff and an increase in
the time spent walking by staff. The average number of walks per day of the week and hours worked by staff per
day of the week was assessed against 2012-13 numbers for each month to determine where frequency of walks
has increased between years. This process will continue into 2014-2015 in order to increase the accuracy and
precision of walk anticipation and prediction and the wages budget accordingly. Walkhome also celebrated 25
years in the Queens community this year, running a 25 Hour Walk-A-Thon in the fall, taking after the success of
2012-2013s 24 Hour Walk-A-Thon.
The Walkhome logo was modified this year changing from 533-WALK to 613-533-9255 in order to avoid any
confusion from the student population surrounding the requirement of an area code or for phones which no
longer use coresponding letters.
A main focus of the service this year was the implementation of new practices aimed at making the kiosk more
approachable and accessible. This led to a refocussing the employee zone to the nearby couches in the lower
JDUC as opposed to at the kiosk and the implementation of a visual queue system for employees. These policies
are believed to have been successful in widening the patron demographic and approachability, as evidenced by
the increase in the number of walks seen this year.
45
Media Services
The Queens Journal
In operation since 1873, the Queens Journals mandate is twofold: to keep Queens students informed of campus
events and issues, and to provide hands-on experience for students interested in journalism. During the year, the
Journal underwent several structural changes which will increase the likelihood of its financial success in coming
years. Eleven of the years print issues were cut and replaced with digital editions, a move that was well-received
by both readers and Journal staff. Later in the year, operating expenses were substantially reduced, most notably
through the reorganization of the Journals staff structure in an effort to maximize student opportunity.
These changes came in the face of declining advertising revenue across the board. The most significant drop this
year was due to the AMSs Marketing Office and its services cutting advertising in the paper when not mandated
by policy. As the AMS was one of the Journals biggest clients, this had a significant impact on revenue. National
advertising was also inconsistent year, as the Journals national advertising company, FREE media, was in its first
year of operations and unable to precisely predict the revenue it would bring in. Local advertising remained
relatively strong, with the business team securing several new clients and continuing contracts with
longstanding clients. The Journal also campaigned for a student fee increase, which was successfully passed at
Assembly in February and confirmed at the Annual General Meeting in March. As such, the publications
mandatory student fee will increase $1.20 next year, going from $6.96 to $8.16.
Queens TV
Queens TV (QTV) is a student-run video production and live stream service. The mandate of the service is to act
as a source of information and entertainment for the student audience, while also providing professional
experience in all aspects of television production. With content updated daily and one of the most advanced live
streaming university sports programs in Canada, QTV is a leader among Canadian student television programs.
QTVs 25th season was a tremendous success. Despite the fact that the nancial goals for the year fell short of the
previous years achievements, QTV achieved new heights in regards to technical prociency, team morale, and
the building of a sturdy client base.
QTV further expanded its Athletics & Recreation (A&R) live stream contract to include football at Richardson
Stadium. These games were successful in attracting a large viewership to the stream and further cemented the
relationship between QTV and A&R.
Orientation week provided an important opportunity to market the service, resulting in a drastic improvement in
QTVs web presence over the course of the year.The viewership on the YouTube Channel has been increased by
over 45,000 views and on average 400 more views per video. Of the videos released, several garnered over 1000
views in comparison to 400 in previous years. In addition, the management team made the decision to expand
into written content with the creation of an online blog.
QTV received a significant funding boost for next year when its efforts to convert its $3.00 opttional student fee
into a mandatory fee were successful at the AMS Annual General Meeting. This change recognizes QTVs
campus-wide contribution as a media service, and will afford QTV the stability to support future growth.
46
Alma Mater Society
Yearbook & Design Services

In 2011, Tricolour Publication Services was rebranded to form the current Yearbook & Design Services (YDS). YDS
is a student-run service with the objective of creating high-quality publications, design, and photography for the
Queens student community. Its core oerings remain the same: the Tricolour Agenda, the Tricolour Yearbook,
organizing graduate photography, and visual design services. The earliest version of YDS came in the form of the
1928 Tricolour, which has been produced continuously in 85 separate volumes.
The year brought many new and exciting changes to YDS. An additional management position was created,
entitled the External Design Manager. This allowed YDS to become a central provider of AMS visual design
materials while, supporting the implementation of a consistent visual identity for the AMS. As the position
expands, it will play an integral role in solidifying YDS as the go-to graphic design service for the Queens student
body.
Next year, YDS will join the P&CC and Tricolour Outlet under the portfolio of the Retail and Design Director. This
change will allow YDS to integrate with this triad of services, placing an emphasis on Design and
Photography that will ultimately help generate more revenue to support its operations.
In its final year structurally connected to the AMS other media services, YDS took full advantage of its close
relationship to Queens TV, releasing a number of commercials and marketing videos in partnership. Brand
awareness is very high as a result, manifesting in an increase in commissioned photography events.
Finally, recognizing yearbook delivery has been historically underutilized due to difficulty of payment, YDS
worked to implement an online payment method. This decision was made with the aim of increasing pick-up
rates, ultimately reducing the number of books in storage and returning them to alumni.
47
FINANCIALS
FINANCIALS
48
Alma Mater Society
50
51
52
54
55
57
Awards & Bursaries

Funds & Other Operations
Financial Statement Guide
Statement of Financial Position
Statement of Operations
Schedule of Internally Restricted Funds
49
AMS Awards and Bursaries

(Administered by Queens University)
Alma Mater Society Accessibility Queens Bursary
An endowed fund established by the AMS in
September 2007 from funds accumulated in the
Accessibility Queens Fund and awarded on the basis
of financial need to students with disabilities who are
registered with Queens Disability Services and who
are not eligible for funding through the OSAP Bursary
for Students with Disabilities. The bursary will help
with the costs associated with adaptive technology,
transportation costs , etc. The capital account balance
of the fund as at April 30, 2014 was $345,082. There
were three recipients that shared $12,900 in total
leaving a balance of $91 in the income account.
The Agnes Benidickson Bursary
An endowed fund established by the AMS in honour
of the Chancellor Emeritus, Agnes Benidickson. Funds
have been donated through student activity fees
and raised through Project Millennium. Awarded to
an undergraduate student in financial need in any
year of any faculty or school at Queens. There were
8 awardees that shared $39,300. The capital account
balance of the fund as at April 30, 2014 was $913,637
and the income account balance is $92.
The Ida Mmari Scholarship for Refugee Students
An expendable fund established by students of
Queens University in memory of Ida Mmari of
Tanzania, M. PI. 83. Funded from annual AMS student
activity fee donations, scholarships are awarded to a
refugee student and the scholarship is renewable for
up to four years. In 2013-2014, three recipients shared
awards of $66,283. The income account balance in
the fund as at April 30, 2014 was $165,911
Disabled Students Bursaries
An endowed fund established by the AMS and Arts
and Science 82, to assist disabled students attending
Queens. Bursaries are awarded on the basis of need.
In 2013-2014, one recipient was awarded $850. The
capital account balance of the fund as of April 30,
2014 was $10,317, with an income account balance
of $123.
Student Loans Programme
An expendable fund established by resolution of
the AMS Board of Directors in 1976 for the purpose
of providing short-term loans to Queens Students.
Funding derives from interest on capital held by the
50
AMS and from interest earned on the loans to students.

As at April 30, 2013 ,the student loan fund amounted
to $42,190.
The AMS Native Student Awards
An endowed fund established in 1990 by the AMS and
awarded to native students entering first year in any
faculty or school at Queens with preference given to
undergraduate students. Selection is based on
academic standing and/or financial need. With 20132014 awards of $2,400, the capital account balance
of the fund as at April 30, 2013 was $37,779 and the
income account balance was $0.
Queens Work Study
The Work Study program is jointly funded through
student activity fees and Queens administration. In
the past the Ontario government also funded this
program but funding was discontinued effective 20122013. The objective of the program is to provide an
opportunity for students in financial need to receive
priority for certain part-time jobs (generally on
campus) during their academic studies. Each year
approximately 500 students participate in the
program across campus. In 2013-14 the AMS received
$38,300 to be allocated to students in the program
employed at our services.
AMS Sesquicentennial Bursaries
An endowed fund established by the AMS in 1990.
Bursaries are awarded to students in any faculty or
school with preference to single parents with day-care
expenses. With 2013-2014 awards of $10,700 divided
among three recipients, the capital balance of the fund
as of April 30, 2014 was $140, 688 and the income
account balance of the fund was $115.
Queens International Students Bursary
Established in 1993 by the Queens International
Student Society, this bursary is awarded on the basis of
financial need with preference given to an
international student. The bursary is funded through
a student activity fee. In 2013-2014 four recipients
shared awards of $9,700. The income account balance
as of April 30, 2014 was $2,563.
STRIVE Awards in Environmental Studies
An expendable fund established by the AMS
Committee, Students Taking Responsible Initiatives for
Alma Mater Society
AMS Funds and Other Operations

a Viable Environment (STRIVE), and awarded to any
undergraduate student at Queens who combines
environmental volunteer work with academic
achievement. With awards of $500, an eligible
recipient was identified in 2013-2014. The income
account balance of the fund as of April 30, 2014 was
$101.
Accessibility Queens Fund
The Accessibility Queens Fund was created by
referendum in 1988 to support the capital needs of
Queens community members with disabilities on
campus. Accessibility Queens Committee directed
expenses to cover those arising from accessibility
capital projects and to include annual ongoing
accessibility programs and services. The balance of
this fund as at April 30, 2014 was $128,169.
Advantage Fund
The Advantage Fund was created by the Board of
Directors in 1997. It is composed of short-term
money-market and equity securities. Transfers from
the fund to the operating fund are made monthly at a
rate fixed by the Board of Directors and are recorded
as interfund transfers. The fund balance as at April
30, 2014 was $722,058.
Health and Dental Plans Fund
The Health and Dental Plans Fund was created by the
AMS Board of Directors in 2001 to provide
accountability and visibility of surpluses and
deficits arising from the previous years actual
benefits claimed as compared to the budgeted
amount and to ensure that surpluses and deficits do
not subsidize or draw on other areas of the AMS
operations. The balance of the fund as at April 30,
2014 is $1,174,821.
AMS Student Centre Fund
The AMS Student Centre Fund was established in
1991 to receive revenue from the AMS student centre
activity fee and from services space cost allocations.
The fund expenses included the AMS portion of the
JDUC Councils facility operations costs and
facility costs for MacGillivray-Brown Hall. Effective
May 2011, the AMS, Queens University and The
Society of Graduate and Professional Students
entered into the Management and Operations
Agreement which provides for a sharing of costs as-
sociated with certain facilities referred to as the

Student Life Centre. The fund is to be used by the
AMS to fund student centre facility based projects
and improvements. The balance in the fund as of
April 30, 2014 was $543,476.
Queens Centre Fund
The AMS had entered into an agreement with
Queens University which sets out the terms and
conditions relating to the AMSs financial
commitment of $25.5 million to support the capital
costs of the Queens Centre project. In 2012, Queens
acknowledged that they were unable to complete
the original project and therefore a new agreement
was negotiated. As part of this new agreement the
AMS is holding $500,000 plus interest earned on
payments held which results in a balance in the fund
as at April 30, 2014 of $561,622.
Student Life Centre Facilities Fund
The AMS entered into an agreement with Queens
University and The Society of Graduate and
Professional Students as referred to above in the
AMS Student Centre Fund. This agreement requires
the establishment of a capital and operating reserve
in support of the Student Life Centre facility costs.
There is a balance of $105,492 in the fund as at April
30, 2014.
Special Projects Grants
The following is a list of recipients of the AMS Special
Projects Grants from 2013-14. These grants are
allocated by a subcommittee of the AMS Board of
Directors and is chaired by the Vice-President
University Affairs. The recipients were Enactus
Queens, Queens Conference on Philanthropy,
Residence Society, Good Times Diner, Queens
International Affairs Association and Four Directions
Aboriginal Centre. The total amount distributed in
2013-2014 was $13,800.
51

INTRODUCTION
The Alma Mater Society of Queens University
Incorporated (AMS) prepares financial statements
on an annual basis which are audited by an
independent public accounting firm approved
annually by Assembly. The current auditors of the
AMS are KPMG LLP. The financial statements are
comprised of the statement of financial position as
of April 30th, which is the AMS fiscal year end, the
statements of operations, changes in net assets,
cash flows for the year ended April 30th and notes
to financial statements. Schedules of revenue, expenses and interfund transfers by major
activity which are included for further detail.
Copies of the audited financial statements
including the Independent Auditors Report may be
obtained from the AMS office or www.myams.org.
Selected financial information is included to
highlight the financial position and results of
operations of the AMS. In addition, a brief synopsis
of terms and definitions follow to assist in the
understanding of the financial information and
serve as a guide to the inexperienced reader.
INDEPENDENT AUDITORS REPORT
An Auditors Report is a formal opinion issued by an
independent public accounting firm to the
stakeholders of an entity on completion of an audit.
The report describes both management and auditor
responsibilities for the financial statements, a
description of what an audit involves, and an opinion
on the fair presentation of the financial statements in
accordance with accounting standards. An opinion is
given based on reasonable assurance that material
misstatement does not exist. There may be errors
but none significant to impact decisions made by
users of the financial statements. A clean or
unreserved opinion means that the auditors were
able to satisfy themselves that the above conditions
were met.
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STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

The statement of financial position, also known
as the balance sheet, is a snapshot of the financial
position of an entity on the last day of its year-end.
The balance sheet is divided into three main
sections; assets, liabilities and net assets. Net assets
represent the financial health of the entity.
Assets: An asset is an expenditure which is
expected to provide benefit to the entity now and
into the future. Assets are listed on a balance sheet
in order of liquidity (i.e. ease with which the asset
can be converted into cash). A review of the AMS
balance sheet shows a high level of current assets
held in the form of cash or near-cash items. Capital
assets are recorded at historical cost and are
amortized (a charge to operations) over a period of
time determined by the Board of Directors.
Liabilities: A liability is an obligation. Liabilities
are segregated between those due in one year and
less (current liabilities) and those which will come
due in greater than one year. The liabilities of the
AMS consist only of short term obligations due to
suppliers, government agencies and amounts held
by the AMS on behalf of other non-AMS groups.
Net assets: Net assets or equity is the residual after
deducting liabilities from assets. In essence, it represents the net worth of the company. The equity
section is typically divided into several key
components; the operating fund, reserves and
restricted funds. The operating fund is the
accumulated surpluses and deficits from
operations from inception of the entity. The
operating fund includes all activities except for
those managed by a fund or reserve. Reserves are
established and approved by the Board of
Directors. Lastly, an entity establishes restricted
funds to separately account for certain activities
outside normal operations. These restricted funds
are designated either internal or external
dependent upon the entitys control over the fund
and the involvement by external persons.
Alma Mater Society

STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
The statement of operations reports revenues less
expenses for an entity for a period of usually one year.
The AMS reported a net surplus from the operating
fund of $123,464 for the 12 months ended April 30,
2014. The breakdown for this number is provided on
the following schedules; Schedules of Service, Other
Corporate, and Government Revenue, Expenses and
Interfund Transfers. Also reported for the year are the
results for the restricted funds, which is a surplus of
$338,353. The composition of this number is
provided on the schedule of Restricted Funds
Revenue, Expenses and Interfund Transfers.
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS
The statement of changes in net assets provides a
continuity of the opening balance, activity during the
year, and ending balance for each component of net
assets for the 12 months ended April 30th.
STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

The statement of cash flows shows how changes
in balance sheet accounts and excess of revenue
over expenses affect cash and cash equivalents, and
breaks the analysis down between operating and
investing activities. The cash flow statement is
concerned with the flow of cash in and out of the
business, identifying an increase or decrease in cash
and cash equivalents during the year.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Notes to financial statements are additional
information found at the end of the financial
statements. Notes to financial statements help explain specific accounting policies used by the entity
and additional details required for the assessment of
the entitys financial condition. As required, the AMS
adopted new accounting standards for not-for-profit
on May 1, 2012, and these are the second financial
statements prepared in accordance with these
standards.
53
Financial Statements
THE ALMA MATER SOCIETY OF QUEENS UNIVERSITY INCORPORATED
Statement of Financial Position
April 30, 2014, with comparative figures for 2013
2014
2013
Assets
Current assets:
Cash

Marketable securities

Accrued interest

Accounts receivable
Inventories

Prepaid expenses
$ 1,455,136
4,832,964
19,603
386,187
200,748
34,573
6,929,211
Capital assets

Other Assets:

Student Loans Program
356,583
5,147, 826
27,459
874,420
182,279
23,471
6, 612,038
287,411
301,681
42,190
41, 950
$ 7,258,812
$ 6,955,669
Liabilities and Net Assets

Current Liabilities:

Accounts payable and accrued liabilities

Funds held for Queens Bands

Funds held for Union Gallery

Net assets:

Net assets invested in capital assets

Other reserves internally restricted

Internally restricted funds

Externally restricted funds

Operating fund- unrestricted
54
Alma Mater Society
$ 1,884,624
90,155
7,956
$ 2,027,200
90,541
23,668
1,982,735
2,141,409
287,411
250,000
2,568,524
667,114
1,503,028
5,276,077
301,681
250,000
2,313,870
583,415
1,365,294
4,814,260
$ 7,258,812
$ 6,955,669
Financial Statements
Statement of Operations
Year Ended April 30th, 2014, with comparative figures for 2013
2014
Revenue:
$

Services revenue

Other corporate revenue

Government revenue

Restricted fund revenue
Operating expenses:

Services expenses

Other corporate expenses

Government expenses

Restricted fund expenses
Operating
Fund
Restricted
Funds
5,940,846
2,536,874
1,024,050
9,501,770
4,065,214
4,065,214
Total
2013
Restricted
Funds
Operating
Fund
$ 5,940,846 $ 6,143,546
2,501,037
2,536,874
932,944
1,024,050
4,065,214
9,577,527
13,566,984
Total
3,891,639
3,891,639
$ 6,143,546
2,501,037
932,944
3,891,639
13,469,166
5,577,251
2,794,356
931,624
9,303,231
3,801,936
3,801,936
5,577,251
2,794,356
931,624
3,801,936
13,105,167
5,797,187
2,610,305
944,973
9,352,465
3,760,261
3,760,261
5,797,187
2,610,305
944,973
3,760,261
13,112,726
Excess of revenue over expenses

(expenses over revenue)
198,539
263,278
461,817
225,062
131,378
356,440
Interfund transfers - general
(75,075)
75,075
(178,943)
178,493
Excess of revenue over expenses

(expenses over revenue), net of
$
interfund transfers - general
123,464
338,353
$ 461,817
46,119
310,321
356,440
This schedule includes $960,568 revenue generated from and expenses incurred internally between Alma Mater
Society departments (2013 - $882,516)
55

Schedule of Service Revenues, Expenses and Interfund Transfers
2014
Expenses
Revenue
20,917
Common Ground Coffeehouse 1,155,183

Convocation Services
57,497
Publishing and Copy Centre
430,145
Queens Journal
252,859
Queens Student Constables
337,792
Queens TV
68,480
Queens Media and Journalism
Conference
4,275
S.M.A.R.T.
30,812
The AMS Pub Services
1,346,057
Tricolour Outlet
1,533,596
Walkhome
405,685
Yearbook and Design Services 297,548
AMS Food Centre
CFRC
16,959
1,020,930
45,725
385,431
275,982
329,511
77,810
Interfund
Transfers
$
2013
Net
Contribution
1,758
73,353
11,772
23,414
(59,523)
6,251
(12,480)
13,688
234,480
1,024,556
39,878
376,280
317,919
303,145
84,790
2,200
60,900
21,300
36,400
2,030
3,150
5,036
33,494
1,407,612
1,352,808
406,471
219,482
1,520
64,000
62,400
2,640
8,100
(761)
(4,202)
(125,555)
118,388
(3,426)
69,966
4,160
41,971
1,495,512
1,402,948
405,842
294,644
4,322
42,342
1,452,474
1,253,314
399,717
250,282
$ 5,940,846 $ 5,577,251
$264,640
$ 98,955
$ 6,143,546
$ 5,797,187
18,620
213,153
1,082,762
54,186
424,362
326,208
308,395
70,783
Net
Interfund
Transfers Contribution
Expenses
Revenue
60,000
21,000
36,400
2,000
3,100
$ 4,932
(21,327)
(1,794)
14,308
27,082
(28,111)
3,250
(17,107)
1,500
63,000
61,500
2,600
8,000
(162)
(1,871)
(19,962)
88,134
3,525
36,362
259,100
$ 87,259

Schedule of Other Corporate Revenues, Expenses and Interfund Transfers
2014
Revenue
AMS General Office
$1,920,333
Board of Directors
Communications Office
49,232
Human Resources Office
76,462
Information Technology Office
152,912
Marketing Office
54,179
Student Life Centre
283,756
$2,536,874
2013
Net
Interfund
$2,160,102 $ (156,958) $ (82,811)
(28,729)
79,529
(50,800)
11,033
38,199
2,974
73,488
27,069
125,843
2,547
51,632
265,563
18,193
Revenue
Expenses
$1,913,543
47,820
81,420
148,280
43,464
266,510
$2,076,722
44,190
38,822
72,334
140,083
34,151
204,003
$(67,917)
$2,501,037
$2,610,305
Expenses
$2,794,356
$ (189,565)
Alma Mater Society
Net
Interfund
$ (74,179)
$ (89,000)
9,474
(53,664)
8,998
9,086
8,197
9,313
62,507
$ (80,157)
$(29,111)
56

Schedule of Other Government Revenues, Expenses and Interfund Transfers
2014
Net
Contribution
$ 6,057
2013
Revenue
Net
Interfund
$ 2,938
$
-
Expenses
36,373 $
30,316
Interfund
Transfers
$
-
38,893
12,678
26,215
24,831
17,256
7,575
Campus Activities
Comission
490,591
475,733
14,858
443,837
483,882
(40,045)
Internal Affairs
Commission
126,904
123,555
3,349
127,437
117,146
10,291
93,052
85,459
7,593
70,515
70,353
162
58,713
57,944
769
55,722
68,683
(12,961)
87,056
76,731
10,325
88,334
78,415
9,919
67,168
52,254
14,914
74,136
68,173
5,963
25,300
16,954
8,346
11,904
7,775
4,129
$ 92,426
$ 932,944
$ 944,973
$ -
$ (12,029)
Revenue
Academic Affairs
Commission
Assembly
Municipal Affairs
Commission
O.U.S.A
Social Issues
Commission
Commission of Environment
and Sustainability
Vice-President
University Affairs
Expenses
$ 1,024,050 $ 931,624
36,228
33,290

Schedule of Restricted Funds Revenue, Expenses and Inerfund Transfers
2014
Revenue
Internally restricted
Accessibility Queen`s
Advantage
AMS Student Centre
Health and Dental Plans
Expenses
57,989
46,906 $
59,990
460,319
103,151
479, 049
2,303,767
2,398,322
$ 3,384,596 $ 2,524,897
Externally restricted
$
8,093
Queens Centre
Student Life Centre Facilities 672,525
680,618
Total Restricted Funds
Interfund
Transfer
2013
Net
Contribution
Revenue
Expenses
45,617
282,233
466,530
2,477,659
$33,436
36,467
93,371
2,290,413
5,000
72,758
437,287
90,000
$ (16,083)
327,571
(61,389)
4,555
$ 605,045
$ 254,654
$ 3,273,039 $ 2,453,687
Interfund
Transfer
Net
Contribution
5,000
57,664
296,638
80,000
$ 7,181
189,102
76,521
107,246
$ 439,302
$ 380,050
7,257
(76,986)
8,093
75,606
7,257
611,343
1,306,574
(618,245)
(680,120)
83,699
618,600
1,306,574
(618,245)
(69,729)
$ (75,075)
$ 338,353
$ 3,891,639 $ 3,760,261
$ (178,943)
$ 310,321
1,277,039
(680,120)
1,277,039
$ 4,065,214 $ 3,801,936
57
Your Society 2013-2014

Executive
President
Vice President (Operations)
Vice President (University Affairs)
Eril Berkok Nicola Plummer Thomas Pritchard
Council
Academic Affairs
Commissioner
Allison Williams
Retail Services
Director
Daniel Bone
r
Campus Activities
Commissioner
Gareth Savage
Hospitality &
Safety Services
Director
Justin Reekie
Commissioner of Internal
Affairs
Kristen Olver
Municipal Affairs
Commissioner
Catherine Wright
Social Issues
Commissioner
Michelle Williams
Commissioner of
the Environment
and Sustainability
Colin Robinson
Marketing
Officer
Jacob Trenholm
Student Centre
Officer
Annie Orvis
Board of Directors
The AMS Pub

Services
Head Manager
Stephanie Johnson
Assistant Managers
Tim Kavanaugh
Ru Teow
Lauren Yashar
Ben Schoening
Alyssa Bialowas
Ellie MacBain
Liam Wilby
Queens Student
Constables
Head Manager
Amritpal Athwal
Assistant Manager
Amy Chandler
Walkhome
Head Manager
Alex Harvey
Assistant Manager
Laura Casselman
Media Services
Director
Devin McDonald
Officers, Permanent Staff & Board of Directors

Communications
Officer
Sarah Kucharczuk
Human Resources
Officer
Theresa Hillis
Information Technology
Manager
Sean Braley
Clubs Manager
Clare Bekenn
Judicial Affairs
Director
Apollonia Karetos
Orientation Roundtable
Coordinator
Erin Maguire
Executive Director
Annette Paul
Information
Officer
Greg McKellar
Retail Operations Officer

John McDiarmid
Accounting
Assitant
Janice Kirkpatrick
Controller
Lyn Parry
Administrative Assistant
Maria Haig
Student Directors
Rico Garcia
Keenan Randall
Tuba Chishti
Oportunities &
Board of Directors
Craig Draeger
Outreach Coordinator Chair
Kristine Ramsbottom
Hana Delibasic
Rico Garcia
Dylan Trebels
Community Directors
Facilities Officer
Journal
David McConomy
Susan Goodyer
Wilf Johnston
Administrative
Daniel Coderre
Assistant
Ex-Officio Directors
Genevieve Cairns
Eril Berkok (voting)
Nicola Plummer (voting)
Thomas Pritchard (voting)
Annette Paul
Justin Reekie
Daniel Bone
Devin McDonald
Service Management
The Publishing &
Copy Centre
Head Manager
Madison Koekkoek
Assistant Managers
Summar Bourada
Milan Kshatriya
Lee Shelson
Queens Journal
Editor-in-Chiefs
Alison Shouldice,
Janina Enrile
Business Manager
Jacob Rumball
58
Tricolour Outlet
Head Manager
Kathleen Liu
Assistant Managers
Megan Donn
Mira Zunder
Meagan
Burnside-Holmes
Jacky Lam
Common Ground
H1ead Manager
Camilla James
Assistant Managers
Emily Durling
Paulina Shultz
Liam Faught
Taylor Mann
Julia Raco
Queens TV
Executive Producer
Travis Rhee
Business Manager
Mohammad
Kasaree
Yearbook & Design

Services
Head Manager
Arianna Scianaro
Production Manager
Breanne Martin
Alma Mater Society
S.M.A.R.T.
Head Manager
Michael Mooney
Student Life Centre
Administrative Manager
Mark Asfar
Operations Manager
Brittany Fox
Peer Support Centre
Director
Sebastian Gorlewski
Cha Gheill!
59
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AMS Annual Report, 2013-2014

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Publication

Editor-in-Chief: Mackenzie Biddie

Alma Mater Society

Alma Mater Society

The Alma Mater Society (AMS) of Queens

Annual Report 2013-2014

Alma Mater Society

Alma Mater Society

Annual Report 2013-2013

Alma Mater Society

Overview of the Society

Physical & Health

Nursing Science Society

MBA Student Executive

Annual Report 2013-2014

Alma Mater Society

Mission Statement & Mandate

Annual Report 2013-2014

Mission Statement & Mandate

Alma Mater Society

The Alma Mater Society had now begun to assume

Annual Report 2013-2014

gradually shifted away from academic issues and

Alma Mater Society

Throughout its evolution and growth, the AMS has

The AMS subsequently became a founding

Annual Report 2013-2014

Brief History (contd)

Relying entirely upon the extraordinary efforts and talent of a

Alma Mater Society

rolment Policy Paper from the Alma Mater Society

Annual Report 2013-2014

AMS Assembly (contd)

Assembly. After extensive presentations and

Alma Mater Society

AMS Assembly (contd)

Alma Mater Society

Annual Report 2013-2014

Physical & Health Education &

press to The Brew, the installation of air conditioner

Alma Mater Society

Annual Report 2012-2013

consultation in preparation of the AMS case and the

In terms of physical infrastructure, the Executive

Alma Mater Society

schedules during the summer.

Annual Report 2013-2014

Alma Mater Society

Annual Report 2013-2014

Academic Affairs Commission

Strategic Enrolment Management Group.

Alma Mater Society

Campus Activities Commission

further expanding the Arts Council, indicative of its

Annual Report 2013-2014

Commission of Internal Affairs

Alma Mater Society

Municipal Affairs Commission

Annual Report 2013-2014

Social Issues Commission

Alma Mater Society

Commission of the Environment

Annual Report 2013-2014

Alma Mater Society