Otago University Representative Students’ Society

(OURSS)

Who are we?

OURSS is a charitable Society of students at the University of Otago who are
concerned that the default representative student body, the Otago University
Students’ Association (OUSA), no longer listens to or acknowledges the concerns of
their members. OURSS is concerned that OUSA have neglected to listen to and
address the concerns of their membership and are not acting in the best interests of
students by failing to convey a clear picture of how the association is going to deal
with the issue of voluntary student membership. Finally, OURSS believes that
disenfranchised students who choose to leave OUSA need an alternative student
voice which will represent them and voice their concerns.

What do we want?
OURSS has two initial goals:

1. To provide students with a truly representative voice which is directed by

members from the bottom up, and not by the governing officers from the top
down. This includes being eventually formally recognised by the University
and being allowed access to University Committees and Working Parties,
even if only as informal spectators at first.
2. To restore disenfranchised members who choose an alternative student
representative body to the financial position they were in prior to being
automatic levy-paying members of OUSA. This involves awarding members,
who withdraw membership from OUSA and allocate their levies to OURSS,
Academic Student Scholarships in order to restore them financially to the
levels they were before being automatic members of OUSA.

How will we achieve this?

We need to work through initial steps to be in the position to achieve both goals by
the beginning of Semester 2 2011:

1. Members are required to join OURSS and share our mission and values.
2. OUSA must change their Membership Policy in the face of voluntary student
membership so that it is easier for students’ to object from membership,
 including relaxed time frames, provisions on the reasons for withdrawing
membership, and allocation of levies.
3. OURSS must form a recognised registered incorporated society and then
apply for and gain charitable status.
4. For maximum political impact, OURSS members who wish to have their levies
returned, must withdraw membership from OUSA en masse.
5. OURSS will in theory have a legitimate student mandate once they reach a
membership which exceeds half the quorum requirements of the old OUSA
Student General Meetings, plus one. This theoretically represents the amount
of students it would take to change official OUSA policy, and thus be
representative of legitimate student opinion.

How will OURSS be different from OUSA?

1. OURSS will have a ‘back to basics’ focus on representation and advocacy,
leaving service provision to OUSA and their massive asset base. Thus
OURRS will be run on a voluntary basis, reliant only on donations and
fundraising for any costs incurred.
2. OURSS will hold formal Committee Meetings monthly and Society Meetings
bi-monthly. Members will be directly consulted for their opinion on Committee
decisions to be made and those opinions taken into account in any decision
making. Members will also have the opportunity to directly control the Society
through Society Meetings.
3. OURSS will focus directly on academic and welfare issues affecting students
at the University of Otago, and will leave issues of national importance to
representative national bodies. This means that more direct engagement with
University, Council and local parliamentary officials regarding issues directly
affecting University of Otago students.
4. OURSS will listen to every member, and reflect their opinions back to officials
when discussing and making decisions on matters of interest to students. This
means reflecting back the variety of opinions on offer no matter how small a
minority that opinion may be.
5. OURSS recognises that communication with members is a two-way street
and that it needs to be open and honest. Thus OURSS has no official
provisions for confidentiality in Committee or Society meetings, and it has a
robust set of Standing Orders so that, if need be, Society discussion can be
structured in a way which is fair to everybody.