About Us

Our History and Purpose

The Student Union of John Abbott College (SUJAC) created back in the 70s has always promoted student involvement concerning issues that will ultimately affect student life and the student population. The students are the largest party contributing to the college system, because of this we aim to show our concern and be there for the students. John Abbot is one of the five major English colleges located in the greater Montreal region which allows SUJAC to have a special perspective in Quebec.

Our Roles

All John Abbott students are represented by approximately 45 Congress seats (each seat representing around 125 students) and six Executives. These Executives:

Are responsible for the daily business of the Student Union.
Act as spokespeople for the opinions and concerns of the student body.
Put all decisions made by Congress into action and report back to Congress on a regular basis with their progress.

Executive Positions

PRESIDENT

The President is the primary spokesperson for SUJAC and leads the Executive Team, SUJAC, President also acts as the liaison between the student body and the Administration. As such, the President traditionally sits on the Board of Governors, the Executive Board, and may attend Congress meetings. It's crucial that the President is seen attending events, meetings, and activities around the campus to maintain the Student Union's presence at the College. The President oversees all goings-on within the Student Union and ensures that SUJAC abides by the Constitution, which includes chairing the Statutes and Statements Committee to make any revisions to the Constitution, This role entails supporting the other Executives in their roles, if needed, while ensuring that the team is on track to accomplish goals/priorities throughout the year. The President must also see the bigger picture surrounding SUJAC's initiatives and projects in the face of the Administration. This position therefore requires excellent leadership, teamwork and communication skills. All of this considered, the position of President is a significant time commitment that requires dedication in order to be effective. Between meetings and other SUJAC-related work, the President's workload is equivalent to taking on an additional course during the semester. At the end of the day, the more someone truly wants to help students and be a meaningful President, the more effective they will be.

VICE-PRESIDENT ACADEMIC

The VP Academic plays an important role in student success. The main responsibility is to be available for students who encounter any difficulties with teachers or course work. The VP Academic helps guide students through the College’s process to resolve academic complaints and offer support in the form of representation at meetings or otherwise. To do so, it is important to be familiar with the IPESA (Institutional Policy on the Evaluation of Student Achievement). Traditionally, the VP Academic attends committee meetings like Academic Council and Cheating and Plagiarism. It is important that the VP Academic be in tune with the student body in order to effectively communicate their concerns. The role of VP Academic may be more time consuming then some of the other Executive positions.

VICE-PRESIDENT INTERNAL

The role of the VP Internal is two-fold--Clubs and student life. Officially, the VP Internal chairs the Clubs Committee-in charge of regulating Clubs, taking decisions relating to their position in the College and making sure that they respect the rules set by the Clubs Manual. A little like the President, the VP Internal will also be responsible for making sure that the Union plans activities for the student body. This role entails the need to be creative and on the pulse of the day-to-day happenings of the student body, just like any of the other Executive roles. Also, the VP Internal will be working closely with the Student Activities office at JAC and student-run Clubs and will be working with the other Executives on projects and on different opportunities and events for the student body. This role may seem daunting but is just as much fulfilling as it is enjoyable. By the end of the year, the VP Internal will have practiced diplomacy, time-management, and team-working skills.

VICE-PRESIDENT FINANCE

The role of the VP Finance is to approve all SUJAC spending and oversee budgets. The main responsibilities are to chair Student Activity Committee (SAC) and to be an active member of the Clubs Committee SAC allocates the Expenses & Revenue Budget for student life (Sports, Clubs, Student Activities, Orientation, etc.) at the end of the school year for the following year and approves fund requests throughout the year. Specific Club budgets are passed through the Clubs Committee, which handles all Clubs matters (approving Club Status of new groups, allocating rooms, managing budgets, etc.) The VP Finance is responsible for approving SAC spending by signing all receipts at the Student Activities office, which needs to be done every few days. Aside from these primary responsibilities, the VP Finance needs to be good at working in a team and offer assistance to the other Executives. This position offers the freedom to take on other projects, which don’t necessarily have to relate to finance, as it is not as time-consuming as some of the other positions.

VICE-PRESIDENT EXTERNAL

The role of the VP External is to be the official representative of the Student Union outside the College. The primary job is to preserve diplomatic relations with other Anglophone CEGEP Student Unions through the inter-collegial group called CASAQ (Coalition of Anglophone Student Associations of Quebec). Moreover, the VP External is responsible for engaging with companies, organizations, and other institutes to bring favorable opportunities, such as discounts, to the John Abbott College community. Serving as the VP External is a remarkable journey that opens countless doors but can be a demanding job. This position requires you to spend time on non-SUJAC meetings outside of school hours, online. Some of the prerequisites to succeed in this position are to be able to communicate with others diplomatically while protecting the interests of SUJAC, being flexible, and getting along with the different personalities of student leaders.

VICE-PRESIDENT COMMUNICATIONS

The VP Communications is in charge of SUJAC's website and social media accounts. This job is to promote SUJAC activities, encourage participation in Clubs, keep the website updated, and keep students informed about SUJAC. VP Communications is also in charge of the SUJAC community on Omnivox, which is mainly used to post important updates to The Portal and to print posters to place around the school as another means of promoting SUJAC. The job is malleable, and you can make it your own depending on your strengths and how you like to interact with the student body (for example, post Instagram stories for students' responses, develop contests, etc.) It is important for the VP Communications to be creative, outgoing and have a good understanding of social media and to make posts at least 3 times per week, as well as being involved as part of the SUJAC Executive Team.

Congress

Those in CONGRESS:

Represent the interest of students on college committees.
Conduct surveys and petitions to determine student opinions.

PLEASE NOTE:

Nominations for congress open in the fall and winter (limited) semesters

John Abbott College The 2024-2026 SUJAC Congress @instasujac #sujac #congress #2024-2025 #johnabbottcollege Instagram.jpeg

Want to be a part of CONGRESS?

JOIN NOW