Applications are now open!
Let us know you're interested by Friday, September 18!
Student engagement is vital to Renison. We are seeking student representatives interested in joining a number of college committees this Fall.
We are looking for first-year and upper-year undergraduate and graduate students interested in:
- Gaining experience on either an advisory or action-oriented
- committee working with Renison staff, faculty, and administration
- Learning about the democratic process of committee engagement
- Making a difference in their Renison community!
Take a look through our list of college committees seeking representation this Fall! We are seeking student representatives for the following committees:
- Academic Council
- Accessibility Matters Committee
- Green Team Committee
- Student Affairs Advisory Committee
- Student Affairs, Global Engagement, and Education (SAGE) Council
- Student Wellness & Advocacy Committee
- Dean Search Committee
How do I express my interest in joining a committee?
It's easy! You can:
- Send an email to the email address shown below for the respective committee representative to let them know you're interested!
or - Complete our interest form at the bottom of this page and select which committees you're interested in - we will then follow-up with you by email!
Thank you for your interest in wanting to contribute to making positive change at Renison University College. The student voice is important in all aspects of a thriving campus community!
Feeling nervous sitting on a college committee?
To support students who are joining a college committee at Renison, online LEARN training modules are available.
This training is designed to help students better understand the ins-and-outs of boards, councils, and committees at Renison, and how they can make a valuable contribution as a student serving on a committee.
Upon completion of the modules and the final quiz in the course, students will receive a LEARN “badge” to recognize their completion of the one-hour course.
How to Enrol in the Training Modules
- Visit LEARN and log in with your WatIAM
- Click the "Self Registration" link in the toolbar menu.
- Find "Student Involvement on a Renison College Committee" in the list of course options.
- Click the "REGISTER" button on the next page, followed by the "SUBMIT" button, then "FINISH button.
- Click "Go to Course Offering Student Involvement on a Renison College Committee"
- Click the "Begin the Training!" button and get started.
Learn about Renison's college committees
Academic Council
Academic Council (AC) shall have general responsibility for academic programming offered at Renison University College, in which students take courses to satisfy University of Waterloo degree requirements, or related components (e.g., minor, diploma) requiring approval by the Senate of the University of Waterloo (UW). AC shall consider and make recommendations to the Board regarding academic matters and shall serve as a forum for discussion on translating the mission of Renison into an educational vision and framework.
AC membership includes two (2) student representatives enrolled in Renison-offered program plans (SDS, BSW, or MSW). Normally student representatives must come from different program plans. Students who are only enrolled in a minor or diploma are not eligible to serve on Academic Council.
Student positions will be appointed by no later than October 1 each year.
AC meets once per month on average with a minimum of two meetings per academic term. Meetings are typically two hours long and are held in person on Friday mornings. Student representatives must not have classes on Friday mornings and must be able to travel to Renison University College to attend these meetings.
Student representatives on AC are also eligible to serve on the Academic Council General Standing Committee. More details about this committee can be provided upon request.
Questions? Want to sign up?
Sign up before Friday, September 18 by contacting:
Ally Vonk
ally.vonk@uwaterloo.ca
Office: Room 2601 (President's Office)
Accessibility Matters Committee
The Accessibility Matters Committee at Renison is an advisory body established to enhance equitable access on the Renison campus for students, staff, faculty, and visitors.
- Serves as a resource to the Renison community on issues related to accessibility;
- Serves as the Renison campus contact point for all accessibility concerns; Raises awareness and make recommendations to the Renison community and appropriate departmental and administrative contacts on real and potential barriers to accessibility, including sharing best practices for addressing issues and eliminating barriers;
- Provides, when needed, liaison with services on campus at the University of Waterloo to ensure that accessibility barriers are effectively responded to for student, staff, faculty, and visitor members of Renison’s community.
The committee has one meeting every 1-2 months for the Fall and Winter semesters.
The Accessibility Matters Committee is seeking three student representatives:
- One residence student
- One undergraduate student or graduate student in SDS, School of Social Work, or studying in Culture and Language Studies
- One student studying in Community and Professional Education, including the English Language Institute
Questions? Want to sign up?
Sign up before Friday, September 18 by contacting:
Accessibility Matters Committee
ren-accessibility@uwaterloo.ca
Green Team Committee
The Renison Green Team is comprised of representatives from every department across Renison. Our goal is to provide expertise for the development and implementation of environmental and sustainability initiatives in and around Renison.
We welcome student reps who are committed to advocating and applying sustainable practices and ideas throughout the college. We especially like having one Renison Residence student representative and one non-resident student representative, but everyone is welcome!
Participating on the Renison Green Team involves:
- A one or two-semester commitment
- Working and collaborating with Renison Green Team members
- Providing a student lens on how to best promote sustainable actions to the Renison community
- Committing to assisting with a project or task during their tenure
The commitment will involvement 1-2 meetings per term; extra meetings as required for work on sub-committees.
The Green Team committee is looking for two interested student representatives who wish to join.
Questions? Want to sign up?
Sign up before Friday, September 18 by contacting:
Renison Green Team
renison.greenteam@uwaterloo.ca
Student Affairs Advisory Committee
The Student Affairs Advisory Committee's mandate is to make recommendations to the SAGE Council concerning Student Affairs at Renison. The duties of the Student Affairs Advisory Committee include making recommendations to the SAGE Council concerning the approval of new Student Affairs programs and initiatives at Renison or the modification or deletion of existing Student Affairs programs and initiatives at Renison; make recommendations to the SAGE Council on strategic planning in relation to Student Affairs; ensure adequate policies regarding Student Affairs are established and kept up to date; make recommendations to the SAGE Council concerning work within SAAC subcommittees; promote staff access to professional development (PD) opportunities; ensure a ‘framework’ is in place to support and disseminate best/effective practices.
The Student Affairs Advisory Committee is seeking one student representative:
- One residence student
Questions? Want to sign up?
Sign up before Friday, September 18 by contacting:
Ryan Connell, Assistant Director of Student Experience & Housing
ryan.connell@uwaterloo.ca
Office: Room 1108 (Ministry Centre)
Student Affairs, Global Engagement, and Education (SAGE) Council
Student Affairs, Global Engagement, and Education Council (SAGE Council) shall have general responsibility for Student Affairs and the School of Global Engagement and Education initiatives. Student Affairs includes but is not limited to Student Experience and Housing, Renison International Office, Chaplaincy, and Library.
The School of Global Engagement and Education (SGEE) includes Renison courses and programs that satisfy conditional admission or entry requirements to the University of Waterloo and Renison courses, programs and micro-credentials that are not for University of Waterloo credit and may or may not require approval by the Senate of the University of Waterloo (UWaterloo). SGEE units include Renison International Programs, Continuing Education, and the Institute of Intercultural Research and Community Engagement (IIRCE).
The SAGE Council is seeking two student representatives:
- One student living in Renison Residence
- One student enrolled in the School of Global Engagement and Education programs, including Renison International Programs.
Questions? Want to sign up?
Sign up before Friday, September 18 by contacting:
Ally Vonk
ally.vonk@uwaterloo.ca
Office: Room 2601 (President's Office)
Student Wellness & Advocacy Committee
The Student Wellness and Advocacy Advisory Committee is an opportunity for students to share input about student wellness needs, as well as advocacy needs and issues based on student perspective from personal experience and/or peers’ experiences at Renison. As a committee, we will work on several areas:
- Advocacy and Advisory Work: Making recommendations to relevant leadership at Renison for how to best serve student life and wellness. The committee also serves as an advisory to Renison’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT) on issues facing and related to students; in this way, the committee serves to promote the collective voice of students on issues that our senior leadership/administration may advocate for with internal or external stakeholders.
- Advising and supporting all Renison students, outside of their courses and when other resources have been spent, are unavailable, or unknown, with issues such as:
- student conduct appeals (student life and residence),
- sexual violence response,
- issues of harassment,
- physical safety/accident/slip and fall response,
- physical accessibility concerns (coordinating with Renison’s Accessibility Committee),
- and other issues, such as invisible barriers, as they emerge.
- Event planning: planning and executing two listening events per year, to get input and feedback from students around wellness and issues they may be facing or dealing with.
- Food Security: supporting the Community Fridge and Community Cupboard at Renison in promoting food security for students. Also, seeking to improve awareness and access to Food Security resources on and off campus by providing relevant information through flyers and online information about Renison, UWaterloo and Community resources.
- Improving awareness and access to resources: working with relevant Renison areas, we hope to improve the availability of flyers and online information about wellness resources at Renison and UWaterloo so that students know what to access.
The committee hosts two 1.5-hour meetings per term and additional 2 hours per month is spent on the implementation of advocacy and wellness initiatives outside the meeting times.
The Student Advocacy and Wellness Committee is seeking three student representatives
- One student studying in the School of Social Sciences and Humanities (including Social Development Studies or Culture and Language Studies courses at Renison)
- One student studying in the School of Social Work (BSW or MSW)
- One student studying in the School of Global Engagement and Education, including Renison International Programs
Questions? Want to sign up?
Sign up before Friday, September 18 by contacting:
Student Wellness and Advocacy Committee
ren-swac@uwaterloo.ca
Dean Search Committee
The Dean Search Committee has been constituted to conduct a search for a new Dean for Renison University College. The Dean serves as the senior academic officer of Renison and is part of Renison’s Senior Leadership Team. They are responsible for coordinating, overseeing, and supporting the academic programs of Renison through leadership, strategic planning, operational management, and advocacy.
The Dean Search Committee will meet regularly throughout the 2026-27 academic year until a new Dean is hired. The committee will evaluate the needs for the position and develop a revised job description and posting. They will then participate in candidate interviews and make a recommendation to the President on which candidate to hire.
The Dean Search Committee membership is seeking:
- One student representative enrolled in a Renison-offered program plan (SDS, BSW, or MSW).
The committee may meet online or in-person. The student representative should be able to travel to Renison for in-person meetings as needed.
Questions?
Ally Vonk
ally.vonk@uwaterloo.ca
REN 2601