UWindsor student union adds rights and empowerment officer

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University of Windsor students trying to navigate a winding campus justice system have a new ally in law student Becka Morisson.

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Morisson has been appointed as the first-ever student rights and empowerment officer within the University of Windsor Students’ Alliance. In her role, she will help full-time undergraduates to understand and exercise their rights.

“This has been a long-standing gap in student services,” Morisson said. “The idea to add this and have someone solely dedicated to student advocacy has been in the works for more than a year.”

Students who have been accused of academic misconduct or who are struggling with issues related to accessibility services or residence services can now turn to Morisson for help.

“There were other resources available through a system of different people but never one person devoted to seeing it through the process,” said Morisson who is also working on a masters in social work.

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Morisson will work closely with Yu Fei Qin, the UWSA vice-president for student advocacy.

“This position was developed to bridge the gap from faculty, and administration to students on a direct level,” Qin said. “Since Becka is taking on much of my portfolio when it comes to student cases, we thought that hiring someone more capable of emotional support and knowledge of the law would be beneficial for students who are reaching out to help.”

Qin said the office will assist students with academic misconduct allegations, non-academic misconduct allegations, grade appeals, human rights complaints, privacy complaints, and academic accommodations.

Morisson will look to find ways to improve the university justice system, decrease turnaround times for cases, increase awareness of students’ rights and shift the focus from punitive justice to restorative justice.

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“We’ve already started consulting with professors and student caucuses, offices and centers,” she said of gathering information that will plant the seeds of change.

She’d like the opportunity to study case reports handled by the university senate in an effort to identify problem areas and themes in order to “take a preventative approach” in the future.

Morisson said her new role was, at least in part, a response to the university’s treatment of Black law student Jordan Afolabi.

Afolabi was involved in a physical dispute with a white student on campus in February 2019. While Afolabi maintained the white student had been the aggressor, it was Afolabi who was placed under stiff sanctions and restrictions by the university’s Office of Student Experience.

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Support for Afolabi’s fight to seek justice and clear his name gained traction among students, staff and faculty, especially those in UWindsor’s BIPOC community.

“That was a big deal,” Morisson said. “It was a spark that turned into a flame and it brought to life a number of different issues.”

University administration has since acknowledged a history of systemic black racism and undertaken a number of initiatives to address it.

“I think it’s important to note that there are several things happening on campus in order to not have a repeat of past events on campus that negatively impacted our Black and racially marginalized students,” said Marium Tolson-Murtty, the university’s director of anti- racism organizational change. “This new UWSA position is yet another step in the right direction that we are taking as an institution to ensure our students feel safe in all aspects of their educational experience at UWindsor.”

The appointment has also been applauded by Community Legal Aid, which will work with Morisson on outreach initiatives and legal education workshops.

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