Advocacy

Supporting Students

Being a student comes with rights and responsibilities, engage in student advocacy and connect with available supports.

Email the NISU Office

ALL NISU offices are safe spaces should you need refuge from any kind of abuse or discrimination.

Navigating student life can be challenging, NISU staff are on hand to help students understand what is expected of them and can also help students advocate for fairness if those expectations are unreasonable, unfair, or discriminatory.

Learn about Rights & Responsibilities of being a student at NIC:

NIC Rights & Responsibilities

Learn Anywhere

​Contact the Student Advocates advocacy@nisu.ca

Student Advocate

Most often, the staff and faculty at North Island College have your best interests in mind. That being said, there are inherent power dynamics in education, if you feel your rights have been infringed while at NIC, it is your right to have a student advocate support you while navigating a resolution. The Student Advocate can join you for any meeting, with an instructor, department chair or dean, or NIC administrator. The Advocate acts as your supporter, is a second set of ears, and can help you understand your responsibilities and rights. 

If at any point you have questions or need advocacy with grade or other appeals, you can contact your students’ union by emailing advocacy@nisu.ca.

Learn about the policies and procedures that govern NIC. 

We Will

  • listen to student concerns and provide an assessment of the situation presented;
  • Provide information on college policies and procedures, as well as related student rights and responsibilities;
  • Assist students in gathering information about their situation;
  • Discuss possible courses of action;
  • Help students prepare for conversations with supervisors, instructors or administrators;
  • Participate in meetings between students and faculty or college administrators as a witness; and,
  • Refer students to service departments, or external agencies, for assistance and/or advice.

We Will Not

  • Offer legal advice or answer legal questions;
  • Offer counselling;
  • Represent students to the college;
  • Provide a testimonial at an academic hearing or other administrative tribunal convened by the college; and,
  • Offer advice on how to initiate legal action against the college, or participate in a legal proceeding against the college.

While at NIC you can reasonably expect that:

  1. Students have a right to a healthy and safe environment, and to be free from physical, sexual, or mental harassment, indignity, injury, or violence. All NISU offices are a safe refuge, should you need quick support.
  2. You have a right to be informed of, prior to registration, the extent of college related expenses to be incurred during studies at the college.
  3. You have the right to refer to any documents contained in your student records. Additionally, you have the right to add documents to college student records, including written documentation refuting the contents of documents of a disparaging nature.
  4. You have the right to be provided with written course descriptions including means of student assessment and to be assured that these will not be substantially changed throughout the course of your semester
  5. You have the right to be informed of methodologies, assignments to be handed in, penalties for delays, and the estimated waiting period for obtaining academic results at the beginning of the course.
  6. You have a right to attend class. If you cannot attend class for any reason, you can request the information that has been missed. You should not be penalized for missing any part of your class as long as you are fulfilling the attendance requirement of your course.
  7. All students have a right to freedom of opinion and expression in the classroom within the context of the course content.
  8. You have a right to proper and impartial evaluation of performance
  9. Students have the right to be provided with instructors who possess appropriate knowledge and teaching skills in relation to their course of instruction.
  10. Students have the right to appropriate services and resources that support instruction and student learning. 
  11. Members also have access to Legal Assistance Services.

All students should be aware of North Island College policies and your rights as students

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Local and Provincial Campaign Victories

Student leaders have been working for many years to better the student experience, to learn about some past victories, read below.

Health & Dental

Health & Dental

Securing health and dental benefits for full-time students.

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