Related Equity and Athletic Committees

As part of StFX’s institutional commitment to advancing EDIA, StFX has established an Accessibility Advisory Committee to guide the implementation of the Accessibility Plan 2022-2025 which describes StFX accessibility-related commitments, and the strategies and initiatives that will be used to achieve them.

The overarching goal of the plan is to articulate our institutional commitment and approach to advancing accessibility on campus and identify actionable initiatives that will help us progress towards our vision of an equitable, accessible university community.

The Equity Advisory Committee at StFX University is advisory to the Office and Human Rights and Equity and as such, supports, promotes and equity, diversity, and inclusion across the institution. The Equity Committee has, among other projects, been working on evidence-based recommendations to advance employment equity with StFX and this learning shall provide a source of guidance and direction for Varsity Athletics.  

To address the crucial issue of racism in all its forms within our community, the President’s Action Committee on Anti-Racism (PACAR) has crafted a solution-focused PACAR Anti-Racism Action Plan, in April 2023 that advances equity and anti-racism and inclusion across our campus.

With a focus on anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism, the plan’s 43 recommendations across four key environments: Inclusive Teaching, Learning, and Research; Working and Organizational Environment; Living and Social Environment; and Community Environment. The Athletics Equity and Safety Advisory Committee shall draw from the findings, recommendations, and the ongoing work of the committee to guide priority setting within varsity athletics.

The Sexual Violence Prevention Committee is an advisory committee to the President.  The Committee’s responsibilities include review, advise and support for sexual violence awareness and prevention programs and policy for the University. While its primary focus is broader, the committee’s work intersects with the safety and well-being of student-athletes in varsity sports, especially concerning gender-based violence and sexual violence prevention.

The Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Advocate (SVPRA) has recently tabled a new university wide approach to sexual violence prevention and response that moves StFX beyond its current progress to reach the goals of meaningful engagement and improved culture across the university. The committee is undertaking a policy review in the coming year.

The Athletics Equity and Safety Advisory Committee on Equity and Safety shall explore the specific needs of varsity athletics in relation to gender and sexual violence prevention and response and chart the pathways forward to enhance meaningful engagement within varsity athletics.  

Conducted by Watershed Legal Projects (formerly CCLISAR), this aims to comprehensively evaluate the university's response to sexualized violence and the broader campus culture in this context. The mandate involves assessing the effectiveness, trauma-informed nature, procedural fairness, and responsiveness of StFX's Sexual Violence Policy, implemented in 2020, as well as other intersecting university policies and procedures.

The review extends to factors within the university, including residences and athletics, contributing to a culture that tolerates sexualized violence. The process encompasses document reviews, stakeholder consultations, an Expert Advisory Group workshop, follow-up consultations, and a final presentation to the university in June 2024.

The Independent Review Panel and Expert Advisory Group consist of external individuals with expertise in gender-based harm, university complaints processes, legal responses to sexualized violence, and relevant experience in the university context. The outcome will include draft updates to the Sexual Violence Policy, a supplementary report with recommendations, and specific measures to address cultural factors contributing to sexualized violence, all of which will be made public.

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The committee, through its chair, provides advice to the executive director and the board of directors of Atlantic University Sport on matters related to equity, diversity and inclusion within the conference. Using the collective expertise of its members and other consultants, the committee aims to safely, effectively and thoroughly gather information on the lived experiences of those participating in university sports, focused on but not limited to student-athletes. The experiential data collected through this committee will help to inform internal decision-making, strategy and education opportunities.

The Committee’s role is to assist management in developing policies, strategies, and implementation plans to identify and address systemic and structural barriers to participation in U SPORTS based on ethno-racial background, religion, sexual diversity, gender and/or disability.

The StFX Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) is a committee made up of student-athletes from every varsity team assembled to provide insight on the student-athlete experience. SAAC offers input on the regulations and policies that affect student-athletes’ lives at StFX University and works to enhance the student-athlete experience.