Position Descriptions

Chair and Executive Coordinator

By-law description:

“shall be a signing officer and shall chair all executive meetings. The Chair and Executive Coordinator is also responsible for organizing the executive and facilitating communication between executives for projects.”

Casual description:

The Chair and Executive Coordinator acts as the “glue” of the association and coordinates all executive members. They make sure everyone is cohesive and everyone is able to perform their role. Further, they schedule and chair all executive meetings. Finally, they are often the main point of contact of the association. They also take up any roles which are not filled by members, especially the ASFA Representative role and the Sustainability and Inclusivity Advisor’s Sheila Mason Bursary project.

Internal Relations and Faculty Liaison

By-law description:

“shall be the primary liaison between the Association and the Departmental Administration and Faculty.”

Casual description:

The Internal Relations and Faculty Liaison sits on philosophy department faculty meetings. They have speaking and voting rights on departmental matters. They are also the relation to all things internal to the university, such as other university groups, clubs, and associations. Finally, they are commonly the minute-taker for executive meetings.

Inter-university Liaison

By-law description:

“shall be the primary liaison between the Association and other bodies outside of the University.”

Casual description:

The Inter-university Liaison is the main liaison between SoPhiA and other university’s associations and groups. They also deal with any bodies outside the university. Their main role is the support and managing of Philopolis Montreal, a three-day Montreal inter-university philosophy conference.

For instance, they might work with the McGill Philosophy Student Association to plan an inter-university event.

Accountant and Budget Coordinator

By-law description:

“shall be a signing officer and will hold responsibility over the financial matters of the Association.”

Casual description:

The Accountant and Budget Coordinator is the main executive in charge of the budget and finances. They will work on creating and maintaining the budget, and will act as one of two signing officers for any payments (they sign checks).

Outreach and Communications Coordinator

By-law description:

“shall be responsible for the distribution of information to the membership.”

Casual description:

The Outreach and Communications Coordinator is the main line of communication between the philosophy student body and SoPhiA. They might send the departmental assistant information to add to the philosophy newsletters, manage the association’s social media accounts or website, create flyers and advertisements, or do face-to-face communications. They will provide philosophy students with up-to-date and relevant information about the association and any information of events which pertain to philosophy department.

They may also outreach to the wider community.

Academic Accessibility Representative

By-law description:

“shall be the main representative of the Association on all matters relating to curriculum within the Department and shall also be responsible for coordinating all academic services and events provided for the Members.”

Casual description:

The Academic Accessibility Representative will keep up to date on the philosophy program curriculum, including any changes. They will also manage the association’s academic services such as study groups, a tutoring program, or our philosophy library.

Events Coordinator

By-law description:

“shall be responsible for coordinating all social events organized for the Members and also be responsible for booking space and materials required for events and services provided to the Members.”

Casual description:

The Events Coordinator will suggest, plan, manage, and schedule all social events organized within SoPhiA. They are the booking officer of the association (they book the events).

SoPhiA Review Editor-in-Chief

By-law description:

“shall be responsible for accepting submissions from students as well as hiring a team of editors for the creation of an undergraduate student journal titled ‘The SoPhiA Review’. The Editor-in-Chief shall also be responsible for any duties deemed fit to the creation and upkeep of a journal including but not limited to: printing, publishing, distributing, calling out for submissions, managing editors, and reviewing submissions.”

Casual description:

The SoPhiA Review Editor-in-Chief hires and manages a team of editors and designs and creates the current year’s association journal, The SoPhiA Review.

ASFA Representative

By-law description:

“shall be the main representative of the Association to its Membership, and to the ASFA Executive. If the position is not run for independently then the position is assumed under the obligations of the Chair and Executive Coordinator.”

Casual description:

The ASFA Representative is the main liaison between SoPhiA and ASFA, our umbrella association. They also sit on ASFA council meetings.

Sustainability and Inclusivity Advisor

By-law description:

“shall audit and direct the events and projects of the executive towards sustainable options and inclusivity. The Sustainability and Inclusivity Advisor must also uphold the distribution of the Sheila Mason Bursary as described in our bylaws. If the position is not run for independently, then the duty of upholding the distribution of the Sheila Mason Bursary is assumed under the obligations of the Chair and Executive Coordinator.”

Casual description:

The Sustainability and Inclusivity Advisor makes sure the association is being inclusive and sustainable. They might review our events to make sure they are not excluding individuals or providing a barrier to some individuals and are sustainable. They also manage the Sheila Mason Bursary, an undergraduate bursary for women, BIPOC , individuals who identify as LGBTQIA+, or students with disabilities.

They may also plan inclusivity events throughout the year or propose some changes in the department for a more inclusive and/or sustainable philosophy community.