Applied lessons from student politics

Several months later I received notice of the pending election for the board, which would run under the new system. And I still wondered if we’d done the right thing. So I resolved to test this system. I applied for nomination, citing my experience in not-for-profit governance (meaning my students’ union) and my views on Internet-related issues as they apply to CIRA. And to my utter shock I was accepted as a candidate and ultimately elected to the board for a three-year term.

Nothing I did that led to my election, and in fact nothing I’ve done since as a director, is substantially different from what I did in my students’ union. The stakes are a bit higher. CIRA has over 40 full-time employees and provides a service that has rapidly become critical public infrastructure. But aside from the scope and seriousness of CIRA’s operations, what we do as the board of a not-for-profit corporation is basically the same thing. I learned it all in student politics.

The reason I think this is an important story is that far too often students are quick to dismiss what they do and what they learn in student organizations. That’s a shame on two counts. First, by minimizing the significance of unions and other groups on campus, students give themselves an excuse to take their responsibilities lightly. After all, if it isn’t a “real” job or responsibility then it doesn’t demand the same level of commitment or attention. But secondly, even the students who are effective and responsible often minimize what they’ve learned or don’t recognize the full scope of their accomplishments. These are real and transferable skills. You can use them even once you are done with school.

CIRA has been a blast for the past three years. I’m very glad that through a combination of luck and good timing I was able to move almost directly from my activities on campus into something similar, once my role in the union was done. Not everyone is as lucky, and finishing up with student life can leave a big void for a lot of graduating students. But the most important message I want to bring to students who are active on campus and in their organizations is that it doesn’t have to end just because you graduate. There are so many organizations and good causes out there, in need of your skills and talents. You might flail around for a bit, before you find a new place to contribute, but those opportunities exist. Don’t dismiss what you’ve learned or underestimate your skills.

All of this is on my mind, by the way, because my three-year term on the board of CIRA is just about done. Now I’m running for reelection. So if you happen to have a dot-ca domain please get in touch, and pass along the suggestion to anyone else you know who has one. I could use the support! But win or lose, this time around, the big victory was realizing that I could keep doing all the things I loved doing as a student, and graduation didn’t have to be the end. I hope all of you realize that also, and see the value in everything you’ve learned and done outside of the classroom. It really does translate to the outside world. I promise.

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Questions are welcome at jeff.rybak@utoronto.ca. Even the ones I don’t post will still receive answers, and where I do use them here I’ll remove identifying information.