SPRING 2025
ELECTIONS

Election Information

The Master of Museum Studies Student Association (MUSSA) holds elections twice a year, in the first month of the fall term and last month of the spring term. Second-year council positions are elected in the spring term to fulfill MUSSA's duties over the summer, and the remaining council positions (first-year positions as well as any unfilled positions) are elected in the fall term. Reference Article VI of MUSSA's constitution for more information on elections.All registered MMSt and CDP students are eligible to run and vote in MUSSA elections.

Important Dates

Nomination Period - March 16th - March 21, 2025

Nominate yourself for one of the available positions using the following Google Form found here.
You will need a nomination statement (max 1000 characters) and a photo of yourself!

All Candidates Meeting - Monday, March 17th 2025, 7pm EST

Please attend this meeting if you are interested in running for any available positions in the Fall elections. We will discuss the election process and positions in more detail. Attending this meeting does not obligate you to nominate yourself, so you are free to attend the meeting even if you're just interested in learning more. You can attend the Zoom meeting here!
Watch a recording of the meeting here.
Read the informational slide show here.

Voting Period: March 24th - March 30th, 2025

Voting will take place through a Google form that will require a UofT email.
Check your UofT email for more information!

Results Announced: April 4th, 2025

Why run for MUSSA?

Participating in student council is a great way to get involved in life at the iSchool and in the Museum Studies program, and to make sure your voice is heard. You can develop new skills in event planning, budgeting, advocacy, committee work, liaising with the faculty, collaboration, and more! It is also an excellent opportunity to make connections with your peers, faculty members, future leaders in the industry, and current industry professionals.

Election Guidelines

GUIDELINES

Registered MMSt and CDP students may nominate themselves for any available position on MUSSA.
Students may nominate themselves for ONE Executive position and/or ONE Committee position; or TWO Committee positions.
Interested candidates are expected to familiarize themselves with the responsibilities of their desired position, as outlined in the MUSSA Constitution and below. Reach out to any council member or contact mussa.ischool@gmail.com if you would like more information on any of the positions.
Interested candidates must submit a short nomination statement and a photo of themselves via the Nomination Form to be posted to eligible voters during the voting period.
If you wish to withdraw your submitted nomination, you may do so prior to the start of the voting period by emailing the CRO (Vice President) at mussa.ischool@gmail.com.
Any unfilled positions will be appointed and subsequently voted in by MUSSA following the election period without having to hold an election. These appointments will be made based on student interest.
Candidates are welcome to campaign for themselves, during the campaigning period listed above, while nominations are open. Campaigning is not permitted during the voting period. The following rules for campaigning apply:
- You can only campaign for yourself, and can not enlist others to campaign on your behalf.
- Be kind - there is zero tolerance for speaking negatively about any of the other candidates.
- Only campaign during the permitted period.
- You are welcome to use any forms of social media to campaign. If you wish to use your classes and the Virtual Inforum as spaces to campaign, you must receive the appropriate permissions from instructors and staff. If you are putting up physical posters, you must follow the iSchool's poster policy, and remove all your posters once elections are over.

NOMINATE

Please take a look below at the positions available for election. You may only nominate yourself for ONE Executive position and/or ONE Committee position; or TWO Committee positions.

**Nominees should have attended the All Candidates Meeting. If you were unable to attend, please ask for a copy of the recording by emailing mussa.ischool@gmail.com in order to find out everything you need to know prior to submitting your nomination.

When you are ready, you can nominate yourself using the nomination form here. You will need to provide a short blurb sharing a little bit about yourself and your interest in the position, along with a photo of yourself. Both will be shared for everyone in the program to make their voting decisions.

VOTE

Once nominations have closed and candidates are announced, candidates' nomination statements and photos will be available here. Please review the candidates' statements prior to voting.

Once you have reviewed the candidate statements during the voting period, you may complete your vote at https://utoronto.simplyvoting.com/. For each open position, electorates have the option to vote for a candidate or decline their vote.

*Note that the voting.utoronto.ca site has been known to have issues on certain web browsers and devices. Please try another browser or device if you are receiving any error messages. If you require alternative accommodations for voting, please email the CRO (Vice President) at mussa.ischool@gmail.com.

Whether you are voting or running in the election, we thank all students for your interest and for having your voice heard!

Available Positions

These are the available MUSSA positions for our Spring 2025 Elections! Committee positions have a * beside them.
Brief position descriptions can be found below with full descriptions found in the Constitution.

Available to 2nd year MMST and 2nd/3rd year CDP students only:

President
Vice President
Social Chair
Second-Year Representative
Social Media Manager

Available to any MMST or CDP student:

Musings Administrative Editor*
Musings Copy Editor*
Alumni Association Representative*
Programs Committee Representative*
Committee on Standing Representative*
IAACC Representative*
Masters Recruitment & Admissions Committee Representative (MRAC)*
iConference Representative*

Position Descriptions

Position Descriptions:

President (2nd year MMST or 3rd year CDP student)

Coordinates MUSSA officers
Schedules and chairs MUSSA council meetings
Serves as a signing authority of MUSSA
Sits on Faculty of Information Committees as requested by MUSSA
Sits on the Faculty Council with the Vice President
Calls MUSSA's Annual General Meeting

Vice President (2nd year MMST or 3rd year CDP student)

Assists the President in the execution of that office
Is acting President in the latter's absence
Serves as the Graduate Students' Union (GSU) representative
Serves as the Chief Returning Officer (CRO) overseeing all electoral logistics, referenda, and regulations
Administers MUSSA's online presence through the MUSEletter and the website

Social Chair (2nd year MMST or 3rd year CDP student)

Plans and executes events for students
Helps promote MUSSA's events and serves as contact point for events
Sits on the MUSSA Social Cabinet
Oversees the work of the Social Assistant

Second-Year Representative (2nd year MMST or 3rd year CDP student)

Represents the interest of second year students and bring concerns to council
Organises and manages merchandise and merchandise sales throughout the year

Social Media Manager (2nd year MMST or 3rd year CDP student)

Promotes MUSSA events through digital and physical marketing
Attends and photographs MUSSA events
Sits on the MUSSA Social Cabinet

Musings Administrative Editor (any MMST or CDP student)

Maintains Musings website and social media
Creates and maintains Musings' publishing schedule
Coordinates scheduling of all Musings Committee members

Musings Copy Editor (any MMST or CDP student)

Critically edits and provides feedback on works submited by contributing editors to ensure academic and factual quality and merit
Performs outreach activities as they relate to the recruitment of Musings contributing writers
Contributes, to the best of their ability, by means of personally drafting and editing articles to be published by Musings

MRAC Representative (any MMST or CDP student)

Sits in on the Faculty of Information MRAC meetings and reports on the committee’s actions to MUSSA council

IAACC Representative (any MMST or CDP student)

Sits in on the Indigenous Action and Anti-Colonialism Committee (IAACC) meetings and reports on the committee’s actions to MUSSA council;
Meetings typically occur on the third Thursday of the month ;
Serves on the Social Committee for IAACC-related collaboration and helps with its event planning

Alumni Association Representative (any MMST or CDP student)

Sits in on the Faculty of Information Alumni Association meetings and reports on the committee’s actions to MUSSA council
Serves on the Social Committee for FIAA-related collaborations and helps with its event planning

Programs Committee Representative (any MMST or CDP student)

Sits in on the Faculty of Information Programs Committee meetings and reports on the committee’s actions to MUSSA council

Committee on Standing Representative (any MMST or CDP student)

Sits in on the Faculty of Information Committee on Standing meetings and reports on the committee’s actions to MUSSA council

iConference Representative (any MMST or CDP student)

Sits on iConference meetings and reports on committee's actions to MUSSA council
Represents MUSSA on the iConference committee at the leadership level
Makes decisions regarding execution of iConference in partnership with other committee members
Monitors communication regarding the iConference on behalf of MUSSA

*Note that the full list of responsibilities for each position is subject to change until approved by vote on the constitution at the AGM.