AVEQ Elects New General Coordinator

Perrine Argilès Will Support Association’s Current Vision

NewsVince Morello — Published October 29, 2017

AVEQ’s current member associations, the Concordia Student Union, the Mouvements d’associations générales étudiantes de l’Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, and L’Association générale étudiante de l’Université du Québec à Rimouski, voted in a special assembly to elect Argilès on Oct. 12, 2017.

Argilès, the only one to apply for the position, has in the past served as an executive for the Associations des Étudiants en Art de l’Université de Québec à Chicoutimi, and as the president of MAGE-UQAC.

“Since last year, I saw AVEQ grow and the issues that they’re working on challenged me,” Argilès said. “When I finished my mandate, [as president of MAGE-UQAC], there hadn’t been a general coordinator for a few weeks. My desire to continue being involved made me apply.”

AVEQ, which has been operating since the summer of 2015, currently represents over 46,000 university students at the provincial level. Concordia undergraduate students have been part of the association since November 2015.

“[Argilès] has a very strong background not only in student politics, but also specifically with AVEQ, having been around the table over the past year as a member,” said Kristen Perry, the Coordinator of AVEQ’s Mobilization and Associate Development.

AVEQ’s other executives were elected in late April, and began their mandates in May 2017. Argilès acknowledges that she won’t be able to start any big projects, but she says she’d like to do her best in guiding the rest of the team in the projects they’ve taken on this academic year.

This year, AVEQ is campaigning for accessible education, which includes fighting against unpaid internships, tuition deregulation. They’re also fighting for climate justice and divestment.

Argilès added that she wants to encourage other women to get involved in student politics.

Argilès was elected just two months after the last general coordinator, Christopher Gyorffy, resigned in July for personal reasons. Gyorffy is the second general coordinator to resign since the association formed. Jean-René Leblanc first resigned in September 2016 for the same reason.

“Despite the complex climate in the student movement, the resignations of the last two coordinators had nothing to do with AVEQ,” Argilès said, adding that personal reasons forced them to resign and had nothing to do with the general coordinator position.

Perry said that being an executive is a demanding position, but that there aren’t any concerns about executives burning out at AVEQ.