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Today they boast of a membership 300,000 members and 19 associations.
The story of CASA begins in 1990. The University of Alberta hosted the first Winds of Change conference. In what would become an annual meeting, student leaders from across the country were invited to come togther to discuss challenges facing post-secondary education students in Canada. To be sure, there would be many.
Just a few short years later, in 1993 the federal government announced that all of Canada's social programs would be under review with sweeping and significant changes likely to come. The need to promote and defend the common interests of Canadian post-secondary education students was particularly acute. The need for students to come togther in view of the federal government with a united and pragmatic voice was immediate. And perhaps most importantly, the need for post-secondary education students to mobilize their resources and efforts under a common banner of leadership was critical.
By 1994, many student leaders felt it was time for the student movement to move in a new direction. In the summer of that year, Carleton University hosted a conference. The outcome of that meeting: student leaders decided that the time was ripe to form a new Canadian post-secondary student organization.
The 1994 Winds of Change conference took up the challenge issued at Carleton. The foundations for the new organization were laid down, and the framework for a constitution was built upon it.
The final step to a new national organization was made in Fredericton, N.B., in January 1995. The constitutional framework set up in Alberta was filled out and ratified. The Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA) was born. CASA was officially incorporated on June 27, 1995.
In the years that followed those conferences, the Alliance has continued to evolve and mature governed by a critical set of founding principles.
- First, CASA would be member-driven in that the members of the Alliance would set the organization's policy agenda amd define its goals.
- Second, CASA would focus on issues specific to post-secondary education, establishing a strong orientation toward policy development rather than social development.
- Third, CASA would ensure that membership within the alliance would not unfairly burden member associations. Joining CASA would be made easy through clear and flexible by-laws. Membership fees would be capped and kept to the lowest possible level.
- Lastly, CASA would focus its attention on those challenges facing post- secondary education students within federal jurisdiction only. Provincial advocacy would be best left to member associations. In effect, CASA established principles and practices that would promote a strong, grassroots, pragmatic alliance focusing exclusively on the problems facing post- secondary education students in Canada.
In its short history, CASA has developed an unparalleled rapport and profile with decision-makers and policy-makers within the ranks of the federal government, opposition parties, and the post-secondary eductaion sector. In addition to its many publications and policy briefs, CASA has brought about real results for students across the country. Currently, CASA is truly an alliance of 19 strong and representative student governments from across Canada defending the interests of almost 300,000 students.
Past National Directors:
1994-1996 Alex Usher (McGill)
1996-1997 Mathew Hough (Alberta)
1997-1999 Hoops Harrison (Alberta)
1999-2000 Jason Aebig (Saskatchewan)
2000-2001 Mark Kissel (Western Ontario)
2001-2003 Liam Arbuckle (Saint Mary's)
2003-present James Kusie (Manitoba)