Highlights of 2011 CIS annual general meeting

VICTORIA (CIS) – Canadian Interuniversity Sport held its 2011 annual general meeting on June 8-9 at the Hotel Grand Pacific in Victoria, B.C.
 
Clint Hamilton, who completed his two-year term as CIS President, chaired the meeting attended by representatives of all 52 member universities and four regional associations. The event also served as the official launch of the 50th anniversary celebration of the organization.
 
“It was a delight to host my CIS colleagues in Victoria and to capture the spirit of our 50th anniversary,” said Hamilton, the director of athletics and recreation at the University of Victoria. “It was a constructive and dynamic meeting and we are looking forward to what promises to be a very exciting year.”
 
Following are some highlights and key developments from the meeting.
 
Elections and appointments
 
Leo MacPherson officially started his term as CIS President on Thursday. The director of athletics and recreation at St. Francis Xavier University was President Elect since June of 2010.
 
Gilles Lépine, director of athletics at Laval University, and Thérèse Quigley, director of sports and recreation services at the University of Western Ontario, were elected to the CIS board of directors as Vice President Marketing and Vice President Research and Development, respectively.
 
Presidents’ Advisory Board
 
The membership approved the creation of a Presidents’ Advisory Board effective immediately. The Advisory Board will be comprised of voting members who are executive heads of CIS member universities, as well as the CIS President and the CIS President Elect or Past President as ex officio members.
 
Launch of 50th anniversary celebrations
 
The CIS’ 50th anniversary celebrations officially kicked off on Wednesday night at the annual awards banquet with five CIS Presidents (past or current) blowing out the candles of a special anniversary cake.
 
Over the course of the 2011-12 competitive year, CIS will celebrate its 50 years of existence through a number of initiatives, culminating with the 50th editions of the CIS men’s basketball and men’s hockey championships in March. For more information: http://english.cis-sic.ca/50th.
 
Four individuals who greatly contributed to the growth, promotion and success of CIS over the years were honoured at the banquet including builder, administrator and coach Major W.J. ‘Danny’ McLeod (Austin-Matthews Award), who was the first director of athletics at Royal Military College and the founding secretary-treasurer of the CIAU (now CIS); legendary coaches Kathy Shields from the University of Victoria and Dick Mosher from the University of British Columbia (Jean-Marie De Koninck Coaching Excellence Award – co-recipients); and sports reporter Monty Mosher from the Chronicle Herald in Halifax (Fred Sgambati Media Award).
 
On Tuesday evening, University of Victoria President David Turpin hosted a reception for all CIS members on the UVic campus. Former CIS swimmer and multiple paralympic gold medalist and world record holder Stephanie Dixon was the keynote speaker.
 
UBCO becomes 52nd CIS member
 
The University of British Columbia – Okanagan, located in Kelowna, was officially welcomed as the 52nd CIS member institution effective in September, 2011.
 
Approval of strategic plan and budget
 
The membership approved the CIS Strategic Plan for 2010-2012, as well as the budget for 2011-12.
 
The Strategic Plan can be found on the CIS website at:
 
http://english.cis-sic.ca/information/members_info/pdfs/pdf_manuals_reports_plans_guidelines/CIS_Strategic_Plan_2010-12_eng.pdf
 
Athletic financial awards & eligibility motions
 
The membership voted on a number of motions on athletic financial awards and eligibility. The motions and the result of the votes will be posted on the CIS website in the coming weeks.
 
CIS women’s basketball championship: Mid-course adjustments
 
The expanded format of the CIS women’s basketball championship, which was in the first year of a three-year pilot in 2011 with three regional qualifying tournaments preceding the Final 8, was modified for the coming season.
 
The number of four-team regional tournaments will be reduced from three to two and these events will be hosted at pre-determined sites. The CIS women’s basketball championship steering committee will determine the details around the implementation of the revised format over the coming weeks.
 
Bronze medal in CIS men’s hockey
 
A bronze-medal game will be added to the CIS men’s hockey championship – the University Cup. The year of implementation is still to be determined. All CIS team sport championships using a tournament format will now have a bronze-medal game. 
 
 
-CIS-