U of A students protest changes at Lister Hall

                                                                   Lister Hall

EDMONTON - University of Alberta students have asked administrators to provide proof Monday that controversial changes at the Lister Hall student residence are so urgent there wasn’t time to properly consult students.

“We demanded evidence (last week) that these changes were going to be in the best interests of students. No evidence was presented so that’s what this meeting on Monday is all about,” said University of Alberta Students’ Union president Colten Yamagishi on Sunday. “I still have faith they will do the right thing.”

University administrators announced a week ago that three of Lister Centre’s four residence towers will house first-year and transfer students only, beginning in the fall of 2013. Alcohol is to be immediately banned in common areas throughout Lister’s four towers and restricted to private rooms or licensed events. Elected floor co-ordinators in Lister Hall will be replaced with hired student staff beginning this fall, but students can still elect floor representatives to the Lister Hall Students’ Association.

That drastically changes the employment conditions of 46 students working in the undergraduate residence that houses 1,800 students, according to information on the Lister Hall and University of Alberta students’ union websites.