The City of St. Catharines' Town and Gown Advisory Committee is a volunteer committee to advise Council on supporting the quality of life for students and residents living near any of the city's post-secondary campuses.
Meetings
The Committee meets six times per year or at the discretion of the Chair. Upcoming meeting dates can be found on our meeting calendar. For more information read our agendas and minutes to stay informed.
Our purpose
The Town and Gown Advisory Committee was established to
- Develop relationships and supports among universities, colleges, students, residents, the City, and other organizations within St. Catharines
- Identify challenges related to near-campus neighborhoods and the community's relationship with students to create mutual solutions for everyone
- Advocate for policies to improve the quality of life for all residents in near-campus neighborhoods
- Organize community events such as welcome week and information sessions
Members
Membership terms align with Council terms or as determined by Council. The Committee may invite non-member participation as needed. The current members are:
- Patricia MacDonald
- Bilal Khan, BUSU President, Student representative from BUSU
- Samantha Jemison, Niagara College Student Administrative Council President, Student representative from Niagara College Student Administrative Council
- Bradley Clarke, Director of Student Life and Community Experience, Administrative staff representative from Brock University
- Lianne Gagnon – Director of Student Services, Administrative staff representative from Niagara College
- Jana Boniferro, Representative from Niagara College Alumni Association
- Karen Doyle, Tourism Marketing Officer (Staff Liaison)
Composition
The Committee consists of up to 12 members as follows:
- Four citizen members
- One member representing landlords
- One student representative from the Brock University Student Union (BUSU)
- One student representative from the Niagara College Student Administrative Council (NCSAC)
- One administrative staff representative from Niagara College
- One administrative staff representative from Brock University
- One representative from Niagara Regional Police Services
- One representative from Brock University Alumni Association
- One representative from Niagara College Alumni Council
Reporting structure
The Town and Gown Committee shall report to Council through the Social Sustainability Committee. The Chair of the Town and Gown Advisory Committee will also be a member of the Social Sustainability Committee.