At the tenth NAITSA Senate meeting, the Senate unanimously passed a motion to remove Travis Luscombe as President-Elect for the 2024/25 year. Luscombe had earlier been serving as NAITSA Vice-President Internal but was dismissed from his position on March 20.
The motion came after over three hours of in-camera (private) discussion by the NAITSA Senate, where the Senate deliberated on Luscombe’s conduct. According to a public statement released by NAITSA, the discussion focused on behaviours by Luscombe that led to his removal, including actions that “starkly contravened his fiduciary responsibilities as delineated in the NAITSA bylaws.” The motion also highlighted several areas where Luscombe fell short in his duties, including stating that he “has engaged in actions constituting dereliction of duty and misconduct, which include but are not limited to improper or discreet conduct, neglect of duty, and actions undermining the integrity and operational efficiency of NAITSA.”
NAITSA did not share details of the transgressions in their official statement, instead saying that “while we acknowledge our community’s interest in the deliberations, we are mindful of the personal impacts of these decisions.”
While the Executive Council has the power to dismiss with a unanimous vote from the remaining parties, their authority only applies to current terms, the statement explained. As the “overarching authority within NAITSA,” the Senate was responsible for deciding on Luscombe’s upcoming presidency. Luscombe was not present at the Senate meeting; the statement said that “the Senate ultimately decided not to invite him to address the body.”
The Senate also approved a first reading of a bylaw amendment that would, “in effect, prohibit participation in elected positions by anyone who has previously been removed from elected office.” If approved, a new point would be added to bylaw 7.13.1 that would read “members previously removed from elected office shall not be eligible to hold future elected office.” The amendment will go through a second reading at the final NAITSA Senate meeting on April 3.
Students will head back to the polls in the coming weeks, as NAITSA will “now proceed with a by-election for the now-vacant President position for the 2024-2025 term.”
