Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Hi All,
I received an acceptance email for two different abstracts. One last week and one this week. They were generic emails, and there was no identification of which abstract the email belonged to. When I followed up and asked which one it was in reference to, we did see the ‘blind review’ feedback which I would suggest didn’t have (much) research methods training/grounding. (Hence my comment of becoming nervous in an earlier email thread.)
Happy to meet with the group Fenton!
Warm wishes, Dawn
Dawn E. Trussell, Ph.D.
Professor, Chancellor’s Chair for Research Excellence
Brock University | Department of Sport Management
1812 Sir Isaac Brock Way | St. Catharines, ON, Canada L2S 3A1 brocku.ca | T 905 688 5550 x 4580 | F 905 688 4505 Email: dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca
From: Shahzeidi, Monir monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca Date: Tuesday, February 3, 2026 at 3:26 PM To: Fenton Litwiller Fenton.Litwiller@umanitoba.ca, Audrey Giles agiles@uottawa.ca, Dawn Trussell dtrussell@brocku.ca, Shintaro Kono skono@ualberta.ca Cc: Kimberly Lopez kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca, Kyle Rich krich@brocku.ca, CALS Board cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca Subject: RE: CCLR Discussion
Hi Fenton,
I received an acceptance email, but no feedback.
Best, Monir
Monir Shahzeidi (She, Her, Hershttps://equity.ubc.ca/resources/gender-diversity/pronouns/) P.hD. Candidate School of Kinesiology The University of British Columbia | Vancouver Campus Ancestral, Traditional, and Unceded xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Territory monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca
From: Fenton Litwiller Fenton.Litwiller@umanitoba.ca Sent: February 3, 2026 11:38 AM To: Audrey Giles agiles@uottawa.ca; Dawn Trussell dtrussell@brocku.ca; Shintaro Kono skono@ualberta.ca; Shahzeidi, Monir monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca Cc: Kimberly Lopez kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca; Kyle Rich krich@brocku.ca; CALS Board cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca Subject: Re: CCLR Discussion
[CAUTION: Non-UBC Email] Hi everyone,
I have some CCLR updates for you all.
I was contacted by Amanda Johnson from VIU, who has been on leave on and off for the past year and just catching up on CCLR planning. She updated me on a few things:
While I was under the impression that Aggie was actively involved in the planning of CCLR and the abstract review process, this is not the case. Jenn did not alert me to the fact that Aggie has been almost completely absent ( likely consumed by her new decanal role at Okanogan College).
Jen is not an academic and will not ask for help.
Amanda suspects that because the abstract review process was lagging too long, it may be that Jenn/others made the decision to accept all abstracts without peer review/feedback (this needs to be confirmed).
Amanda is reaching out to her Chair (Joanne) to have a discussion about CCLR concerns, and then Amanda, Joanne, Jenn and I will meet. I would like a member of the board to join me in this discussion (perhaps Dawn if possible?)
One of the main concerns is reputational harms related to the alleged lack of abstract review. Amanda is willing to step in and organize a peer review process so that authors (especially students) can get feedback.
What I need from you all are some specific comments that I can bring to the meeting - it seems like abstracts were sent out at very different times, and most without feedback. Can you let me know when you and your graduate students received your abstract and if there was feedback given? Also, please let me know about any other concerns you have.
Sorry all - I would have followed through on this if I had left my meeting with Jenn knowing or suspecting any of this.
Sincerely, Fenton
--
Dr. Fenton Litwiller (they/them/theirs)
President, Canadian Association for Leisure Studies (CALS)
Associate Professor
Recreation Management and Community Development | University of Manitoba
112 Frank Kennedy Centre | Winnipeg MB | R3T 2N2
204.474.8412
fenton.litwiller@umanitoba.camailto:fentonl@umanitoba.ca
[signature_2837124687]
The University of Manitoba campuses are located on original lands of Anishinaabeg, Ininewuk, Anisininewuk, Dakota Oyate and Denesuline, and on the National Homeland of the Red River Métis. UM respects the Treaties that were made on these territories, acknowledges the harms and mistakes of the past and present, and dedicates itself to move forward in partnership with Indigenous communities in a spirit of Reconciliation and collaboration.
From: Audrey Giles <agiles@uottawa.camailto:agiles@uottawa.ca> Date: Friday, January 30, 2026 at 12:55 PM To: Fenton Litwiller <Fenton.Litwiller@umanitoba.camailto:Fenton.Litwiller@umanitoba.ca>, Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca>, Shintaro Kono <skono@ualberta.camailto:skono@ualberta.ca>, Shahzeidi, Monir <monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca> Cc: Kimberly Lopez <kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.camailto:kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca>, Kyle Rich <krich@brocku.camailto:krich@brocku.ca>, CALS Board <cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca> Subject: Re: CCLR Discussion Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Hi,
I contacted Jenn. She said that acceptances/revisions/rejections would be sent today and on Monday, too.
Audrey
Audrey R. Giles, Ph.D.
Professor
School of Human Kinetics
341 Montpetit
University of Ottawa
Ottawa, ON
K1N 6N5
Tel: +1 613 562-5800 ext. 2988tel:+16135625800,2988
Fax: +1 613 562-5497tel:+16135625497
www.TeamGilesResearch.comhttp://www.teamgilesresearch.com/
Audrey R. Giles, Ph.D.
Professeure titulaire
École des sciences de l’activité physique
334 Montpetit
Université d’Ottawa
Ottawa, ON
Tel: +1 613 562-5800 x 2988tel:+16135625800,2988
Fax: +1 613 562-5497tel:+16135625497
www.TeamGilesResearch.comhttp://www.teamgilesresearch.com/
"We're here to do constructive damage to the status quo."
~Zebedee Nungak
Kindly do not forward this email to others without my clearly stated permission to do so.
From: Fenton Litwiller <Fenton.Litwiller@umanitoba.camailto:Fenton.Litwiller@umanitoba.ca> Date: Friday, January 30, 2026 at 1:48 PM To: Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca>, Audrey Giles <agiles@uottawa.camailto:agiles@uottawa.ca>, Shintaro Kono <skono@ualberta.camailto:skono@ualberta.ca>, Shahzeidi, Monir <monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca> Cc: Kimberly Lopez <kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.camailto:kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca>, Kyle Rich <krich@brocku.camailto:krich@brocku.ca>, CALS Board <cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca> Subject: [Cals-board-2023-2026] Re: CCLR Discussion Attention : courriel externe | external email Hi all,
I was in touch with the conference organizer, Jenn Houtby-Ferguson, a couple of weeks ago to brainstorm registration payment options that would work for CALS and their finance team at VIU (along with Paul Heintzman).
During that meeting she did not express any concerns about the organizing and noted that acceptance letters would be out by the end of the week. I received my letter yesterday, so they are behind.
I asked for monthly updates to be sent via the listserv and have invited Jenn to attend the board meeting in March. I see that a link for registration came out a few moments ago on the listserv.
I don’t think there is huge cause for concern, although the process has been quite delayed. However, if you have specifics that you would like me to bring to Jenn, please let me know.
Cheers, Fenton
--
Dr. Fenton Litwiller (they/them/theirs)
President, Canadian Association for Leisure Studies (CALS)
Associate Professor
Recreation Management and Community Development | University of Manitoba
112 Frank Kennedy Centre | Winnipeg MB | R3T 2N2
204.474.8412
fenton.litwiller@umanitoba.camailto:fentonl@umanitoba.ca
[signature_2837124687]
The University of Manitoba campuses are located on original lands of Anishinaabeg, Ininewuk, Anisininewuk, Dakota Oyate and Denesuline, and on the National Homeland of the Red River Métis. UM respects the Treaties that were made on these territories, acknowledges the harms and mistakes of the past and present, and dedicates itself to move forward in partnership with Indigenous communities in a spirit of Reconciliation and collaboration.
From: Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca> Date: Thursday, January 29, 2026 at 8:47 AM To: Audrey Giles <agiles@uottawa.camailto:agiles@uottawa.ca>, Shintaro Kono <skono@ualberta.camailto:skono@ualberta.ca>, Shahzeidi, Monir <monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca> Cc: Kimberly Lopez <kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.camailto:kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca>, Kyle Rich <krich@brocku.camailto:krich@brocku.ca>, CALS Board <cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca> Subject: [Cals-board-2023-2026] CCLR Discussion Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Hi Folks,
Sending this through as a new thread. I do think it’s worthy of discussion and how we can support these folks now that the lead on the submission (Aggie) is gone.
I received some behind the scenes correspondence related to one of our submitted abstracts - and I too am nervous.
Warm wishes, Dawn
Dawn E. Trussell, Ph.D.
Professor, Chancellor’s Chair for Research Excellence
Brock University | Department of Sport Management
1812 Sir Isaac Brock Way | St. Catharines, ON, Canada L2S 3A1 brocku.ca | T 905 688 5550 x 4580 | F 905 688 4505 Email: dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca
From: Audrey Giles <agiles@uottawa.camailto:agiles@uottawa.ca> Date: Thursday, January 29, 2026 at 8:38 AM To: Shintaro Kono <skono@ualberta.camailto:skono@ualberta.ca>, Shahzeidi, Monir <monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca> Cc: Kimberly Lopez <kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.camailto:kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca>, Kyle Rich <krich@brocku.camailto:krich@brocku.ca>, Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca>, CALS Board <cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca> Subject: Re: [Cals-board-2023-2026] Re: Vote Required Friday By 10am: Updated Awards Documents for Review and Vote Hi,
Abstract acceptances, revisions, etc, seem to be rolling out. My grad students have heard back, but I haven’t.
I’m very concerned about the state of planning for the conference. Audrey
Audrey R. Giles, Ph.D.
Professor
School of Human Kinetics
341 Montpetit
University of Ottawa
Ottawa, ON
K1N 6N5
Tel: +1 613 562-5800 ext. 2988tel:+16135625800,2988
Fax: +1 613 562-5497tel:+16135625497
www.TeamGilesResearch.comhttp://www.teamgilesresearch.com/
Audrey R. Giles, Ph.D.
Professeure titulaire
École des sciences de l’activité physique
334 Montpetit
Université d’Ottawa
Ottawa, ON
Tel: +1 613 562-5800 x 2988tel:+16135625800,2988
Fax: +1 613 562-5497tel:+16135625497
www.TeamGilesResearch.comhttp://www.teamgilesresearch.com/
"We're here to do constructive damage to the status quo."
~Zebedee Nungak
Kindly do not forward this email to others without my clearly stated permission to do so.
From: Shintaro Kono <skono@ualberta.camailto:skono@ualberta.ca> Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2026 at 11:12 PM To: Shahzeidi, Monir <monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca> Cc: Kimberly Lopez <kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.camailto:kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca>, Kyle Rich <krich@brocku.camailto:krich@brocku.ca>, Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca>, CALS Board <cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca> Subject: [Cals-board-2023-2026] Re: Vote Required Friday By 10am: Updated Awards Documents for Review and Vote Attention : courriel externe | external email Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Hi all,
I contacted Jenn from VIU as one of my grad students needed conference info to apply for a grant. She provided a fair amount of details with a caveat that things could change. She did mention that they encountered some challenges.
When the outreach subcommittee reached out to Jenn on a separate matter, she asked us whether she could bring conference related questions to us, the subcommittee. So, I redirected her to Fenton and executives. That was like a month ago, I think?
Best, Shin
---------------------------------------------------------- Shintaro Kono, Ph.D. 河野慎太朗 （博士） he/him Associate Professor, Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, University of Alberta, Canada
2-130T, University Hall, van Vliet Complex, 8840-114 St., Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2H9 Phone: +1-780-492-0581
The University of Alberta is located in ᐊᒥᐢᑿᒌᐚᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ (Amiskwacîwâskahikan) on Treaty 6 territory, the territory of the Papaschase, and the homeland of the Métis Nation.
On Thu, Jan 29, 2026, 1:04 PM Shahzeidi, Monir <monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca> wrote: Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Dear all,
As I live in Nanaimo, I can connect with VIU (Jenn) and inquire about this. Please let me know.
Best, Monir
Monir Shahzeidi (She, Her, Hershttps://equity.ubc.ca/resources/gender-diversity/pronouns/) P.hD. Candidate School of Kinesiology The University of British Columbia | Vancouver Campus Ancestral, Traditional, and Unceded xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Territory monir.shahzeidi@ubc.camailto:monir.shahzeidi@ubc.ca
From: Kimberly Lopez <kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.camailto:kimberly.lopez@uwaterloo.ca> Sent: January 28, 2026 7:18 PM To: Kyle Rich <krich@brocku.camailto:krich@brocku.ca>; Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca>; cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca Subject: [Cals-board-2023-2026] Re: Vote Required Friday By 10am: Updated Awards Documents for Review and Vote
[CAUTION: Non-UBC Email] Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Hi Kyle and friends,
It is concerning that decisions are not yet out. I can reach out to Janet tomorrow and see if I can informally offer support with communication/updates to membership/potential delegates.
If anyone else has contacts at VIU, it might be time to reach out and relay that people are beginning to ask questions.
More soon, Kim
From: Kyle Rich <krich@brocku.camailto:krich@brocku.ca> Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2026 at 7:03 PM To: Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca>, cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca <cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca> Subject: [Cals-board-2023-2026] Re: Vote Required Friday By 10am: Updated Awards Documents for Review and Vote Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Hi all,
Not sure if we need a motion for this, but if we do, I make the motion “to accept the updated awards documents as submitted.”
If we don’t need a motion, I vote yes/in favour.
Also, completely off topic, but just want to flag to the group that the CCLR organizing is currently in a bit of a state of flux. Abstract decisions are not out (or at least not all of them are), and after requesting information, I basically was just told that they are in a tough position and are ‘working on it.’ I’m not sure exactly the role of the board in this, but should we be offering to intervene/support or at least inquire? In some ways, I think poorly organized conferences reflect on us.
Cheers,
Kyle Rich, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Sport Management Associate Director, Niagara Community Observatoryhttps://brocku.ca/niagara-community-observatory/ | Brock University 1812 Sir Isaac Brock Wayhttps://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way+%E2%80%AF+%7C%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+St.+Catharines,+Ontario%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=g https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way+%E2%80%AF+%7C%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+St.+Catharines,+Ontario%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=g | https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way+%E2%80%AF+%7C%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+St.+Catharines,+Ontario%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=g https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way+%E2%80%AF+%7C%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+St.+Catharines,+Ontario%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=gSt. Catharines, Ontario https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way+%E2%80%AF+%7C%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+St.+Catharines,+Ontario%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=g https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way+%E2%80%AF+%7C%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+St.+Catharines,+Ontario%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=gL2S 3A1https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way+%E2%80%AF+%7C%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+St.+Catharines,+Ontario%0D%0A+%E2%80%AF+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=g Google Scholarhttps://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=MWVeyGIAAAAJ&hl=en Open Access Work & Other Linkshttps://linktr.ee/krich052
From: Dawn Trussell <dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca> Date: Monday, January 26, 2026 at 9:49 PM To: cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca <cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.camailto:cals-board-2023-2026@lists.umanitoba.ca> Subject: [Cals-board-2023-2026] Vote Required Friday By 10am: Updated Awards Documents for Review and Vote Caution! This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.
Dear CALS Board Members,
I hope this message finds you well! Please find the updated awards documents attached for your review. As these revisions require Board approval, we will need to proceed with a vote; please see the policy below regarding online voting. (Thanks Fenton!)
The updates reflect the generative discussion at our last online Board meeting, as well as a follow-up meeting with a small group who have served on the Awards committee to review my initial drafts. (Thanks Audrey, Kyle, and Fenton!)
The most substantive changes are to the Leisure Scholar Award and the Emerging Scholar Award and reflect revisions to eligibility, evaluation criteria, and the nomination process. For the CALS Connection Grant, an explicit statement that it may be used for CCLR. For the Marion Miller Award, the key revisions clarify that submitted papers must be sole authored by the student (where advisor co-authorship had previously been included) and that paper lengths are 6,000-8,000 words which aligns closer to journal submission standards.
Across all awards, I also aimed to improve consistency in language, formatting, and overall presentation.
I kindly ask that you review the materials and submit your vote by Friday at 10:00 a.m. Please feel free to reach out with any questions or comments in advance of voting.
Thank you very much for your time, input, and thoughtful consideration. As far as I know, this is the first thorough review of all the awards since they were created around 10 years ago. (With the exception of the Marion Miller Award.)
Warm wishes,
Dawn
Dawn E. Trussell, Ph.D.
Professor, Chancellor’s Chair for Research Excellence
Brock University | Department of Sport Management
1812 Sir Isaac Brock Way |https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way%0D%0A+%7C+St.+Catharines,+ON,+Canada+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=g St. Catharines, ON, Canada L2S 3A1https://www.google.com/maps/search/1812+Sir+Isaac+Brock+Way%0D%0A+%7C+St.+Catharines,+ON,+Canada+L2S+3A1?entry=gmail&source=g brocku.cahttp://brocku.ca/ | T 905 688 5550 x 4580 | F 905 688 4505 Email: dtrussell@brocku.camailto:dtrussell@brocku.ca
CALS EMAIL VOTING PROCEDURES October 21, 2025
Email votes are only used to make decisions that need to be made before the next board meeting, when it is not possible to call a special meeting, or when discussion has occurred at a previous board meeting (e.g., feedback on documents and voting on the final document).
1. An email vote is not a meeting, but rather approval obtained separately from all board members. 2. The topic to be addressed should be kept as simple as possible; preferably one item. 3. Since an email vote is not a meeting there can be no discussion on the resolution. Therefore, any resolution by email vote must be passed by unanimous consent of all eligible voting members, or it must be rolled over to a proper meeting where deliberation can occur prior to a vote. 4. The resolution can only pass by unanimous consent if everyone who is eligible voted, and the approved resolution must later be ratified at a regular meeting. 5. The vote must be posted for 72 hours. 6. Each board members is asked to add discussion or approval notes. 7. The vote is not anonymous.
A note on abstentions.
A member(s) can abstain from an email vote and still have that vote be permissible under this framework so long as all members manifest receipt of the notice of an email vote, and no objection thereto, abstentions do not affect this process. This is because, “To “abstain” means not to vote at all….” [RONR 12th, 4:35] So long as no one objects or affirmatively casts a “no” vote, the e-voting process remains valid, so long as it is later ratified. So long as there are no objections or “no” votes, abstentions do not affect the e-vote
A note on Robert’s Rules.
Reference to Robert's Rules reveals an interesting fact about email votes, which is that email votes are not meetings. A call for a simple vote by email does not satisfy the requirement of simultaneous aural communication among all participants equivalent to the one room or area rule [8:2(1) and 9:31]. This rule goes to the heart of preserving the deliberative nature of a democratic assembly [1:1]. Also, under general parliamentary law a board can transact business only in a regular or properly called meeting of which every board member has been sent any required notice (9:2-5, 9:13-16) and at which a quorum (40:5) is present. The personal approval of a proposed action obtained separately by telephone, by individual interviews, or in writing, even from every member of the board, is not the approval of the board, since the members lacked the opportunity to mutually debate and decide the matter as a deliberative body [49:16]. This means that an email vote is not a meeting, so technically it is not a valid means to transact business except that it can be made valid through the process of ratification at the next regular meeting. The motion to ratify is used to confirm or make valid an action already taken that cannot become valid until approved by the assembly.
However, unanimous consent is permissible under Robert's Rules even though it deviates from the normal deliberation requirement because if everyone votes and everyone votes "yes" there is no minority, and if there is no minority to protect there is no need for deliberation. However, if anyone votes "no" or objects the question must be rolled over to an actual deliberative meeting that does comply with 8:2 or 9:31, so that the rights of the minority can be protected through the deliberation process
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