BoG discusses Mintz panel report, students hold divestment rally

At the October 17 meeting of the University of Alberta Board of Governors (BoG), the report of the Expert Panel on Post-Secondary Institution Funding and Alberta’s Competitiveness, chaired by Jack Mintz, was discussed.

The panel focused on recommending changes to Alberta’s post-secondary institution (PSI) funding model and assessing the competitiveness of Alberta’s PSIs.

President and Vice-chancellor Bill Flanagan said he’s “very grateful to the panel for having undertaken a very comprehensive review of the sector.”

He noted that “the proof, of course, will be in the pudding” in terms of the implementation of the recommendations. For Flanagan, the biggest complexity in the report is the funding formula and how that will be implemented.

The new funding framework was recommended to be phased in over the next five years and involves three components: enrolment, performance, and base funding.  

“I think the department needs a little bit of time just to reflect on how it will move forward with the funding formula.”

Next steps include “[engaging] closely with the province and the ministry in terms of looking at the details of the report and how we can collaborate going forward,” Flanagan said.

Rakesh Saraf, BoG member (general public), reiterated that “implementation is the biggest thing” when it comes to the recommendations. Saraf also emphasized the importance of considering inflation in relation to the new funding formula.

Additionally, Kevin Kane, BoG member (academic staff), expressed his excitement for the report considering that, in his opinion, past panels have created “a justification to diminish support for [PSIs], in particular, the U of A.”

With this report, “we have moral justification for making the arguments that things should be improved at our [PSI],” Kane said.

Draft organizational value statement presented

Provost and Vice-president (academic) Verna Yiu and Vice-president (university services, operations and finance) Todd Gilchrist presented the U of A’s organizational values. Gilchrist said the need to develop a set of organizational values came up during consultation for the People Strategy.

Yiu read the draft value statement. It begins with Henry Marshall Tory’s statement: “Knowledge shall not be the concern of scholars alone. The uplifting of the whole people shall be its final goal.”

“We live this credo through relentless curiosity devoted to the Quaecumque Vera, whatsoever things are true, a spirit of community grounded in caring and respect, commitment to stewardship for our shared future, the tireless pursuit of impact through excellence in all we do,” the rest of the statement reads.

SJP holds divestment rally targeting BoG

Outside of University Commons during the BoG meeting, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) held a rally calling for the university to divest from Israel. The organizers identified Rolls-Royce, Magellan, and Booking.com as three key divestment targets for the university.

An organizer called BoG’s decision to move the meeting online “an act of cowardice” in an “ongoing pattern of cowardice in which the BoG avoids accountability to us, those whose tuition and academic work benefits this university.”