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 President's Monthly Report - October 2010Integrated Planning ActivitiesA half-day President/Vice-President (PVP) Executive Committee retreat was held on October 29 to review Provost transition activities and to develop an outline for the integrated plan. Overall, the transition to the final reporting structure and organization of the Provost’s Office is on track – I wanted to convey a very heartfelt thank-you from myself and from Gary to the many people who have been so thoughtful, welcoming, and helpful in this transition period. I know from my personal transition experience last year of the critical importance of the help and goodwill of the senior team and of all those who support the senior team – my understanding is that a smoother transition for the new Provost and to the model for the Provost office could hardly have been envisioned! This is also a tribute to our new Provost’s early and effective engagement with the diverse academic and operational aspects of the portfolio. The task of producing a draft integrated plan for Trent University has entered an important phase – for example, at the PVP retreat, the senior team shared their views on the top priorities and essential elements of the plan. The Provost’s Planning Group (PPG) has completed an initial review of unit-based integrated plans, with certain key academic and administrative priorities emerging for additional development. An important feature of any integrated plan is the ‘integration’ of academic and business planning – at Trent, the first draft of the institutional integrated plan is expected in December, and will include a multi-year budget framework. Consultations can then be expected to occur in advance of plan implementation in this academic year and over the course of the first integrated planning cycle (to 2014). Major Consultative and Administrative ActivitiesOfficial Opening of the New Trent Community Sport and Recreation Centre As part of this year’s Head of the Trent, on October 2, the new Trent Community Sport and Recreation Centre was officially opened with a celebration of the City of Peterborough’s $1M investment, a $1M gift from international alumnus and world-renowned property developer Justin Chiu (to name the Trent stadium), and over $1.8M in student contributions in the past six years. The recognition of many of the campaign donors to the Sport, Recreation and Wellness for All Campaign was featured at the President’s Riverside Reception. A special ceremony was held the previous evening to dedicate the new indoor rowing/paddling tank in honour of coach Carol Love. As the only athletics and recreation facility in the growing north end of the City of Peterborough, the Trent Community Sport and Recreation Centre provides vital wellness services to all residents, including seniors and older adults, children, youth-at-risk, persons with disabilities, and the local community. Unique and innovative features of the new Centre include North America’s most advanced indoor rowing/paddling tank, the indoor climbing wall, a 12,000 sq. ft. cardio loft and weight room overlooking the Otonabee River, the Swimex hydrotherapy pool (the only one of its kind in the region) equipped with state-of-the-art features, an expanded therapy clinic with Trent Health in Motion, a complete makeover of the pool, updated and redesigned change rooms, and a Wi-Fi equipped café. The Centre is one of the most sustainable buildings at Trent and in the community as recognized by a Silver rating through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™. Official Opening of the New Trent University Oshawa Thornton Road Campus On October 18, 2010, approximately 140 municipal officials, board members, faculty, staff, students and community members joined in celebrating the official opening of Trent University Oshawa Thornton Road campus followed by the evening tours and lecture. The day was a resounding success and credit goes to the hard work of the enthusiastic and dedicated faculty, staff and students at Trent University Thornton Road Campus. The community’s embrace of Trent’s expanded profile in Durham Region will pave the way for campus growth and excellent collaboration with our academic partners in the Region. Confirmation that the new Oshawa campus is now poised for great things is suggested in some the many comments and emails received from students, staff and faculty: “..wonderful to have a space devoted exclusively to Trent students”, “… I find myself enjoying coming to class at Thornton Road … there is ample common area to meet other students before class and a snack bar open to 7 pm so we can grab a coffee or snack before class …”, “ I just wanted to let you know that it was wonderful to drive into that parking lot today at Trent [in] Oshawa and see what I saw. I was overwhelmed,” “[The creation of the Thornton Road Campus] is important for creating a sense of a new and growing community and build up.” The Trent University Oshawa Thornton Road Campus is up and operational, but of course there continue to be adjustments and transition issues. The able leadership team of Dr Rita Bode, Dr Peter Lapp, and Dr Mark Parnis, and many others, are working hard to address as many of these issues as is possible. Official Opening of Module C – Life and Health Sciences Building Trent University students, faculty, staff, board members and community partners gathered on October 25 to officially open the new Life and Health Sciences building and thank the Province of Ontario for its significant financial support of the project. The $9.8 million Module C now serves as home for Trent’s Anthropology, Nursing and Psychology departments. Module C was strategically located with a physical link to the existing DNA building (the original Modules A and B). The final configuration of the Life and Health Sciences Building will also encompass Module D, the new home for Trent’s Biology department. The official opening of Module D as part of the Life and Health Sciences Building will occur following completion of construction in spring 2011. Kudos to John Wordley, Associate Vice-President Physical Resources and members of the physical resources department for managing all of Trent’s construction projects, bringing them in on time and on budget. And a special thanks to Trent’s outstanding Marketing and Communications team (who, on top of the many demands this fall, had to deal with their own move to Blackburn Hall) for the organization and delivery of these successful opening events, and so many other important communications and marketing activities, this fall. A Further Discussion with Proponents of a Proposed New Catholic College in Peterborough A further discussion was held with the Catholic Dioceses of Peterborough and several individuals developing a proposed new Catholic College in Peterborough. The planners of the new Sacred Heart College have now received initial advice and guidance from the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities of Canada, whose purpose includes fostering ongoing dialogue between members of the association (there are 21 Catholic College members in Canada) and universities. Early feedback from colleagues at Trent University on some of Sacred Heart’s proposed courses and specific course curricula appeared to be well-received by the College, and will no doubt be helpful in any future consideration of possible transfer credit – the Sacred Heart College in Peterborough anticipates enrolling its first students in 2011. COU Activities A number of major issues were discussed by COU Executive Heads at the October retreat, including: A discussion paper on “Online Education: Academic Considerations” was prepared by COU academic colleagues. This paper is a companion piece to the COU report on “The Ontario Online Institute: Achieving the Transformation” which identifies further planning steps thought necessary to advance the status of Online Education in Ontario. Initially, COU believes that the Online Institute will work best if organized as a collaborative of participating institutions, with the initial process unfolding separately for the university and college sectors. Mental health continues to be a key concern for post-secondary education in Canada and in Ontario in particular. The percentage of students with special education needs (learning disability, autism, language impairment) and students identified as English language learners coming out of Ontario’s secondary schools is escalating at an alarming rate. To raise awareness around mental health concerns and collaborate on mitigative actions, MTCU and COU co-presented a PSE Mental Health Summit on October 29 for PSE stakeholders (including Trent) to: i) identify policy issues for further action and collaboration with government; ii) develop opportunities for partnership and collaboration among various institutions as well as with external partners; and iii) to share innovative new models and tools. Credit transfer and academic pathways continue to be priorities for the Ontario government. COU is working with MTCU to develop policy to support improvements in credit transfer focused on credit recognition for college graduates seeking transfer into university degree programs. There is continued pressure being placed on the postsecondary system in Ontario to simplify the transfer of all credits earned by students. Ontario universities are pursuing three ways to improve credit transfer, including: 1) a commitment from universities and colleges to continue to develop credit transfer pathways with policies and agreements addressing the specific program transfers; 2) the design and implementation of purpose-built college programs that result in admission to upper-year university programs; and 3) collaborative programs where students graduate with both a baccalaureate degree and a college diploma or certificate. AUCC Update The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) held its two-day annual meeting in Ottawa this October. Some highlights of the agenda included a presentation by the Clerk of the Privy Council, and the recently released report on research integrity prepared by the Council of the Canadian Academies’ Expert Panel, entitled Honesty, Accountability and Trust: Fostering Research Integrity in Canada. As part of the AUCC advocacy effort, university presidents participated in several meetings with MPs, Ministers and Deputy Ministers – among the highlights was a meeting with Niki Ashton, NDP Critic for PSE, participation in a round-table on the environment, and attendance at Question Period in the House of Commons. And as President of Trent, I have been nominated to serve on the AUCC Standing Advisory Committee on the Act and By-Laws (SACAB) – at my first committee meeting, among other items, certain issues associated with the membership criteria for AUCC (including faith-based institutions) were discussed. In November Trent will host AUCC President Paul Davidson (a Trent alum) for a campus visit and discussion of relevant issues. Internal and External Relations (October 1-31, 2010) Internal MeetingsTrent University staff and faculty meetings (9) Trent University students and student groups (6) External Meetings Community leaders and community groups in Peterborough/Oshawa (9) EventsSocial events (11) The President’s Monthly Report is available on the Office of the President’s Website at http://www.trentu.ca/administration/presidentsoffice_reports.php. Questions or comments are welcome (sfranklin@trentu.ca). |
