Gary Boire, provost and vice president academic at Trent University, and Deborah Saucier, interim provost and vice president academic at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) today signed a five-year Co-operation Agreement to build on the complementary strengths of the two Institutions to reduce duplication, increase student choice and foster institutional collaboration.

This Co-operation Agreement will operationalize a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Presidents of UOIT and Trent University on May 25, 2011. 

The agreement calls for the establishment of a Co-operation Steering Committee to coordinate inter-institutional and program collaboration, and an Academic Operations Working Group to assist with course planning, course delivery and facilitate the creation of innovative joint programming for both academic and non-academic operations.

The agreement also covers scheduling, delivery of courses, and exam protocol. Trent University offers a rich array of elective options in the social sciences and humanities to UOIT students. The agreement will jointly identify and plan which courses will be offered to UOIT students based on student demand and resource supply. 

Dr. Gary Boire, provost and vice-president Academic noted that “the agreement will formalize several processes that have been in place for many years. We are delighted to be working on a number of joint programs with UOIT including a new Kinesiology pathway for Trent students at the Peterborough campus, and several opportunities for collaboration on the Trent Oshawa campus.”

Dr. Deborah Saucier, UOIT’s interim provost noted that UOIT is keen to continue the already well-established collaboration between the two institutions. “We are supportive of the direction the Provincial Government has given to universities to increase student choice and mobility, share resources, and provide greater flexibility for students,” she said.

The Trent University Board of Governors approved the Trent University Oshawa Strategic and Business Plan in April 2013 which identifies enhanced collaboration between the two institutions as one of its key strategies.