campus news
Laurier approves multi-campus GOVERNANCE model
Task force recommends new governance guidelines The Wilfrid Laurier University Senate and its Board of Governors have approved a report from the Presidential Task Force on Multi-Campus Governance that outlines a new multi-campus governance model for the university. Key among the report’s recommendations is the principle that university governance will be aligned by academic discipline or administrative function. Functional leaders will be accountable for their activities across all campuses, and location-specific coordinating bodies will ensure that programs and services are delivered effectively at each campus. “In practice, this means that the Faculty from which an academic program originally developed will be responsible for that program in all locations in which it is offered,” said Deb MacLatchy, vice-president: academic and provost. A new Faculty or Faculties will be created at Laurier Brantford from the programs that originated at that campus. “Full-time faculty members in Brantford who are part of Waterloooriginating programs will be able to choose — as a sub-unit — whether they affiliate with the originating Faculty in Waterloo or a newly created Brantford Faculty,” said MacLatchy. On the administrative side, leaders will be responsible for their functional area across all Laurier campuses. For example, the functional leadership for IT support is situated in Brantford, but is responsible for IT support at all Laurier locations. As another example, Human Resources leadership is based in Waterloo, but is responsible for HR administration across all Laurier locations. “The goal of this model is to ensure
accountability follows function so that each unit is tied into the subject matter expertise that it needs,” said Jim Butler, vice-president: Finance and Administration. “But it’s equally crucial that coordinating bodies and processes are in place to meet local needs and coordinate local services. This combination will best serve stakeholders across the university.” Throughout the winter months, work will take place to create disciplinary Faculties from among current programs at Brantford as well as the other organizational changes associated with the academic model. President’s Group, in conjunction with functional leaders, will develop the integrated administrative model. The Multi-Campus Governance Task force recommendations will also serve as context for the Integrated Planning and Resource Management (IPRM) process. The Presidential Task Force on MultiCampus Governance was established in 2010 to meet the need for an overarching model of multi-campus governance, in response to fundamental shifts in the university’s identity over the past 20 years. When the Brantford campus opened in 1999, Laurier became a multi-campus and multi-community university. Over the next several years, the Brantford and Waterloo campuses grew significantly, the Faculty of Social Work moved to Kitchener, and Laurier established an office in Toronto. To read the Presidential Task Force on Multi-Campus Governance reports and for detailed information, please visit the multi-campus governance website at www.wlu.ca/presidentialtaskforce.
David Suzuki and Jeff Rubin bring Eco Tour to Laurier
Making do with less is key to sustainability Environmental activist David Suzuki and economist Jeff Rubin stopped at Laurier in October to talk about the importance of learning to live within nature’s boundaries and what sustainability means for our economy. “End of Growth: How to Achieve a Truly Sustainable Future” was hosted by CTV Provincewide’s Daiene Vernile. The limited-engagement tour came about after Suzuki and Rubin, former CIBC chief economist, met in early 2012 and realized they shared a belief that a sustainable future can only be found at the intersection of ecology and economics. “The challenge with climate change is not how can we afford to reduce emissions, but how can we construct an economy that lives within the confines of nature’s boundaries,” Suzuki said. “The only thing we can change is what we create ourselves and the only thing we can manage is our own species.”
In practice, this means that the Faculty from which an academic program originally developed will be responsible for that program in all locations in which it is offered. Deb MacLatchy, vice-president: academic and provost LAURIER CAMPUS Winter 2012
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