Message from the President

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

The past year has been full of challenges and excitement for Athabasca University, marked by growth in our learner population across the country and the launch of new initiatives to assure our continued success.

While the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions have been far and away the greatest factor affecting the post-secondary sector, the international health crisis has brought opportunity along with challenges, particularly for AU, Canada’s Online University. We have continued to work towards the fulfilment of our Imagine strategic plan, removing barriers to learners’ participation in post-secondary education.

Over the past year, AU’s accessible, online courses and programs have enabled learners across Canada and beyond to pursue their educational goals uninterrupted, in an environment that is purpose-built for digital learning.

In 2020–21, AU saw an increase in enrolment among all learners, particularly among Alberta learners, which increased by 5.7 per cent. Overall, registrations grew by 8.6 per cent in 2020-21, and by 14 per cent among Alberta learners. Our full-load equivalent (FLE) increase was 5.8 per cent.

Financially, AU ended the year with an annual surplus of $1.6 million, within one per cent of the approved expense budget. The result reflects a balance between investing in the Imagine strategic plan and supporting learners and team members during the pandemic.

The university also made great progress this year on our most transformational project to date—a new integrated learning environment that will bring together all aspects of online learning and learner support into one seamless ecosystem befitting a leading-edge, digital-first institution. This initiative will greatly enhance our learners’ experience and help our team members continue to advance their digital skills.

AU also collaborated with numerous educational partners in the public, non-profit, and private sectors throughout the year by offering our own accessible, online programming through the university’s entrepreneurial unit, PowerED™, and by elevating and enhancing course content for others on the PowerED™ learning platform.

The university streamlined its operations on many fronts this year, optimizing the financial services and information technology divisions and becoming the first post-secondary institution in Canada to move all of its digital infrastructure to AU’s own secure cloud environment. We also marked a year of celebrations in 2020–21, most notably AU’s 50th anniversary, with a series of events and festivities that included the launch of a podcast, a commemorative art installation in Athabasca, and a series of socially distanced “Light the Night” celebrations in Athabasca, Edmonton, and Calgary.

To fittingly celebrate the accomplishments of our learners during this difficult year, AU held its first virtual convocation in October 2020, with close to 2,000 graduates, family, friends, and AU team members participating from all over Canada and around the world. This unique, online event gave learners an opportunity to connect with professors and classmates and celebrate their incredible milestone despite the restrictions of the pandemic. It also won the award for the best virtual event at the 2021 International Live Events Association Esprit Awards, which showcase the most successful and innovative events from 2020.

One of AU’s biggest accomplishment of 2020–21 was, however, less outwardly visible: the willingness and enthusiasm of its community to embrace challenge and change. Despite the many challenges of the pandemic, including a sudden, emergency shift for many of our team members to working remotely, the university made significant progress on many key initiatives while continuing to grow. This success in the face of adversity speaks to the resilience of our team members and their ongoing commitment to our learners. I trust that the coming year will continue to bring positive, progressive change at AU.

Deborah L. Meyers, CPA, CA President (Interim)