Board and Senate notes: April 2017
BOARD NOTES: The Board of Governors approves changes to the Code of Rights and Responsibilities
The Ombuds Office presents its annual report
President’s remarks
Concordia’s president Alan Shepard informed governors that the university has again ranked among the top universities under 50 years old in the Times Higher Education (THE) Young University Rankings. Plus, for the second year in a row, Concordia was named one of Montreal’s top employers.
Canada’s Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin was on campus in March to receive the inaugural Simone de Beauvoir Institute Prize. The president said this award recognized her contribution to the advancement of women in Quebec and Canada. The Chief Justice also delivered a lecture as part of the Workshops on Social Science Research.
The university continues to achieve positive research grant results, with a healthy increase this year in the number and value of grants received from the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada’s Discovery Grants Program. This reflects efforts to foster a stronger research grant culture across the institution.
Shepard shared the news of a gift announcement by former Board member Christine Lengvari (BSc 72). She gave $1M to support scholarships for female students in the Kenneth Woods Portfolio Management Program and to promote research at the PERFORM Centre.
He also highlighted that a student team from Concordia and McGill, participating in the 2018 Solar Decathlon China competition, received $50,000 from the federal government.
He noted that Lucie Lequin, retired professor of Québécois literature and former chair of Concordia’s Département d’études françaises, has been named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Palmes académiques.
Plus, the film by Daniel Cross (BFA 91, MFA 98), I Am the Blues, won two Canadian Screen Awards in March: the Ted Rogers Best Feature Length Documentary and Best Cinematography in a Feature Length Documentary. Cross is a member of the Board of Governors.
Board approves amendments to the Code of Rights and Responsibilities
Following a recommendation from the Board’s Executive Committee, governors approved amendments to Concordia’s Code of Rights and Responsibilities (BD-3).
The changes, proposed by an ad hoc committee, bring the code up to date since its last review in 2010. This includes making the terminology gender neutral and bringing the wording, definitions, terminology and infractions regarding sexual violence in alignment with the Policy Regarding Sexual Violence, adopted in May 2016.
The principles, processes and infractions outlined in the code otherwise remain the same.
Additional changes include:
- Incorporating many of the recommendations proposed by the Office of Rights and Responsibilities over the last few years;
- Adding the new sanction of placing restricted access conditions, which can be imposed by the Hearing Panel, on a respondent while they are on university premises or at university events and
- Providing a vice-president or delegate with the ability to temporarily suspend a student in an emergency situation, allowing for more flexibility in urgent cases.
Members of the ad hoc committee, chaired by Melodie Sullivan, senior legal counsel, included Enza De Cubellis, director, University Secretariat (secretary); Alison Beck, associate legal counsel; Laura Landry, student tribunals officer; Louise Shiller, director and senior advisor with the Office of Rights and Responsibilities; Amy Fish, university ombudsperson; Cathy Bolton, vice-provost of Teaching and Learning; Andrew Woodall, dean of students; Patrice Blais, part-time faculty representative; Geneviève Robichaud, full-time faculty representative; Miriam Posner, administrative and support staff representative; Soliman A. Abu-Samra, graduate student representatives; and Sophia Sahrane, undergraduate student representative.
Ombuds Office presents its annual report
Amy Fish, Concordia’s ombudsperson, provided highlights of the 2015-16 Annual Report of the Ombuds Office Promoting Fairness at Concordia University.
The Ombuds Office is an independent office that reports directly to the Board of Governors. Its role is to assist in the informal resolution of concerns and complaints related to the application of university policies, rules and procedures.
While there was an increase in files, from 427 in 2014-15 to 514 in 2015-16, Fish said this represents less than one per cent of the student body. Additionally, very few of these files resulted in a formal complaint.
The majority of concerns were brought forward by students (77 per cent), followed by faculty members or staff (13 per cent) and from other people, e.g. alumni, parents, citizens (10 per cent).
Grades and other course management issues were the most frequent causes of concern for students. Most of these represented minor disagreements regarding grades.
Course management issues related largely to misunderstandings regarding program and/or degree requirements and registration.
Board receives a report from the Advisory Council on Women and Leadership
In her presentation to the Board, Lengvari provided an overview of the Concordia Alumni Women and Leadership Program.
There are more than 91,000 Concordia women graduates around the world. The program connects these alumnae, both in person and online, to exchange ideas, information and experiences, and to inspire and learn from each other.
Initiatives include research, mentoring and a LinkedIn group as well as live events.
SENATE NOTES: Senate unanimously passes a motion to extend academic accommodation to all students
Provost Graham Carr provides an academic update
President’s remarks
Concordia’s president Alan Shepard celebrated the news that the university has once again ranked among the top universities under 50 years old. Compared to last year, Concordia improved its score in four out of five measures in the Times Higher Education (THE) Young University Rankings.
Shepard also shared the good news that, for the second year in a row, Concordia was named one of Montreal’s top employers.
These honours reflect hard work by many people and contribute to enhancing faculty and staff morale, he noted.
The president also reported that the university continues to achieve strong research grant results, reflecting efforts to foster a stronger research grant culture.
Justin Powlowski, interim vice-president of Research and Graduate Studies, provided some highlights. He noted that Concordians have done particularly well in competitions for Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Insight Grants, and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grants.
The president offered congratulations to Ann English, a professor and researcher in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. She is the 2017 recipient of the Clara Benson Award, granted by the Canadian Society for Chemistry in recognition of her distinguished contribution to the field in Canada.
He noted that Lucie Lequin, retired professor of Québécois literature and former chair of Concordia’s Département d’études françaises, has been named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Palmes académiques.
The president also congratulated Daniel Cross (BFA 91, MFA 98), a member of Senate. His film, I Am the Blues, won two Canadian Screen Awards in March: the Ted Rogers Best Feature Length Documentary and Best Cinematography in a Feature Length Documentary.
There was also good news for TeamMTL, composed of students and faculty members from Concordia and McGill. The group received a $50,000 grant from the federal government to support their participation in the 2018 Solar Decathlon China competition.
Academic update
In his update to Senate, Graham Carr, provost and vice-president of Academic Affairs, offered his congratulations to English, Lequin and Cross.
He also congratulated Simon Bacon, professor and graduate program director in the Department of Exercise Science, who received the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research Mentorship Chair in Innovative Clinical Trials.
The $1M award will run for five years. It is comprised of $500,000 from CIHR and matching support from Concordia and other partners, such as the Canadian Diabetes Association and the Fonds de recherche du Québec.
Carr noted achievements of several graduate students, including Darian Stahl, a PhD student in the Humanities Program, who won first place at the 3MT competition of the North Eastern Association of Graduate Schools.
Nadia Naffi, a PhD student in education, along with John Bryans, an MA student in sociology, are among the 25 finalists in this year’s SSHRC Storytellers Contest.
Finalists receive $3,000 and are invited to compete in front of a live audience at the Storytellers Showcase during the 2017 Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences in late May.
Carr thanked Paula Wood-Adams, dean of Graduate Studies, and her team for their work in mentoring graduate students to participate in competitions.
Two new master’s programs in the Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science are approved
With Senate’s approval, the Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science has restructured two programs in its Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering, resulting in the offering of a:
- Master of Engineering in Environmental Engineering, which seeks to alleviate the current shortage of environmental engineers in Quebec, a concern expressed by the Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec. The program will introduce students to various aspects of environmental contamination and pollution prevention, preparing them to work for various environmental technology industries, municipalities and consulting firms; and
- Master of Engineering in Construction Engineering and Management, which addresses the need to train students with the knowledge and skills required in the construction industry. Students will learn state-of-the-art construction processes, project management strategies, project planning and scheduling and cost-estimation methods.
The new Graduate Certificate in Entrepreneurship is approved
A new Graduate Certificate in Entrepreneurship, approved by Senate, is geared to non-business graduates who want to start their own micro-enterprise such as an artist-run studio, design firm or professional practice.
The 15-credit program is expected to begin in the fall of 2017. It is geared to graduates from all specializations in fine arts, arts and science (such as psychology, exercise science and translation) as well as engineering.
While many universities offer an entrepreneurship option in their MBA program, few offer a short and focused program in entrepreneurship. Plus, they tend to be more general in nature.
Highlights of graduate curriculum changes in the Faculty of Arts and Science
Senators approved several curriculum changes to graduate programs, including:
- Renaming the MA in History and Philosophy to the MA in Religions and Cultures;
- Providing a new non-thesis option in the MA in Social and Cultural Anthropology, which will replace the thesis and fieldwork components of the thesis option with an essay;
- Renaming the MA in Journalism Studies to the MA in Digital Innovation in Journalism Studies. This change reflects the rise in digital-first journalism outlets and provides an opportunity to position the department in a Canadian research field that is still in its infancy; and
- Providing students in the Diploma in Visual Journalism with greater program flexibility and more skills with the moving image.
Changes coming to reading week dates in 2018-19
University registrar Daniel Therrien provided an overview of how dates are set for reading week.
“Pedagogy should drive this decision-making process,” he said, noting that the week should come after a minimum of six weeks of classes. Additionally, sufficient time is required to accommodate DISC decisions by students.
Therrien has received positive feedback for delaying Reading Week. While this is not possible for the 2017-18 academic year, as the calendar has already been published, he said reading week could be held from February 25 to March 3 going forward.
The schedule will be reviewed and finalized by the end of this summer.
Ombuds Office presents its annual report
Amy Fish, Concordia’s ombudsperson, provided highlights of the 2015-16 Annual Report of the Ombuds Office Promoting Fairness at Concordia University.
The Ombuds Office is an independent office that reports directly to the Board of Governors. Its role is to assist in the informal resolution of concerns and complaints related to the application of university policies, rules and procedures.
While there was an increase in files, from 427 in 2014-15 to 514 in 2015-16, Fish said this represents less than one per cent of the student body. Additionally, very few of these files resulted in a formal complaint.
The majority of concerns were brought forward by students (77 per cent), followed by faculty members or staff (13 per cent) and from other people, e.g. alumni, parents, citizens (10 per cent).
Grades and other course management issues were the most frequent cause of concern for students. Most of these represented minor disagreements regarding grades.
Course management issues related largely to misunderstandings regarding program and/or degree requirements and registration.
