Alberta’s head of higher education handed down new marching orders on the weekend as the Tory government forged ahead with a “non-negotiable” overhaul of the province’s postsecondary system.
On Friday night, Advanced Education and Enterprise Minister Thomas Lukaszuk sent out the first drafts of so-called mandate letters to top university officials outlining expectations under the new guise of Campus Alberta.
Lukaszuk called the recently tabled tough provincial budget a “catalyst for change,” before serving up ideas about a streamlined post-secondary sector.
“You don’t want to have five mediocre engineering schools,” he said. “You’re better off having two really good engineering schools. There’s no doubt about it.”
In another example, he contested the value of having eight education faculties – with eight individualized programs, administrations and content licences – in which credits don’t transfer seamlessly between institutions.
“Nobody hopes for a budget cut,” Lukaszuk said. “But this is the reality, this is non-negotiable. This had to be done.”
Lukaszuk described the draft letters as a blueprint in moving toward reducing program duplication, easing transfers between institutions and centralizing administration.
“I’m putting on the table what the vision for each school is,” he said.
Specific details on how programs and services will be affected are expected to be hashed out by the time government officials and post-secondary brass meet in April.
Executives from the University of Alberta spent the weekend reviewing the government’s mandate letter or “letter of expectation.”
It directs the U of A to “ensure … Alberta’s workforce is skilled and productive … demonstrates excellence in research, innovation and commercialization and … Alberta’s economy is competitive and sustainable.”
In a blog post, U of A president Indira Samarasekera wrote, although “much of the letter aligns with the University of Alberta’s long-standing mandate and leadership position … there are some aspects of the letter that concern us and warrant closer examination, clarification and discussion.”
Samarasekera went on to encourage faculty, staff and students to provide feedback before the April 11 meeting with government officials.
Copies of the letters were expected to be passed on to students’ unions this week and then circulated to students.
Some belt-tightening measures were made public even before the mandate letters were mailed out.
A high-ranking University of Calgary official said last week that 55 chronically under-enrolled programs in three faculties are on the chopping block as the institution moves to close a $113-million deficit gap over the next four years.
Athabasca University announced Friday that 44 staff would be laid off in the next few weeks and another 34 vacant spots wouldn’t be filled in light of a funding freeze.
In Premier Alison Redford’s backyard, media have reported Mount Royal University’s bachelor of engineering transfer program has been suspended while the institution contends with a $14-million operating shortfall.
Representatives from the University of Calgary, SAIT, NAIT and MacEwan University did not confirm receiving a mandate letter.
University of Lethbridge spokesman Richard Westlund declined to comment.
MRU president David Docherty said the mandate letter left “a number of unanswered questions” before declining to comment further.
NDP advanced education critic Rachel Notley accused the government of undercutting the academic autonomy of Alberta’s post-secondaries.
“I’m surprised and would expect better from any 21st century government,” she said.
Lukaszuk acknowledged he doesn’t hold “a monopoly on knowledge” and was open to making revisions based on feedback from campuses.
“The gist of the mandate letter is ‘you figure it out,’ ” he said. “I’m not going to micromanage schools.”
Post-secondary leaders are still stinging from being walloped with deep cuts in the March 7 budget. A $147-million reduction to post-secondary operating grants translated into a more than nine per cent shortfall for planned spending in most cases.
The Tory government, which is facing its own shortfall due to a precipitous decline in resource revenue, has also called for a tighter link between higher education and the business sector. It has put an increased emphasis on commercializing research in health care, environment and energy.
David Robinson, associate director of the Canadian Association of University Teachers, voiced concerns over increasing government intervention.
“There’s a precedence here,” he said. “Once you open this door to government’s saying ‘thou shall do this,’ we lose something very distinctive.
“Universities and colleges are some of the few institutions in our society where people can pursue knowledge for its own sake.”
With files from the Edmonton Journal
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