Different Strokes for Different Universities

Differentiation. An interesting concept. For many colleagues at Trent the word recalls back in the day when Trent was awarded a "differentiation grant" by the Ontario government to support its unique interdisciplinary mission and a pedagogy centred on small classrooms and intimate tutorials. There were trade-offs, of course, and in many ways our current graduate programs are a legacy of the commitment to offer interdisciplinary programs unavailable elsewhere. In fact, we still receive the grant which forms part of our overall operating budget.

But today the concept of differentiation constitutes one of our major (controversial) challenges as we develop the academic plan. The brainchild of the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO), "differentiation" refers to the idea that each of Ontario's 20 universities should differentiate itself from all the others by dedicating its resources to "what it does best". As Harvey Weingarten argues in "The Benefits of Greater Differentiation of Ontario's University Sector," differentiation will allow each University to develop its own mandate with the government; for some universities it may mean a greater emphasis on teaching, for others on research intensiveness, for others a hybrid of the two, etc.

For someone as old as me this idea recalls two distinct events of both the distant and recent past: one is the Thatcherite division of the post-secondary system in the U.K. into teaching contra research institutions; the other is the paradigm shift at NSERC which now focuses most heavily on the production of "highly qualified personnel" or HQPs. Read one way, the big are getting bigger and the small are faced with just fading away. Read another (more cheerful) way, now is the chance to set our course and get budgetary support for it.

Which means that if we at Trent do not differentiate ourselves in our mandate meeting with the government in the Fall 2011 we will inadvertently position ourselves to have differentiation thrust upon us. Not a good thing. I would rather we define ourselves rather than be defined by an external body.

I would encourage all colleagues to read the HEQCO report, especially given that it is a formal recommendation to the government of Ontario. You can access the document at: http://www.heqco.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/DifferentiationENG.pdf. After reading it please do not burn, but rather give careful thought to the development of our academic plan which will be not only an academic "recovery" document, but also a survival manual.

How It Will Work

The Committee had its first meeting on June 22, 2011.  Discussion revolved around our shared sense of cautious (or cynical) optimism, trepidation, and a sober sense of just how important this undertaking will be.  The Committee was particularly concerned about ensuring that we have accurate data and that we consult appropriately with all members of our community.  Over the summer each member of the committee will familiarize him or her self with the unit plans that were developed during the Integrated Planning process as well as begin to think about how to construct a framework for dialogue with our colleagues.  IE, what "shape" should consultations with individual units take?

It was also agreed that during late August and September 2011the Provost will visit each academic program to conduct a dialogue with all members of each unit.  The Provost will be accompanied by one member of the Academic Planning Committee who will share via email the nature of the dialogue with all other members of the Committee.  The goal of these dialogues is to determine (a) the wishes and ideas of each unit; and (b) the role of the unit in Trent’s interdisciplinary discourse.  The feedback from each dialogue will be used by the Committee in its decisions-making discussions.

Of major concern is the demoralization that runs throughout our academy at the present time.  Our biggest challenge will be, not to invent spectacular new programs, but to address and begin to change the culture of cynicism within which we find ourselves.  Simply by acknowledging that this culture exists the Committee has begun its long journey toward creating a viable and engaged academic plan. Stay tuned.

Feel free to post a comment, a critique, a suggestion.  A safe and happy weekend to all.

Gary

"Begin at the beginning,"the King said, very gravely, "and go on till you come to the end: then stop”

This quotation from Alice in Wonderland seems a good choice to let folks know that the first meeting of the Academic Planning Committee will be this Wednesday, June 22, at 11 a.m. 

The Committee will be discussing a variety of items, setting some parameters for its work, and beginning the difficult conversation about where we, as a University, want to go in the future.  It will be the preface to a series of consultations in the Fall. 

Until then, please share your ideas, your critiques, your vision for the Academic Plan at Trent.  Don't be shy.  Post a comment or two, short or long. Begin at the beginning.

Who's Who (and how they got there)

I am grateful to the colleagues who have agreed to participate in the Academic Planning Committee: Cathy Bruce (Education), Sally Chivers, Moira Howes, and Colleen O'Manique (Humanities), Jim Buttle, Craig Brunetti, Doug Evans (Sciences), James Conolly and David Newhouse (Social Sciences).  Many thanks.

For the folks wondering how these lucky people arrived on the committee: the Deans and AVPs on the Provost's Planning Committee (PPG) were asked to consult with their Chairs and Directors who in turn provided the names of colleagues who might be interested.  The names were then collated and returned to PPG who voted to elect 2-3 colleagues from each division and school. I then approached those folks with the most votes.  Some colleagues were unable to accept so I then approached runners up in the division or school.  The names above represent the final roll out of this process.  Stay tuned for more updates.  Have a happy and safe weekend.

Gary

How many Trents does it take to make a University?

Some initial thoughts: the Committee needs to hear about the many "Trents" that make up Trent University; it needs to develop its own TOR; timelines; it needs to be small enough to be nimble yet large enough to share the labour among its members; and the Committee needs above all else to have an authentic mandate. That is: we need to develop and implement a plan for the future and not a wish list of predictable platitudes.  Some hard topics that need to be explored while planning for our academic future include the way we have structured graduate studies at Trent; course delivery models; financial challenges; program development in a fiscally challenging environment; class size; scheduling; and so on.

13 Ways of Looking at an Academic Plan

Welcome to our academic planning blog. I hope to use this medium as one of many fora to communicate with the Collegium, to elicit comments, to share ideas, to debate issues, and to update the community on progress made toward developing a strong academic plan for our University. While the principal function of this blog is to provide a venue to discuss the development of the academic plan called for in the Integrated Plan, the blog is also intended to serve as a general platform for dialogue between the Provost and the academy at large. Faculty, staff, students--all members of our community--are invited to participate.

I look forward to your comments, critiques, recommendations, and, yes, even rants. Please feel free to leave comments or send email directly to me at provost@trentu.ca  I cannot promise weekly updates but I can commit to "regular intermittent" updates of the blog and responses to emails within 2 weeks.

Gary Boire
Provost and Vice-President Academic
Trent University