On April 18, the Trafalgar campus hosted the April President’s Advisory College Council Town Hall Meeting. The event took place in the SCAET lecture hall and was live-streamed through Access Sheridan.
Dr. Mary Preece began the town hall by thanking everyone who has attended the President’s Coffee Chats so far and brought forward great ideas, questions and suggestions. The coffee chats will resume this Fall.
Recent Celebrations
- Come From Away continues to be a huge success on Broadway. The Tony nominations will be announced on May 2 at 8:30am – and we are standing by!
- Fourth-year students from Sheridan’s Honours Bachelor of Game Design were the big winners at the seventh annual Level Up Student Showcase on April 11. The students won 10 of the 12 awards available in the four categories of Best Overall Game, Technical Innovation, Artistic Achievement and People’s Choice Award.
- The official opening of HMC B-wing took place on March 24, with great attendance from dignitaries, politicians, and friends of Sheridan
- April 3 was Colleges day at Queens Park, and our advanced manufacturing and musical theatre performance professors and students were on-site as part of the Creativity Zone.
- Kevin Flynn, MPP for Oakville, visited Sheridan on March 17 to announce a gift for the skilled trades, and returned on April 7 to announce an additional $2.8 million gift. These additional funds are part of the $50 million gift for the Ontario college system, which announced by the Province on April 3.
- These funds will be used for infrastructure and facilities projects at Sheridan, including refurbishing student learning spaces and new welding equipment to support the skilled trades move to the Davis campus.
- Graduation shows are underway – make sure to take this opportunity to see some of our students’ phenomenal work.
Fiscal Update
- The budget for the upcoming fiscal year was approved at the Board of Governors retreat held on March 22. The budget will be posted on the Board of Governors site.
- We are already in the process of developing the budget for the 2018-2019 fiscal year.
- Karam Daljit, Interim Vice President, Financial Services, will provide an overview of the budget at the next Town Hall meeting.
Academic Activities
- The Postsecondary Education Quality Assurance Board (PEQAB) reviewed our proposal for a new Mechanical Engineering Degree on April 10.
- The proposal was very well-received; we expect to get some feedback later this month, following which the proposal will go to the PEQAB Board. Following their review, it will be sent to the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development this Fall for their consideration.
- The Academic and Student Affairs Committee of the Board of Governors has recommended our new Bachelor of Computer Science degree proposal for full Board approval at the next meeting in May.
- A proposed Data Science Board Certificate and a Front-End Web Development Board Certificate are also being recommended for Board approval.
Ryerson Partnership
- The Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development announced on March 14 that Ryerson University’s joint proposal with Sheridan to explore a university presence was the only one received for Brampton as part of the new provincial opportunity, and is now under review. The proposal is being led by Ryerson. Click here to read the message sent to all employees about the proposal.
- What does this partnership mean for Sheridan’s journey and the university vision?
- We will continue working on defining the polytechnic university concept – clarifying the type of university we’re going to become – and Ryerson will be a great partner in this process.
- We share DNA, history, and identities centred on creativity and innovation
- While we will each continue to do what we do well, there are also many opportunities to collaborate. We share interests in the digital economy, social innovation, and advanced manufacturing, to name a few.
- The details around the potential partnership with Ryerson in Brampton, such as location and program mix, are still under development.
- Mary understands that there may be some discomfort around the ambiguity of the partnership at this early stage. She welcomes any comments and concerns from the community so she may address them.
Our New Academic Plan
- Janet Morrison, our Provost and Vice President, Academic, presented the proposed Academic Plan (2017-2022) to the Senate on March 23.
- The Senate has voted to recommend that the Board of Governors approve the new Academic Plan at their next meeting, on May 31, 2017.
- The plan was developed through rich consultation with the community, particularly around its key drivers of quality, character, and accountability, and how they are articulated.
Strategic Mandate Agreement (SMA)
- The new SMA process was initiated by the Provincial government in January 2017.
- Every college and university is required to submit a new SMA this summer; signoff from both the institution and the Ministry is expected to take place in June.
- Our new SMA will be put forward for Board approval in May.
- The new SMA will be significantly informed by the new Academic Plan.
- The SMA will follow the Ministry’s new funding model, which is meant to encourage stability, not enrolment growth, as domestic student numbers continue to hold or decline throughout the province.
- The new SMA will be made available to the community online.
Ontario Colleges Fiscal Sustainability
- Colleges across Ontario are strategizing on how to best leverage the international student market to keep the provincial college system healthy, as domestic student enrolment stalls.
- At Sheridan, we are working hard to ensure that our students continue to be served well, our curriculum is delivered, and that we continue to produce strong graduates for years to come.
- As we define Sheridan’s strategy, we will need lots of institutional engagement, teamwork and trust.
Mary opened the floor to questions from the audience, but none were asked.
The next President’s Advisory College Council Town Hall meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 18, from 2pm – 3pm at S235 at the Trafalgar Campus.