On May 18, the Trafalgar campus hosted the May President’s Advisory College Council Town Hall Meeting. The event took place in the SCAET lecture hall and was live-streamed through Access Sheridan. Mary reminded the audience that the Town Hall Meetings would be breaking for the summer, and would resume in the fall.
Recent Celebrations
- Summer 2017 Convocation is scheduled for June 5 -8, over the course of 10 ceremonies.
- This Convocation will see the first set of graduates from the Bachelor of Interaction Design and the Bachelor of Game Design programs.
- Michael Rubinoff, our Associate Dean, Visual and Performing Arts, was awarded the Gold Medal for Leadership Excellence from Colleges & Institutes Canada on May 1.
- The CMTP-incubated musical, Come From Away, was nominated for seven Tony awards on May 2, including best musical. Sheridan is credited as a producer on the show. The Tonys will be held on June 11.
- Our apprenticeship students brought home six medals at the 28th annual Skills Ontario Competition, held May 1-3, including the medal for best overall competitor at the college level.
- On May 4, we celebrated the retirement of Sharon Aitken, Director, Development and Campaign, Advancement.
- On May 5, John Oliver, MP for Oakville, visited Sheridan to announce $3.3 million in federal research funding for the Centre for Mobile Innovation, led by Dr. Ed Sykes in the Faculty of Applied Science and Technology.
- Sheridan played host this past week to the Ontario College Council of Chief Information Officers (OCCCIO) Conference. Thank you to everyone who helped make this event an immense success!
Budget Update
- While we had hoped to share the year-end report and breakdown of next year’s budget at this Town Hall, it was not possible due to the timing of Board of Governors approvals.
- We will plan to share this information with the community when Town Halls resume in the fall – and have an open conversation about what the budget looks like, the major allocation decisions, and rationale for those decisions.
Ryerson Partnership Update
- While the major capacity expansion program dictates that any bid must be led by the university partner, Mary reiterated that the potential partnership with Ryerson will not undermine our own journey or vision for our evolution. Sheridan will not sign an MOU that jeopardizes its future in any way.
- The connection is an opportunity to mobilize our collective strengths to better serve the needs of the Brampton community. It may also provide a model for system reform, at a time when the post-secondary sector in Ontario is searching for ways to deliver programs more cost effectively and to foster innovation.
- The structure and model for our partnership, including Sheridan’s role, are still being discussed and clarified with Ryerson. Mary will provide an update to the community when more concrete information becomes available.
- We expect that Ryerson will be submitting more details of the proposal to the Ministry in the fall.
Vision and Mission Update
- The Board of Governors is in the process of finalizing an update to our vision and mission, which will need to be included in the new SMA.
- This update will reflect our new emphasis on the polytechnic model as part of our journey, and our wish to proceed as strong members of the polytechnic movement within Ontario.
Strategic Mandate Agreement (SMA)
- We have submitted the first draft of the SMA to the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development for preliminary review.
- The draft will go through several iterations. We are still working on revising our mission and vision statements, as well as determining the metrics that will help hold us accountable in the years to come.
- The SMA reflects the Province’s new corridor funding model, which encourages enrolment stability and does not provide funding based on enrolment growth.
- The SMA also significantly aligns with new Academic Plan.
- Senate will review the latest iteration on May 25, the Board will review on May 31, and the document must be finalized and signed by both Sheridan and the Ministry in July.
- The final version will be made available to the community and we will discuss the new budget model in more detail when Town Halls resume in the fall.
President’s Office Reorganization
Agnes Li will be starting a new role as part of the International team at HMC on June 1. Jessica Hinchliffe, who currently provides support to Karam Daljit and Melanie Spence-Ariemma, will assume the role of Executive Assistant to the President on June 1. Congratulations, Agnes and Jessica!
Recruitment of the new Vice President, Financial Services
Recruitment for our new VP Finance and Administration is underway. The selection committee is interviewing candidates on May 23.
Recruitment of the new President
- The recruitment of the new President falls under the jurisdiction of Sheridan’s Board of Governors.
- The Board, via the recruitment firm, has not yet posted the position.
- The selection committee will have representation from a variety of internal stakeholder groups as it will include the Board members who represent students, faculty, administrators and support staff.
Mary then invited questions from the audience.
Question and Answer Period
Q: If the new Provincial funding model implies a freeze on enrolment growth, but we see enrolment in some programs grow or add new programs, does this mean other programs will need to be adjusted?
A: If we launch new programs, we will need to intentionally make decisions to readjust others. While this process still needs to be further refined and developed, decisions concerning the viability and demand for programs will be informed by Institutional Research data including program demand, as well as evidence of employment opportunities for graduates.
Our enrolment plan is reflective of the continuing shift in domestic enrolment demand given the decrease of domestic students in the Province. The plan reflects a natural evolution of our programming.
Q: Can you provide some clarification around the speculated location of the Ryerson presence in Brampton as part of the new potential partnership?
A: The discussion of the Ryerson presence is a complex and highly political one – stakeholders include the City of Brampton and the local Brampton industry, each introducing different needs and goals. Possibilities include establishing a campus presence in downtown Brampton, or integrating Ryerson activities into existing Sheridan space at the Davis campus, where a cost sharing agreement for Ancillary Services could help enhance the student experience and make the initiative more financially sustainable. Discussions are still ongoing.
Q: Will there be an opportunity to mark the closure of the STC campus through a special event?
A: Yes – we plan to mark this milestone at the institutional level. More details to come. We are also supportive of local celebrations being planned by departments or areas that have a direct link to STC and would appreciate hearing details of the different events that are being planned.
The President’s Advisory College Council Town Hall Meetings will resume in the fall. Have a wonderful summer break and we hope to see you at Convocation!