Message from President John McLaughlin: Commission on Inter-Campus Relations

Wednesday March 26, 2008

Special Announcement
To: The UNB Community
From: John McLaughlin, President
Re: Commission on Inter-Campus Relations

The University of New Brunswick has been an important part of New Brunswick history for more than two centuries. We have continuously embraced new opportunities to ensure UNB remains an institution that serves students and citizens through academic integrity, education, discovery and community service.

Our success has been, in part, based on our willingness to rigorously assess our ability to meet our mandate as New Brunswick’s national university. Today, I am pleased to announce the establishment of UNB’s Commission on Inter-campus Relations, Funding and Governance to help us identify the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. The commission will undertake a study over the next few months and its findings and recommendations will be an important component of UNB’s future strategic direction.

While the decision to launch this study is the responsibility of the Board of Governors, Premier Shawn Graham indicated at the recent State of the Province Address his government’s support of the University’s initiative.

Two commissioners have been appointed to examine our current structure and to make recommendations for the future. They are UNB Vice-Presidents Emeriti Tom Condon (Saint John) and Jim O’Sullivan (Fredericton).

Tom Condon has made lasting contributions to the cultural and academic life of Saint John. As vice-president (Saint John) and governor emeritus of the University of New Brunswick, he played a key role in the growth and development of the Saint John campus, overseeing the introduction of new programs, a significant increase in enrolment and the construction of eight new buildings. As president of the Imperial Theatre, he provided tireless and determined leadership in the restoration and modernization of this historic playhouse and vaudeville theatre. His volunteerism has also benefited the 1985 Jeux du Canada Games, the Festival-by-the-Sea and the Writers Federation of New Brunswick. He was much involved recently in the revitalization of Symphony New Brunswick.

Jim O’Sullivan’s distinguished public service career spanned 40-plus years, supporting the administrations of two New Brunswick premiers and five UNB presidents. He served as secretary for the Royal Commission on Higher Education in New Brunswick, secretary to the Committee on the Financing of Higher Education in New Brunswick and founding chairperson of the New Brunswick Higher Education Commission. He has acted as chairperson of the Cabinet Secretariat for the Government of New Brunswick and for 25 years provided support, counsel and leadership as UNB’s vice-president (finance and administration).

Both commissioners are past members of the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission, and each has served for a period of time as acting president of UNB.

The Commission will begin its work immediately and make recommendations about how our campuses interact with one another, operationally and financially, so that we can strengthen the University of New Brunswick’s ability to encourage and support a culture of excellence in New Brunswick.

The Commissioners will invite submissions and consultations from both the external and campus communities to inform their deliberations and are tentatively scheduled to report back to UNB’s Board of Governors in the summer of 2008 after which time, their recommendations will be made available to the public.

The terms of reference for the commission are included below for your reference.

Sincerely,
John McLaughlin

Terms of Reference for:
Commission on Inter-Campus Relations, Funding and Governance, 2008

Throughout its 44-year history, “UNB Saint John” has evolved in a planned and coherent way as a distinct but integrated part of the University of New Brunswick. The concept of one University of New Brunswick with two campuses in Fredericton and Saint John originated with the report of the Deutsch Commission in June 1962. This report concluded that the need for an English-language university in Saint John could best be met by the establishment of a permanent branch of UNB.

Since the establishment of UNB Saint John in 1964, inter-campus relations have been shaped by a series of committees, studies and reports. The Deutsch Committee of 1975, the CRICR (Committee to Review Inter-Campus Relations) report (1984), the report of the Ad Hoc Committee of the Board on Inter-Campus Allocation of Provincial Operating Grants (1987) and the Report of the Task Force on the Role of UNBSJ (1988) are several of note. These committees and reports addressed two major areas of ongoing relevance in campus relations: 1) the funding of the campus and financial arrangements between the campuses; and 2) governance structures and functions.

For instance, the second Deutsch Commission of 1975 recommended the provision of a separate budget for the Saint John campus with responsibility and authority for the preparation of this budget residing on the campus. It proposed an initiative to seek separate provincial government operating grants for the two campuses. It also recommended that the Saint John campus have its own vice-president and registrar. The CRICR Committee, among many groundbreaking recommendations, proposed the establishment of a separate and equal University Senate on the Saint John campus, and the provision of separate government operating grants for each campus. The Ad Hoc Committee on Inter-Campus Allocation of Provincial Operating Grants reiterated the call for separate operating grants to each campus, and, pending that change, recommended a transfer of funds between the campuses and that the provincial operating grant be allocated by the UNB Board of Governors in accordance with the MPHEC formula for allocating grants among N.B. universities. Although the government did not implement separate grants for each campus, the report of the Task Force on the Role of UNBSJ in 1988 did lead directly to an increase in the UNB operating grant designated specifically for UNB Saint John.

While inter-campus relations have deepened and matured over the past 20 years, contemporary developments have accentuated the need for a thorough review of funding and governance arrangements for the Saint John and Fredericton campuses. The Betts-MacDonald study and report of 2006 commented on the inadequacy of the existing provincial funding formula, and its differential impact on the two campuses. The debate ensuing from the report of the Commission on Post-Secondary Education has touched on both funding and governance questions.

The University of New Brunswick needs to further examine and modify inter-campus relations in a way that will allow for continuing development and change on each campus while enabling UNB to fulfill its role as the province’s national comprehensive university.

Accordingly, the Board of Governors has established a Commission to study and report to the President and the Board on certain aspects of the relationship of the Saint John and Fredericton campuses. This will be the first major review of inter-campus relations since the Board Committee on Inter-Campus Allocation of grants of 1987.

This commission will have a focused mandate to enquire into, report on and make recommendations, within the guiding principle of one University of New Brunswick with two campuses, on the following matters:

1. a financial and funding model appropriate to the two-campus structure, that will support and enable financial sustainability of each campus and the University over the long term;

2. the role and financing of services provided centrally to both campuses;

3. a governance structure and functions appropriate to the two distinct but integrated campuses of UNB that addresses:

a. the extent of flexibility for divergence between the Senates while maintaining equivalent standards and ease of credit transfer within an integrated University of New Brunswick degree-granting model;
b. increased opportunity for beneficial cooperation between the two Senates, including possible changes in the committee structure;
c. a means for resolution of differences and disputes between the Senates that have an impact on University strategic priorities and interests;
d. appropriate representation on the Board of Governors from each campus and the greater metropolitan area in which each campus is located;
e. possible establishment of specific terms of reference for oversight of the overall inter-campus relationship within an existing or new Board standing committee.
f. administrative mechanisms appropriate to effective and efficient operations on and between the Saint John and Fredericton campuses;
g. related aspects of the inter-campus relationship between the Fredericton and Saint John campuses.

COMPOSITION

The Commission will consist of two commissioners appointed by the Board of Governors upon a recommendation from the President. And other offices as appropriate. The Commission will be based at Beaverbrook House in Saint John.

The Commission will consult to the extent it considers necessary with faculty, students, staff, alumni, the external community and others whom it may identify, and may hold hearings and invite written submissions as it determines. The Commission may undertake such data collection, review and analysis as it considers relevant to its work. Subject to the parameters set out in this document, the Commission will develop its own procedures. The Commission will report to the President and the Board, in the summer of 2008. The Commissioners will have discretion to extend the deadline should they determine that additional time is required to allow for adequate consultation, review and analysis.