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SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
Senate Committee on University Priorities
Memorandum
TO:
Senate FROM: John
Chair,
W
S
Vice Pr
RE: Motions Arising from the Phase 2
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DATE: March 13, 2008
Faculty Structure Task Force Report
Preamble
In October, 2006, reporting back to Senate following an extensive community consultation process, the
Phase I Faculty Structure Task Force recommended that Simon Fraser University examine alternative
academic configurations, structures and systems of support. In doing so, the Phase I Task Force affirmed
the commitment to liberal education in the arts and sciences as core to the University, balanced with a
critical need for SFU to continue to change and grow in strategic directions.
The subsequent work and recommendations of the Phase 2 Task Force on Faculty Structure reaffirmed this
commitment to liberal education and to innovation. The report of the Phase 2 Task Force on Faculty
Structure. 'Removing Barriers: A Design For the Future of SFU. incorporated the foundations laid by the
• ?
Phase I report in making recommendations intended to guide the further development of SFU in the
coming years. The following motions arise as a consequence
of
the important work
of
both the Phase I and
Phase 2 Task Forces.
Motion I ?
•
That Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the revised structure of the Faculty of
Applied Sciences, comprised
of
the School of Computing Science and the School of Engineering Sciences.
effective April 2009.
Motion
2
That Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the relocation
of
the School of Kinesiology
to the Faculty of Science, effective April 2009.
Motion
3
That Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors the establishment of the Faculty of
Communication. Contemporary Arts, and Design (interim name), effective April 2009, to be comprised of
the following programs:
the School of Communication. the School for the Contemporary Arts, the School of Interactive
Arts and Technology, and the Master's of Publishing Program.
Motion
4
That Senate approve and recommend to the Board
of
Governors the establishment
of
the Faculty of the
Environment, effective April 2009. to be comprised of the following programs:
the Environmental Science Program. the department of Geography. the School of Resource
and Environmental Management. the Centre for Sustainable Community Development, and
the Graduate Certificate Program in Development Studies.
• ?
The Vice President Academic will establish a Faculty Interdisciplinary Programming Committee with a
mandate to develop new programming for the Faculty. and to report back to Senate regarding this
programming before April 2009.
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Rationale
The Final Report of the Phase 2 Task Force on Faculty Structure was submitted to Senate
at the March
3,
2008 meeting. Senate is referred to that report for a more detailed
rationale for the above motions.
The Report was the culmination of 3 years of research, deliberation and extensive
consultation with the university community. The Task Force acknowledged that change
is often difficult to contemplate, and no less so when the university is challenged with
increased competition and fiscal constraints. However, as also identified by the Task
Force, the time is right for a bold response to the current reality, which will in turn create
the pathway to new opportunities and enable SFU to reclaim the spirit of innovation upon
which it was founded.
The specific proposals contained in the report were based on the work of the previous
Faculty Structure Task Force (Phase 1), research on practices and experiences at other
institutions and on dialogue with the SFU community. The report of the Phase 2 Task
Force concluded that future plans and structures for SFU must be guided by four key
considerations:
1. Faculty members will see SFU as a place where they can effectively pursue
disciplinary and interdisciplinary knowledge discovery and exemplary teaching
practice:
• 2. Graduate students will see SFU as a place where they are afforded an expanded
range of outstanding programmatic options and are connected with the research
agenda and activities of the University;
3.
Undergraduate programs and student experiences will be of exceptional quality
and distinction, and therefore will continue to attract the highest caliber students;
4.
Communities, both locally and internationally, will see SFU as a place that fulfills
a mandate of social responsibility, provides access through expanded learning
opportunities, and continues SFU's tradition of engagement and leadership
concerning global social and environmental problems.
The proposed new Faculties will enhance SFU's position as a top tier university for
research and teaching, and better position the university for future growth and
advancement in an increasingly demanding post-secondary sector. The proposed new
Faculties will significantly enhance SFU's ability to recruit and retain students and
faculty, and to attract new governmental, external, and research funding.
Interdisciplinarity will be better supported and significantly enhanced, as will SFU's
existing strengths and accomplishments. In these ways, the new structure will lead to the
achievement of the goals described above, and generate exciting new momentum. The
proposed new structure has the overwhelming support of the Faculty members directly
involved, as evidenced by votes conducted by Faculty members in the respective areas.
Faculty
of Applied Sciences
•
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Although the Final Report contemplated disbanding the Faculty of Applied Sciences and
establishing a new Faculty of Engineering and Computing Sciences, that is not being
recommended at this time. Retaining the "Faculty of Applied Sciences", a name
traditionally and closely linked to the disciplines of Engineering and Computing Science,
will allow for uninterrupted promotion of this Faculty as a nexus of elite, high technology
and computational teaching, research, and complementary disciplinary specializations.
The enhanced visibility and profiles of the two schools with the Faculty supports student
and faculty recruitment, and the attraction of research funding. Retaining the name will
position this Faculty for future growth and development in the respective areas and in
new interdisciplinary and interconnected programs. Retaining the current name also
allows for cost saving.
The move of the School of Kinesiology to the Faculty of Science is a consequential
change resulting from the refocus of the Faculty of Applied Sciences on engineering and
computing, and will result in Kinesiology being better aligned with cognate departments
in Science.
Faculty
of
Communication, Contemporary Arts, and Design
The establishment of the Faculty of Communication, Contemporary Arts, and Design is a
compelling combination of cognate disciplines sharing a commitment to interdisciplinary,
integrative and imaginative learning environments, fundamental and applied research in
communications and creative pursuits in the contemporary arts. The Schools and
programs involved in the proposed Faculty are enthusiastic about the potential of the new
structure to develop new programming areas and foster strategic outreach to the external
community.
Faculty
of Environment
SFU is uniquely positioned to provide a significant contribution to the global
environmental challenge by the creation of the Faculty of Environment. The vision for
this Faculty is disciplinary and interdisciplinary, consistent with SFU's distinctive
qualities and traditions. Creation of this Faculty will clearly establish SFU as a leader in
this crucial area, and better position the university as a centre of research and teaching
excellence in environmental issues. The organizational structure of a Faculty is required
in order to provide the necessary leadership, and to facilitate the interconnections of all
the departments directly involved and those more broadly impacted. The structure of a
Faculty will facilitate the development and offering of new graduate and undergraduate
degree programs, provide coherence and permanence to teaching and research in this area
and will significantly raise the profile of the university's commitment to environment
research and education to those outside of SFU. The Faculty structure is key to the
establishment and growth of institutional profile for SFU in the Environment. The
composition of the Faculty reflects and continues SFU's distinctive multidisciplinary
approach to the complex social and scientific issues such as global climate change.
As recommended in the Final Report and indicated in the motion above, the first task will
be to establish a Faculty Interdisciplinary Programming Committee with a mandate to
develop a blueprint for new integrative environmental programming involving faculty
members and programming. The mandate of this committee, under the direction of the
Vice President Academic, will be:
3.
• ?
• to identify the suite of graduate and undergraduate programs that will be offered
in this Faculty;
• to address the continuity of existing degree programs in Geography,
Environmental Sciences, and Resource and Environmental Management;
• to develop new programs that will integrate scientific, social science and
humanistic knowledge;
• to explicitly identify how courses in existing programs and Faculties throughout
the University can be integrated with programs offered by the Faculty of the
Environment; and
• to identify how courses in the Faculty can offer service to other units.
The Committee's plan will be presented to Senate for approval before April 2009, prior
to the Faculty becoming fully operational.
Process and Costs
The creation of two new Faculties and the reconfiguration of the Faculty of Applied
Sciences are the first of a number of key recommendations that will be presented to
Senate. The creation of these new Faculties will fundamentally reposition SFU as a
leader in emerging fields and will signal SFU's commitment to disciplinary and
interdisciplinary programming innovation and expansion.
While it is true that the cost of the proposed changes is not insignificant, the opportunity
cost of holding to the status quo while the post-secondary world changes, and the risk of
• ?
relegating SFU to the role of follower, has the potential to be much greater. The costs
associated with the changes should instead be seen as investments that will yield future
benefits, both financial and reputational. As detailed in the Final Report of the Phase 2
Faculty Structure Task Force, on the approval of the Board of Governors, the resources
required to establish the new Faculties will be drawn from the Strategic Initiatives Fund
and from funds not expended from the "Double the Opportunities" fund. Funding from
those sources ensures that the funds required for the proposed changes do not represent a
direct call on existing Faculty budgets. The approximate costs of the establishment of
each new Faculty will be $750,000. In addition, the 6 to 8 new FTE positions
contemplated for the Faculty of Environment will cost approximately $750,000. The
approximate costs and the phase-in of these costs are detailed in the table attached.
cc. ?
R. Anderson. L. Bendel l-Young, A. Harestad, T. Hickin, K. Lertzman
J. Bowes, M. Gotfrit. M. Laba
U. Glaesser, M. Saif
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