MinutesofUniversityCouncil
2:30p.m.,Thursday,November21,2013
Neatby‐TimlinTheatre
Attendance:J.Kalra(Chair).SeeappendixAforlistingofmembersinattendance.
Thechaircalledthemeetingtoorderat2:32p.m.,observingthatquorumhadbeenattained.
1. Adoptionoftheagenda
Thechairnotedthatitem14oftheproposedagenda,nominationscommitteereport,hadbeen
withdrawnfromtheagenda.
MEDA/KALYNCHUK:Toadopttheagendaascirculatedwithitem14,nominations
committeereport,deleted.
CARRIED
2. Openingremarks
Dr.Kalrawelcomedmembersandvisitors,andnotedtheitemscomingbeforeCounciltoday.
Headvisedthathewillstepdownforagendaitem10.1astheitemrelatestotheCollegeof
Medicine,andHansMichelmann,vice‐chair,willchairthemeetingforthatitem.
3. MinutesofthemeetingofOctober24,2013
Threeamendmentswererequestedtotheminutes:(a)toreplace“providedproperly”with
“takenintoaccountproperly”inthethirdlineofthefifthparagraphonpage2;(b)toreplace
theword“teaching”with“work”atthebottomofpage2;and(c)toreplace“suggestedthat
theseareoutcomes”with“commendedthePresidentforincludingtheseasoutcomes”inthe
fifthparagraphonpage5.
KALYNCHUK/DETERS:ThattheCouncilminutesofOctober24,2013beapprovedas
circulatedwiththeamendmentsnoted.
CARRIED
4. Businessfromtheminutes
Therewasnobusinessarisingfromtheminutes.
5. ReportofthePresident
PresidentIleneBusch‐Vishniacprovidedupdatesinadditiontoherwrittenreport.Regarding
theCollegeofMedicine,shenotedthattheUniversityandFacultyAssociationhavesignedan
agreementthatremovestheclinicalheadsfromscope.
Thepresidentreportedthatshehaspersonallyengagedwithover600peopleregardingthe
Vision2025:FromSpirittoActiondocument,andhasalsoreceivedfeedbackelectronically.She
encouragedthosewhohadnotalreadydoneso,toreadandcommentuponthedraftVision
document.
Thepresidentalsoprovidedanupdateaboutthereviewofgraduateeducation.Thereview
committeeisplanningtoseekinputandhopestohaveaninterimreportprovidedtoCouncilat
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
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theDecembermeeting.Twosignificantchangesrelateto:movingtoaroleofadvocacyrather
thanassuranceofcompliance;andmovingfromaseparatecollegetoamodelfoundatourpeer
institutionsthatmoreresemblesanadministrativeunit.
ThepresidentinformedCouncilofseveralextraordinaryawardsgivenbytheRoyalSocietyof
Canadatomembersofouruniversitycommunity.InNovember,MarieBattiste(Educational
Foundations),James[Sákéj] Youngblood Henderson (NativeLawCentre)andKeithHobson
(adjunctprofessorwiththeSchoolofEnvironmentandSustainability)wereinductedintothe
RoyalSocietyofCanada,andJohnGiesy(VeterinaryBiomedicalSciencesandToxicology
Centre)wasawardedtheMiroslawRomanowskiMedalfromtheRoyalSocietyofCanada.
ThepresidentreportedthattheU15hasbeendevelopingaproposaltoestablishanAdvantage
CanadaResearchExcellencefundrequesting$100millioninfundstobeallocatednextyear,
andupto$400millioninthefuture,opentoalluniversitiesbasedontheirpercentageofTri‐
agencyfunding.FinanceMinisterJimFlahertyhasbeensupportive,andmeetingshavealso
beenheldwithIndustryMinisterJamesMooreandMinisterofStateforScienceand
TechnologyGregRickford.
ThepresidentnotedthattherehasrecentlybeentensionbetweentheU15andAUCC.She
thoughtitwasimportantfortheU15tobeidentifiedandseparatebecausetheyare
responsiblefortheoverwhelmingmajorityofresearchfundsandgraduatestudentsthat
completedegreesinCanadaandthereforetheissuestheyfacearedifferentascomparedto
otherCanadianuniversities;secondly,virtuallyeverycountrywithamajorresearchefforthas
agroupofresearchintensiveuniversitiesandtheylooktopartnerwithequivalentgroups.
ACouncilmemberreferredtoanarticleintheStarPhoenixnewspaperregardingareporton
researchproducedbyCanadianAssociationofUniversityTeachersandaskedforareportto
UniversityCouncilonUniversityofSaskatchewanresearchcontractswithagencies,suchas
pharmaceuticalcompanies.Thepresidentadvisedthatthevice‐presidentresearchperiodically
providesareporttoCouncilandthatwouldbetheappropriatetimeforsucharesponse.
ACouncilmemberinquiredaboutthePresident’striptoChina.ThePresidentadvisedthatshe
participatedintwoalumnieventsandmetwithanumberofdonorsaswellaswiththeConsul
GeneraltoHongKong.Follow‐upisplannedbyafewofourcollegesregardingincreasing
studentexchangesbetweensomeofthebestschoolsinChinaandtheUniversityof
Saskatchewan.
6. ReportoftheProvost
BrettFairbairn,provostandvice‐presidentacademic,referredmemberstohiswrittenreport
inthemeetingmaterials.HealsonotedtherecentopeningofGraduateHouseintheCollege
Quarter,whichwillprovidespectacularfacilitiesforgraduatestudents.
ACouncilmemberinquiredaboutthethree‐phaseprocessforTransformUSandthedeadlines
foreachprocess.Dr.Fairbairnnotedthatthephaseshavebeenannouncedbythepresidentin
acommunicationearlierthisFall.TheCouncilmemberdisagreedwiththereferenceto
“institutionalpsyche”intheprovost’swrittenreport.Dr.Fairbairncommentedthatwhilethe
universityconsistsofindividualswhothinkfreelyanddebate,itisalsoacommunitywitha
culturewithsystemsandprocessesincommon,andhebelievedthatiswhatiseludedtointhe
sentence.
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
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ACouncilmemberinquiredaboutthesearchforthedeanoftheCollegeofMedicine.The
provostdescribedtheprocessunderwayandnotedthatnopublicannouncementwillbemade
untiltheBoardhasapprovedtheappointment.
ACouncilmemberinquiredaboutthespecificmechanismsandcriteriafordecisionsfollowing
theTransformUSprocessandwhethertheimplementationplanwillbebroughttoUniversity
Councilfordiscussion.Theprovostadvisedthatdecisionswillbemadebytheusualdecision‐
makingprocessesintheuniversityandbasedontheirusualcriteria.PCIPwillco‐ordinate
actionssothattherearenotpartsoftheuniversityactinginconflictingmanners.An
implementationdocumentwillmapoutwhichdecisionswillcometoCouncil,todeansandto
otherunitleaders.Theplanwillbesharedfordiscussionwiththeplanningandpriorities
committee.Councilwilldeterminehowtheywouldliketoreviewtheimplementationplan.He
acknowledgedthatitisanaggressivetimeline,butthathebelievesthatconsultationcanbe
donewithintwomonthsandtheimplementationplanwithinanothertwomonths.
7. StudentSocieties
7.1 ReportfromtheUSSU
MaxFineDay,presidentoftheUniversityofSaskatchewanStudents’Union,presentedanoral
reportonworktheUSSUisdoingtoencourageimplementationofaFallreadingweek.

Asurveyfrom2011foundthatnineoutoftenstudentsfromtheUniversityof
Saskatchewanfeltoverwhelmedattimes.AQueensUniversityreportonstudent
healthandwellnesssuggestedaFallreadingweekwouldimprovestudentmental
health.Studentscouldgohome,studyorjustdebrief.

Resourcescurrentlyusedtodealwithproblemsthatresultfromstresscouldbe
investedelsewhere.

Itwouldcreateamodelforotherinstitutionsintheprovincetofollow.Anumberof
OntariouniversitiesandauniversityinBritishColumbiahaveimplementedafirst
termreadingweek.
 Thefirsttermreadingweekwouldimproveacademicperformanceandretention.
Mr.FineDayadvisedthathehasbeeninconversationswiththeregistrar.TheUSSUwillbe
conductingasurveytodeterminewhetherstudentssupportafirsttermreadingweekto
providepreferencesonpossibledates,andtodetermineifstudentswouldagreetoanaltered
examscheduleinordertohavesuchabreak.
ACouncilmemberaskedwhetherthereisevidencethatafirsttermreadingweekiseffective
inassistingwithmentalhealthandreducingstress.Mr.FineDaynotedthatanecdotally
studentshavesaidtheyhaveasmuchstressinthefirsttermasthesecondterm,andtherefore
havingareadingweekappliestothefirsttermasmuchastothesecondterm.Mr.FineDay
wasalsoaskedtogroupthesurveyresponsesbycollegeorprogram.
7.2 ReportfromtheGSA
KiriStaples,vice‐presidentoperationsandcommunicationsfortheGraduateStudents’
Association,presentedtheGSAreporttoCouncilandnotingthefollowinghighlights:
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
3
8.

TheGSAhasrecentlylaunchedanewwebsitethatismorealignedwiththe
university’swebsitedesign,functionandinterface.Itiseasiertouseandprovides
morespaceforpublicityforstudenteventsandadvertising.

Thebursaryselectioncommitteeprovided15studentswith$1,000eachbasedlargely
onfinancialneed.Thesuccessfulapplicantsrepresentavarietyofprogramsand
studentsandtheprogramhasconfirmedtheneedforthebursaryandtheextentof
thefinancialneedofmanygraduatestudents.

TwoGSAvice‐presidentsattendedtheCanadianAssociationofGraduateStudents
conference.

ReviewisunderwaytoconfirmthattheGSA’spoliciesconformwithbestpractice,
includingmoretimelycommunicationsandtrainingforincomingexecutive.
ItemforInformation:FallCensusDayEnrolmentReport
DavidHannah,associatevice‐president,studentaffairs,presentedthisreporttoCouncilas
RussellIsinger,registrar,wasunabletoattend.Dr.HannahnotedthataFallenrolment
snapshotsummarysheetwasmadeavailableatthebeginningofthemeeting.
Basedonthecensusthatistakenattheendofthefifthweekofclasses,overallenrolmentis
down0.6%whichisthefirstyearofdeclinesince2008.Dr.Hannahadvisedthatmore
studentsaretakingSpringandSummerclassesthaninpreviousyears.Graduatestudents
representapproximately15%oftotalenrolment,undergrads81%andtherestisrepresented
bystudentsinothercategories.Enrolmentofgraduatestudentsisup3.2%and
undergraduateenrolmentisdown1.2%.TherehasbeenadeclineinSaskatchewanhigh
schoolgraduates.Thefirstandsecondyearretentionrateindirectentryprogramshas
declined.WiththeeliminationofOpenStudiestherehasbeenalossofsomestudents
requiredtodiscontinueduringthetransitionfromOpenStudiestoothercolleges.Therehas
alsobeenadeclineincontinuingNursingstudentsduetothegraduationofalargerNEPS
cohortandfewerstudentsenteringthenewBSNprogram.AlsotheProfessionalAssociation
ofForeignServiceOfficers(PAFSO)jobactionnegativelyaffectedsomeincominginternational
students.
Dr.Hannahprovidedinformationonundergraduatesbyoriginnotingthat77%of
undergraduatesarefromSaskatchewan,12%outofprovinceand7.5%areinternational
students,withtheinformationontheremaindercontinuingtobeunknown.Adeclineis
expectedinthenumberofChinesestudentsstudyingoverseas.
Thegraduatestudentenrolmentincreased3.2%.However,therateofgrowthhasdeclined
overthepastfewyearsindicatingthatweneedtocontinuetofocusonthisarea.Dr.Hannah
providedinformationonthegraduatenumbersbyprogramtypenotingthattherehasbeenan
increaseincourse‐basedmaster’sprogramwhichisupover106%since2009.Lookingatthe
originofgraduatestudents,66%aredomesticstudentsand34%international,whichisthe
highestlevelofinternationalstudentstheuniversityhaseverhad.Dr.Hannahillustratedthat
ourinternationalgraduatestudentscomefromacross‐sectionofcountries.
RegardingAboriginalstudents,Dr.Hannahreportedtherehasbeensomeincrease,butnotto
theextentreportedasmostofthegainsarelikelyduetostudentsnowself‐declaringin
responsetoamajorcampaigntoencourageAboriginalstudentstoself‐declareand
improvementsinourtrackingsystemstocapturethisinformation.Approximately2,000
Aboriginalstudentsattendoncampusandagreaterpercentageofthesestudentsare
graduating.
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
4
Thegenderbreakdownattheuniversityis57%femaleand42%maleacrossallstudent
groups.Firstandsecondyearretentionrateshavedecreasedabitthisyearandremaina
focus.Incontrast,internationalandAboriginalstudentretentionrateshaveincreasedslightly.
Althoughtotalenrolmentisdown,thetotalnumberofcreditunitsincreasedslightly
indicatingthatstudentsaretakingmoreclasseswhichisgoodfromarevenue‐generating
perspective.Thereisapproximatelythesamenumberoffirst‐timestudentsindirectentry
programsaslastyear.ThenumberofstudentsfromAlbertahasincreased25%andfrom
Calgaryalmost33%ascomparedtolastyear.
Dr.Hannahprovidedinformationonoff‐campusactivityincludingonlineandregional
collegesnotingthattherehasbeenadramaticincreasesincelastyearandthistrajectoryis
expectedtocontinue.Thesenumbersareincludedintheoverallenrolmentdatareported.
Dr.HannahprovidedinformationontheenrolmentreportingmethodologyadvisingthatSESD
hasmovedtoterm‐basedreportingwithpreliminaryhighleveldatabeingreleasedinearly
SeptemberandmoredetailedreportingprovidedtoUniversityCouncilinNovemberand
MarchandtoSenateinApril.Theenrolmentreportisnowreplacedbyahighlightsheetand
presentation.DetailedenrolmentdataisprovidedthroughtheDataServiceswebsite,uViewat
www.usask.ca/isa.Dr.Hannahconcludedbythankingtheindividualswhocompiledthe
informationinthereport.
9.
PlanningandPrioritiesCommittee
Dr.FranWalley,chairoftheplanningandprioritiescommittee,presentedthesereportsto
Council.
9.1
Itemforinformation:StrategicEnrolmentManagement(SEM)ReportSummary
Dr.WalleyprovidedanintroductiontothestrategicenrolmentsummaryreportShe
notedthattheplanningandprioritiescommitteemetwiththeacademicprograms
committeejointlyinOctobertodiscusstheSEMreporthighlightswithDr.Hannah.
ThoughtheSEMreportisbeingpresentedtoCouncilforinformationonly,any
academicpolicychangesthatmayresultfromtheadoptionofanyrecommendationsin
thereportwillalsocometoCouncilforapprovalinthefuture.
Thereportrecommendsmodestundergraduategrowthtargetsandaggressivetargets
forgraduatestudents,withatotalenrolmentby2015‐16ofapproximately23,000
students,comprisedof18,500undergraduatestudentsand4,450graduatestudents.
Thereportcontainstenkeyrecommendationswhichaddressstudentrecruitmentinan
environmentofincreasingcompetitionamonguniversities.Dr.WalleyinvitedDavid
Hannah,vice‐president,studentaffairs,toprovidemoredetailedcommentsonthe
report.
Dr.HannahreportedthatCouncilapprovedanenrolmentplanin2003thatprojected
andcalledforagoalof21,000studentsby2010,whichwasmet.Theplanalsocalled
for3,500graduatesby2010,whichgoalwasexceeded;aswellas18,640
undergraduateswhichwasnotmetuntil2012.Thegoalof15%ofdomestic
undergraduates,andinternationalgoalsof7‐8%ofundergraduateshavenotyetbeen
metandworkcontinuesonthese.
Dr.Hannahadvisedthattheyarenowworkingtowardsstrategicenrolment
managementwhichisdefinedas“asetofconcepts,strategiesandsystematicpractices,
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
5
groundedinsolidinstitutionaldatathatenablesaninstitutiontodefineandachieveits
desiredenrolment”.
Dr.Hannahdescribedthehistoryofenrolmentattheuniversityoverthepastfew
decadesnotingthatithasgonefromarelativelycrudeapproachofopeningthegate
untiltheprogramisfullandthenclosingthegatetooneinwhichmoreattentionispaid
torecruitment.Thenasprogramdemandbegantodecreaseinresponsetoenrolment
pressures,moreattentionwaspaidtoretention.Strategicenrolmentmanagementis
aboutpayingattentiontotheotherfactorsthataffectenrolment:whatarestudents
lookingfor;whatareemployersseeking;whatistheexternalmarket;whatarewe
doingaboutfinancialaid;andothers.
TheSEMprojectbeganin2011withPCIPapprovingasetofenrolmentgoalsforthe
endofthethirdplanningcycle(2015/16)in2012.Theseincludenumericalgoalsfor
undergraduates,graduatesandtotalenrolment,butalsogoalsforthecompositionof
thestudentbody,andaddressquestionssuchashowmanyAboriginaland
internationalstudentsdowewant;whataboutothers;whatqualityofstudentsarewe
attracting;etc.
OncePCIPhaddeterminedthe2015/16enrolmentgoals,threeteamswereestablished
todiscussundergraduaterecruitment,undergraduateretentionandthegraduatelife
cycle.Eachoftheseteamsdeveloped,reviewedandprioritizedasetof
recommendationswhichthenwenttoasteeringcommitteethatreviewedand
prioritizedtheenrolmentstrategiesfromalloftheteamsandidentifiedthetoptento
focusonwhichareincludedinthewrittenmaterialsandarereiteratedherefor
convenience:
1.Createadministrativeprocessesforgraduatestudentsthatarebetterthanour
U15peers.
2.Establishacoordinatinginfrastructureforundergraduatestudentretention.
3.Determineprinciples,prioritiesandauthorityformakingdecisionsaroundthe
strategicallocationofgraduatestudentfunding.
4.Clarifystudentrecruitmentroles.
5.Selectandimplementacustomerrelationshipmanagementsystem.
6.Prioritizeandensureimplementationofauniversity‐widetransfercredit
policyandaccompanyingprocedures.
7.Establishanexpandedcentralizedstudentexperiencefunction.
8.Createcompetitivegraduateandundergraduateadmissionpackagesfor
targetedstudentgroups.
9.Selectandimplement“earlyalert”systemtoidentifyundergraduateand
graduatestudentsexperiencingdifficultiesandpromotetimelyandeffective
intervention.
10.Establishacentralizedstrategicenrolmentintelligenceteam.
Dr.Hannahadvisedthattheprovosthasestablishedasmallworkinggrouptotake
thesetoptenrecommendationsandproposetotheprovostwhoshouldbetaskedwith
eachrecommendation,atwhichpointtheprojectwillmoveforwardtoan
implementationphase.
ACouncilmemberaskedwhetherretentiongoalsarealsopartofenrolment
management.Dr.Hannahadvisedthatacombinationofattractionandretention,as
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
6
wellasprogressinggraduatestudentsthroughtheirprogramsmorequickly,willaid
enrolment.Alsoenrolmentisbeingassistedthroughcollegesanddepartmentssharing
whatisworkingintheirareas.
10. AcademicProgramsCommittee
AsthisiteminvolvestheCollegeofMedicine,JayKalrasteppeddownaschairbecauseheisa
memberoftheCollegeofMedicine,andvice‐chairHansMichelmannbecameactingchair.
Prof.RoyDobson,chairoftheacademicprogramscommitteepresentedthereportstoCouncil.
10.1RequestforDecision:CollegeofMedicinereplacementprogram
Prof.Dobsonreferredtotheinformationinthewrittenmeetingmaterialsand
explainedtherationalefortheCollegeofMedicinerevisingitscurriculumfromtwoand
one‐halfyearsofcoursestooneandone‐halfyearsofclerkshiptotwoyearsofcourses
andtwoyearsofclerkship.
DOBSON/KROHL:ThatCouncilapprovetherevisedDoctorofMedicineprogramfor
theCollegeofMedicine.
CARRIED
JayKalrareturnedaschair.
10.2 RequestforDecision:SchoolofEnvironmentandSustainabilityCertificatein
Sustainability
Prof.Dobsonnotedthatthisisanewcertificateofproficiencyinsustainabilitywhichis
intendedtogivestudentsatheoreticalandsubstantiveexperienceinsustainability‐
relatedpractice.
DOBSON/KROL:ThatCouncilapprovetheCertificateinSustainabilityasacertificateof
proficiencyfromtheSchoolofEnvironmentandSustainability.
CARRIED
11. Teaching,LearningandAcademicResourcesCommittee
JayWilson,vice‐chairoftheteaching,learningandacademicresourcescommittee,presented
thisitemtoCouncil.
11.1 ItemforInformation:AcademicAdvisingCharter
Prof.WilsonnotedthattheAdvisingCharterdefinesthefocusofacademicadvisingas
studentsuccess,withthepurposeofacademicadvisingasassistingstudentsto
completetheirprogramandachievetheiracademicgoals.Dr.WilsoninvitedDr.Patti
McDougall,Vice‐Provost,TeachingandLearning,toprovidefurtherdetailonthe
Charter.
Dr.McDougallexplainedthattheAcademicAdvisingCharterrepresentsthe
implementationofanactionitemstemmingfromacampusreviewthatoccurredin
2010.Theintentistodefinetheacademicadvisingexperiencethattheuniversityaims
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
7
toprovidestudentsandcreateanunderstandingofwhatacademicadvisingis.Dr.
McDougallnotedthecontributionofotherstotheCharter.
12. JointCommitteeonChairsandProfessorships
JimGermida,vice‐provost,facultyrelations,presentedthesereportstoCouncil.
12.1 RequestforDecision:GlobalInstituteforFoodSecurity(GIFS)EnhancementChairs
Program
Dr.GermidaexplainedthepurposeoftheGIFSenhancementchairsprogramistoretain
orre‐directdutiesofafacultymemberwhoisaleadingscientistattheuniversityand
toattractnewscientifictalenttotheuniversity.
ACouncilmemberaskedwhetherateachingstipendwillbeincludedintheGIFSchairs
programAndDr.Germidaadvisedthatthatisnotcurrentlypartofthefundingforthe
chairsprogram.
SINGH/BUHR:ThatCouncilauthorizestheBoardtoestablishtheGIFSEnhancement
ChairsProgram.
CARRIED
12.2 RequestforDecision:UniversityofSaskatchewanCentennialEnhancementChair
Dr.Germidanotedthatthepurposeoftheprogramistoassistinretainingfaculty.
SINGH/PARKINSON:ThatCouncilauthorizestheBoardtoestablishaUniversityof
SaskatchewanCentennialEnhancementChair.
CARRIED
13.
PolicyOversightCommittee
13.1 ItemforInformation:PolicyOversightCommitteeYear‐endReport
ElizabethWilliamson,universitysecretary,notedthereportcontainedinthewritten
meetingmaterialsandadvisedthatitliststhepoliciesthatwereintroducedor
amendedattheuniversitybetweenJuly2012andJune2013aswellasthosethatwere
beingreviewedasoftheendofJune2013.Therewerenoquestionsorcomments.
14. Otherbusiness
Therewasnootherbusiness.
15. Questionperiod
Therewerenoquestions.
16. Adjournment
D’EON/DESBRISAY:Thatthemeetingbeadjournedat4:00p.m.
CARRIED
Nextmeeting–2:30pm,December19,2013
DRAFTuntilapprovedatthenextmeeting
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