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Annual Social Media Day of Action draws attention to the elephant in the room

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In April, OCUFA’s Contract Faculty and Faculty Complement Committee held its sixth annual Social Media Day of Action in support of fairness for contract faculty. On April 21, members of the committee, faculty associations, and allies drew attention to “the elephant in the room”: the provincial government’s underfunding of postsecondary education, which is the underlying cause of precarity, economic instability, and rising tuition costs.

Social media messages highlighted the detrimental impacts of underfunding on contract faculty, tenured faculty, students, and the broader community. The day saw broad participation from faculty associations, individual faculty, politicians, and labour allies.

This action is a clear demonstration of the sector-wide commitment to pushing back against the Ford government’s continuous attacks on the postsecondary education.

OCADFA secures sessional and equity gains in new agreement

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Following two days of Interest Arbitration, months of mediation, and over a year of bargaining, the Ontario College of Art & Design Faculty Association (OCADFA) has secured significant gains in the areas of Sessional and Teaching Intensive Stream job security and in equity hiring and retention.

Amongst the gains made are the introduction of the concept of a Right of Reappointment for Sessional Faculty members (allowing these members to be reappointed for 1 section of a course per term after teaching that course 4 times within 5 years) and a permanent course load cap for studio sessionals.

The university will now collect demographic information about faculty, conduct exit interviews for departing faculty who identify as belonging to an equity-seeking group, and provide better culturally-relevant supports for faculty from equity-seeking groups.

Further, the agreement adds tenure track faculty to hiring committees, overhauls the process for hiring TAs and RAs, includes a robust leave program with a significant top up prorated by leave length, and a one per cent across the board wage increase as regulated by Bill 124.

Reminder: 2020-2021 Annual OCUFA Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards Call for submissions

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Each year, OCUFA is proud to celebrate outstanding achievement in teaching and academic librarianship at Ontario universities. Through the Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards, we recognize those individuals whose pedagogical leadership and support have made a positive and enduring difference to their students and colleagues.

Anyone within the university community can nominate a faculty member or academic librarian for an award, so long as the nominee is a member of an OCUFA affiliated faculty or academic librarian association. This year’s award guidelines include special nomination criteria for contract faculty to facilitate the nomination of historically marginalized members of the academy. Award recipients are selected by an independent OCUFA committee made up of faculty, librarians, and student representatives.

This year, the deadline for nominations is May 28, 2021. Guidelines for the award can be found here:

Nomination packages should be saved as a single pdf file and submitted online at: https://ocufa.on.ca/ocufa-awards/teaching-and-academic-librarianship-awards/

OCUFA condemns termination of librarians at OCADU

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In a letter to the president of OCAD University, OCUFA has condemned the university’s termination of four senior librarians and two other library positions. OCUFA President Rahul Sapra described the important of university librarians at Ontario universities and urged OCADU’s administration to reinstate all six positions and rehire the librarians whose jobs were eliminated.

Read the full letter here.

Join OCUFA and the OFL for the Education Assembly on June 26

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OFL Education Assembly – June 26, 2021

Join OCUFA and the OFL for another virtual Province-Wide Education Assembly to discuss what Ontarians need from our education systems during COVID-19 and beyond.

Saturday, June 26 at 10 a.m.–1:00 p.m.

Parents, teachers, students, child care workers, faculty, and support staff across education sectors are invited to come together to envision and discuss a seamless plan that works for the entire education sector, from child care to postsecondary education.

Assembly overview:

  • Education: Hear from keynote speakers about chronic issues in education
  • Inspiration: Share ideas about what workers, parents, and students need to return to school safely
  • Action: Strategize and develop actions for the summer to ensure the government does what is needed for a safe September

Join us to develop an education plan that keeps everyone healthy and safe. Together, we are the power of many fighting for a better public education system for all.

RSVP now to get a link to join the webinar.

Updates on campaign to save Laurentian University

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OCUFA continues to provide LUFA with direct support on the fallout of the CCAA process. Below is a digest of key events, media coverage, and political action from the past week regarding the Laurentian CCAA Proceeding.

Please note that going forward, OCUFA will be providing updates as new actions and significant information or updates transpire, rather than on a weekly basis. Please regularly check our website and www.northernsolidarity.ca as we are adding new resources to our toolkit on a regular basis.

OCUFA continues to put pressure on Romano and the Ford government

OCUFA has issued a joint statement in consultation with Indigenous faculty members from the Indigenous Studies Department at Laurentian University, whose programs have been terminated through the CCAA process. The statement recognizes the detrimental loss of Indigenous-centred, Indigenous-developed and Indigenous-run degree programs, which are vital to Ontario’s North. OCUFA again demands that Ontario’s provincial government steps in to provide long-term, stable funding for Laurentian University. This funding is needed to ensure the continuation of Laurentian University’s Indigenous studies program and demonstrate the government’s responsibility under the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls to action.

OCUFA faculty association political action summary

In response to LUFA’s call for the Laurentian Board of Governors to terminate senior members of the administration team as well as the Board Chair, many faculty associations sent their own letters to the Laurentian Board of Governors demanding the same. OCUFA received letters from faculty associations at Brescia, Brock, Carleton, Nipissing, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Western, and York addressed to the Laurentian Board.

This past Friday many faculty members, community, and labour allies came out to the Rally on Wheels online and in-car protest to push back against the decimation of Laurentian University and the chronic underfunding of postsecondary education. Car rallies were held across the province, including in Toronto, Ottawa, Kitchener-Waterloo, and Sudbury. Here is a video of the livestreamed event, which includes pre-rally commentary, including moving testimonies and calls to action by (now former) Laurentian University faculty members, followed by speeches and footage from the rallies themselves— all hosted by Beverly Bain and Min Sook Lee of Scholar Strike Canada. The Rally on Wheels protest also gained coverage on CTV News and Sudbury.com. It is a formidable show of solidarity and an important step toward building the kind of escalating campaign of faculty, students, university workers, and university communities that Alan Sears spoke of in the Laurentian: What Can We Do? panel on April 16th—a campaign uniting us within and across campuses against ongoing attacks on public universities and on the communities in which they are embedded.

More statements of solidarity

On April 13th, OCUFA and LUFA called on the resignation of Minister Romano, and the five senior administrators at Laurentian. Last week, the Canadian Association of University Teachers also called for these resignations. CAUT is also calling for an independent investigation into the circumstances that pushed the university into insolvency.

OCUFA’s President, Rahul Sapra, has sent a letter to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Minister Francois-Philipe Champagne urging the federal government to amend the language of the CCAA and the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act to ensure that public institutions are excluded.

The Canadian Federation of Students, the Laurentian Graduate Students’ Association, and the L’Association des étudiantes et étudiants francophones of Laurention University released a statement of solidarity and list of demands:

  1. Put a stop to the CCAA processes immediately and fully fund Laurentian University until it is financially stable;
  2. Stop the proposed program cuts and guarantee that students will be able to complete their programs as planned at Laurentian University and the previously federated universities (Thorneloe University, Huntington University, and the University of Sudbury);
  3. Ensure that research funding for graduate programs and their faculty members are restored;
  4. Immediately stop the layoffs to faculty and staff and secure their employment through the proper bargaining processes.

The Alberta Colleges and Institutes Faculty Association (ACIFA) released a statement expressing its concern about the impact of the Laurentian CCAA process on LUFA members, as well as the ripple effect it will have on other publicly funded postsecondary institutions across Canada. ACIFA points to the underlying failure of provincial and federal funding models in properly supporting post-secondary education in the country.

The School of Nursing Sciences at the Université du Québec en Outaouais passed a solidarity motion in support of the faculty, staff and students in the Department of Nursing at Laurentian University. The School of Nursing is calling for support of the steps taken by LUFA and other groups representing faculty, students, and the community in order to recover the cut programs and reinstate laid off staff as soon as possible.

The Syndicat des professeurs et des professeures at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières also passed a solidarity motion, which denounces the layoffs of faculty, closure of programs for purely economic reasons, the use of the CCAA process and the chronic underfunding of the sector.

The Canadian Industrial Relations Association (CIRA) has released a statement on the program closures and job cuts at Laurentian. CIRA calls the unprecedented decision to force the university into creditor protection under the CCAA deplorable and a means of avoiding customary labour protections and obligations to bargain in good faith. It also points to the underlying issue of chronic underfunding of Canada’s postsecondary education system.

More city council motions are coming forward. On Tuesday April 27th, the Sudbury City Council passed a motion calling on the province to step in and fund Laurentian University. The councillors asked that details of the motion and its signatories be sent to Premier Doug Ford, Minister Romano, Sudbury MPP Jamie West, Nickel Belt MPP France Gelinas, as well as Sudbury MP Paul Lefebvre and Nickel Belt MP Marc Serre.

In addition, the Municipality of East Ferris near North Bay, has passed a solidarity motion urging the Provincial and Federal governments to ensure the continuation of Laurentian University as a strong and healthy provider of higher education for the communities of East Ferris and Northern Ontario. It also called for the governments to ensure the protection of the affiliated Universities and programs, as well as all other Laurentian programs aimed at meeting the needs of Northern Ontario’s Francophone and Indigenous populations, and needs specific to the north such as that provided by the School of Midwifery/École de profession des sages-femmes.

The Retired Teachers of Ontario (RTO), which includes over 80,000 members across Canada, sent a letter to Minister Romano last week, calling for: the appointment of a supervisor to oversee the financial management and administration of Laurentian University, and conduct a forensic audit; as well as the suspension of the cancellation of programs. RTO is also asking that the process of assessing Laurentian’s situation be transparent.

The Professors’ Association of Saint Paul University reaches new collective agreement

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Members of the Professors’ Association of Saint Paul University (PASPU) have ratified a three-year agreement. The agreement includes significant non-monetary gains that protect the membership and foster career development. The new agreement includes equity gains, including language permitting members to include the period of pregnancy and parental leave towards service time calculations for promotion and tenure. Workload is expanded to included community service, program development, and program evaluation. Language in the new agreement also strengthens governance procedures by allowing the PASPU to appoint a representative to any strategic planning committee in the university, as well as ensuring the association is consulted regarding changes to the university’s Research Committee. New language brings Ontario Health & Safety legislation into the Agreement for the first time, together with language regarding the provision of a harassment-free workplace, as well as defining responsibilities regarding new Ontarian accessibility legislation.

Monetary items include a 1% scale increase. In addition, new hires will receive $2,500 start-up fund to be used within their first 24 months. Professional development funds are increased by 25% to a total of $2,500 per annum. A separate letter of agreement has been negotiated that grants each member an additional $500 in professional development funds for 2020-21, which can be carried forward. The agreement includes language which re-opens salary increase negotiations if Bill 124 is repealed during the lifetime of the agreement.

Third OCUFA Fellowship in Higher Education Journalism awarded to Meral Jamal

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Meral Jamal was born and raised in a joint family in the United Arab Emirates. She will be graduating with a bachelor of journalism from Carleton University and is the newsletter editor with LiisBeth. She spent the summer of 2019 in the Yukon as part of Stories North, an initiative by Carleton professor Kanina Holmes to get journalism students involved in experiential reporting. Her time there taught her about reporting from and with racialized communities.

Who cares during COVID? The new issue of Academic Matters is out now!

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The latest issue of Academic Matters is out now. Contributors reflect on how the pandemic has impacted faculty and students struggling to balance their professional and personal lives. Read the issue for free online:

The academy’s neoliberal response to COVID-19: Why faculty should be wary and how we can push back
Honor Brabazon, St. Jerome’s University in the University of Waterloo
Canadian universities have reacted to the pandemic with neoliberal approaches that emphasize competitive individualism, commodification, and existing hierarchies of power. What can be done to push back against neoliberalism and re-imagine the future of the academy?

Care work during COVID: A letter from home about privilege, resilience, and capitalism in the academy
Soma Chatterjee, York University
Universities claim to re-shape the social, scientific, and economic contours of society for the better. Has the ongoing exploitation of precariously employed female and racialized academic staff revealed that universities are reinforcing the very norms they should be challenging?

Navigating the pandemic: Living alone but needing to stick together
Jeff Bale, University of Toronto
Whether living alone or caring for others, it has been hard to navigate this pandemic and maintain a healthy work-life balance. Overcoming these challenges means focusing on what we have in common and supporting each other to improve everyone’s working and living conditions.

Are Ontario universities and schools doing enough to care for students with children amid the COVID-19 crisis?
Norin Taj and Asmita Bhutani, University of Toronto
Many university students have child-care responsibilities they have to balance with their academic work. The ongoing uncertainty around in-person teaching at both universities and schools has made achieving this balance even more difficult.

Nursing students facing tough choices in order to graduate during the pandemic
Chantelle Cruzat-Whervin
The COVID-19 pandemic has put incredible strain on healthcare systems around the world. In Ontario, healthcare workers are in high demand. However, nursing students are now faced with the reality that, even before they graduate, they may need to put their own health at risk.

Baby matters: Gender politics in academia beyond COVID-19

Enrica Maria Ferrara, Trinity College Dublin
Men continue to hold most senior positions in academia, while women are overrepresented amongst the precariously employed. Yet, gaining tenure often means acting in ways that reinforce existing patriarchal structures. How do we build more equitable institutions?

The ugly side of performance-based funding for universities
Marc Spooner, University of Regina
Several provinces are overhauling how they fund postsecondary education. Research shows that these “performance” based funding approaches are largely ineffective. What is the real reason for this policy shift and how will it influence the mission of our universities?

Updates on campaign to save Laurentian University

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OCUFA member associations continue to push back against Minister Romano for his role in the collapse of Laurentian University. We are seeing the positive impact of these efforts as the issue continues to be covered by the media. A highlight of last week was hearing OCUFA’s positions clearly laid out on The Agenda by Past President and Board Chair Gyllian Philips. Gyllian was joined by Nadia Verrelli, Associate Professor in Laurentian’s Department of Political Science (one of the many programs cut) and Sébastien Lalonde, Chair of the Canadian Federation of Students–Ontario. Please be sure to check out and circulate this segment of The Agenda as widely as possible: https://www.tvo.org/video/assessing-laurentian-universitys-deep-cuts.

Below is a digest of key events, media coverage, and political action from the past week to save Laurentian.

OCUFA continues to pressure Romano and the Ford government

OCUFA continues to put pressure on Minister Romano and the Ford government. This last week we saw mounting criticism on the provincial government as a result of its handling of the pandemic. Public confidence in the Ford government is waning, and that was before Premier Ford’s press conference last Thursday where he was consistently put on the spot by reporters for his lack of support of paid sick days and misguided decisions (which were later revised) of closing playgrounds and increased policing powers.

Now it is more important than ever to continue to call for the resignation of Romano. A number of OCUFA member associations have taken up this call as highlighted below.

OCUFA faculty association political action summary

Each week since the CCAA proceeding at Laurentian began, different OCUFA member associations have stepped up to pressure the Ford government to invest immediately in the university to end the insolvency process.

Last Monday was a busy day! The Executives at both the Wilfrid Laurier University Faculty Association (WLUFA) and the Ontario College of Art and Design Faculty Association (OCADFA) passed motions calling for the resignation of Minister Romano, Laurentian President Robert Haché and his senior administration team. The Ryerson Faculty Association Executive also passed a similar motion on Tuesday, April 20.

Be sure to check out the WLUFA for LUFA campaign page for more information and ideas on member outreach! In addition, OCADFA has created a number of excellent online art pieces that target Romano and the Ford government that are available for all faculty to use in solidarity actions and campaign work: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Xze8bkDAaPvS-Mgq3_Hl0nvIB9t1cra8.

On Tuesday, OCADFA used some of these images to hold a virtual Fire Ross Romano event, in collaboration with the York University Faculty Association and the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario. The event called out Romano for knowing about the financial challenges Laurentian was facing at least six months before they became public and doing nothing. People at the virtual protest told Minister Romano—represented by a 3D art piece—why they thought he should not be in charge of Ontario’s colleges and universities anymore. Videos from the event are available to share here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1aNMZOiykvff1jgnrlX8EWn7XvKcfd8mo.

In addition, OCADFA President Min Sook Lee wrote an article for Rabble titled Laurentian University crisis a story of political interference and defunding of education, in which she describes the defunding of education and the need for all levels of government to “invest in our collective futures and purposefully build truly universal, high-quality, accessible education that begins with child care and continues to post-secondary.”

More Senate motions in support of the Laurentian University community have been passed at the University of Ottawa and Saint Paul University.

The University of Ottawa’s motion recognizes that the Laurentian community’s bilingual, tricultural mission and survival have been threatened, and reiterates the Senate’s commitment to continuing “the fight for the rights of Aboriginal community and Francophone minorities in Ontario and across Canada”. It also requests Laurentian University’s leadership examine all options to reduce the negative impact on students and faculty-researchers, and calls on “the provincial and federal governments to ensure adequate funding of Francophone or bilingual universities in minority settings in order to prevent such a situation from once again threatening postsecondary education in French across Canada.”

Saint Paul University’s Senate motion recognizes: the integral nature of a bicameral model of university governance to the health, integrity, and success of academic institutions; and the need for any termination of a program to be assessed on academic grounds and not for reasons of financial exigency. The motion also expressed the Saint Paul University Senate’s opposition to the application of the CCAA to public institutions.

On April 21, the Provost at Nipissing spoke in favour of the motion Nipissing University Faculty Members had brought to their last Senate meeting. All of the administrative representatives voted in favour, resulting in the motion passing unanimously.

Watch for updates and sign up for the weekly OCUFA newsletter (OCUFA Report) at www.ocufa.on.ca.

Please regularly check our campaign website and www.northernsolidarity.ca as we are adding new resources to our toolkit on a regular basis.

CCAA at Laurentian University threatens Indigenous studies and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls to action

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The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) is alarmed at the detrimental impact the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) process is having on Indigenous studies, faculty, students, and the community in the Greater Sudbury area. As part of the CCAA process, the Indigenous Studies Department, its programs, and its faculty have been terminated. For students, this means the loss of Indigenous-centred, Indigenous-developed, and Indigenous-run degree programs. For the surrounding region, this means the loss of Indigenous leadership and educational opportunities for First Nations’ youth and an important educational hub.

The Indigenous Studies Department at the University of Sudbury, a federated university at Laurentian is a leader across North America. It was developed by and with Indigenous educators, Elders, and Knowledge Holders for the Indigenous community in Northern Ontario and beyond. Further, the Indigenous studies program constitutes an essential component of Canada’s commitment to the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC); reconciliation requires truth and uncovering truth requires education. Teaching Indigenous and non-Indigenous students from an Indigenous-centred place is essential for meeting our obligations under the TRC.

Students, faculty, and staff at the University of Sudbury’s Indigenous studies program have made vital contributions to Indigenous sovereignty, self-determination, and decolonization for Indigenous peoples on Turtle Island. In addition, they have led the way as a model for Indigenizing the academy in support of Indigenous peoples and in fulfillment of the TRC’s calls to action.

The CCAA process and the Ontario government’s refusal to provide funding to support the Laurentian University Federation are actively jeopardizing the strong relationships built over decades between Indigenous communities in the North and the university.

Laurentian University’s decision to terminate the Indigenous Studies program under the CCAA process, effectively undermines the TRC’s calls to action and Laurentian University’s own tri-cultural mandate and commitment to the TRC. By allowing Laurentian University to cut this program, the Ontario government is failing in its commitment to the calls to action of the TRC.

Stand-alone, Indigenous-centred, and Indigenous-led programming is essential to serving the large and vibrant Indigenous population of Northern Ontario. Such programming provides necessary continuity to growing efforts to revitalize Indigenous languages and studies at the K-12 levels in the North, to allow students to continue this education beyond high school, and to allow students to remain in the North with their communities and in service of them.

The termination of the Indigenous Studies program at the Laurentian University Federation jeopardizes Indigenous education and revitalization beyond the postsecondary level, as it undermines students’ ability to continue their education and remain in their communities.

The provision of Indigenous studies education is about much more than providing courses. It requires an institutional competency at the centre of which are Indigenous faculty members and non-Indigenous allied scholars trained in the discipline of Indigenous Studies who design, plan, implement and carry out an integrated education along with fostering strong trust-based relationships with Indigenous Elders, Knowledge Holders, and community partners.  Faculty at the University of Sudbury/Laurentian Indigenous studies program have done all of this and more, and they are essential in upholding the university’s tri-cultural mandate and relationships with Indigenous communities.

In announcing the termination of the Indigenous Studies program, Laurentian University President Robert Haché said that the university will provide students registered in the Indigenous Studies program with “access to courses rooted in Indigenous perspectives already on offer, mostly through Laurentian’s Faculty of Arts, in a range of disciplines.” Certainly, the provision of Indigenous Studies programs requires the active involvement of Indigenous Studies faculty, community, and students. The courses Laurentian intends to provide from an “Indigenous perspective” seem to fall far short of meeting these important criteria.

OCUFA is deeply concerned about the impact of the CCAA process on the Indigenous Studies program’s staff, students, and faculty, as well as Indigenous communities in the North. The historic injustices Indigenous people in Canada have been and continue to be subjected to, in addition to the chronic underfunding of postsecondary education and Indigenous education, mean that Indigenous students and faculty are disproportionately impacted by this process.

Providing Indigenous studies at Laurentian without Indigenous Studies faculty and without the strong, trusting relationships they have fostered over decades with Indigenous communities stands in opposition to the TRC’s calls to action. It would set a dangerous precedent for providing Indigenous education without Indigenous Studies professors who are at the core of Indigenous revitalization and resurgence in the academy and beyond. If Laurentian University terminates its Indigenous Studies program, it would be the first time an Indigenous Studies program has been shuttered since the discipline began in 1969.

By allowing this to happen, Laurentian University and the Ontario government stand on the wrong side of history. Yet it is not too late, the Ontario government still has an opportunity to rectify this.

Ontario’s provincial government needs to step in and provide long-term, stable funding for Laurentian University to ensure the continuation of its Indigenous studies program, for they are vital to Ontario’s North and are the Ontario government’s responsibility under the TRC’s calls to action.

Ontario faculty tell Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano he’s fired!

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TORONTO, April 28, 2021 – On April 20th, Ontario faculty, students, and community members took part in a virtual action demanding the resignation of Minister of Colleges and Universities, Ross Romano.

Minister Romano has refused to engage with OCUFA or to comment publicly on the situation at Laurentian University. In the absence of being able speak with him directly, a coalition of Ontario postsecondary faculty, students, and community organizers assembled to convey their assessment of his performance, based on criteria that prioritize equity, decolonization, student well-being, and fair resourcing of postsecondary education in Northern Ontario. Determining that Romano had failed to meet these performance criteria, community members informed the Minister that he had been terminated from his position as Minister of Colleges and Universities.

“Minister Romano, you have failed students, faculty, workers, and community members at Laurentian University and throughout Sudbury” said Ontario College of Art and Design Faculty Association Vice-President, Mary Eileen Weenekers. “And for that, you are relieved of your duties as Minister of Colleges and Universities. Ross Romano, you’re fired!”

The Minister’s ceremonial firing came after faculty and staff at Laurentian University experienced their employment being unceremoniously terminated in mass Zoom calls on April 12th. These terminations resulted from a financial crisis at Laurentian created by chronic underfunding, and with the implicit consent of the Ford government.

According to reports from faculty, during these Zoom calls, Laurentian administration representatives made a brief appearance, read from a pre-written statement, and then left the group meetings, often without answering questions by those who had lost their jobs.

In response to the news of these inhumane termination meetings, students, faculty, and community stakeholders from across Ontario conceived of holding a similar firing of Minister Romano.

“This is an attack on the broader education sector in the North,” said Liana Holm, President of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario’s Rainbow Teacher Local. “Everyone will suffer because of Minister Romano’s inaction.”

“As Minister of Colleges and Universities, Ross Romano has proven himself incompetent at adequately resourcing quality education at our colleges and universities, or of expressing an understanding of education as a public good,” said Terry Maley, executive member of the York University Faculty Association.

The reduction of opportunities for working-class, Francophone and Indigenous peoples in Ontario’s North continues a long tradition of this government’s failure to provide equitable access to postsecondary education for people across Ontario. It is clear that the Ford government and Minister Romano’s decisions indicate a lack of competence in building a resilient, equitable, and sustainable postsecondary education system in Ontario.

“The cuts are appalling and could have been avoided if Minister Romano was doing his job,” said Rahul Sapra, President of the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations. “Minister Romano must resign immediately.”

Click here for a video summary of the online action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFy4K0I3Z3I by OCADFA.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 professors and academic librarians in 30 faculty associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

The Ontario College of Art and Design Faculty Association and York University Faculty Association are member associations of OCUFA.

 

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For more information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Ben Lewis, OCUFA Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

Update on campaign to save Laurentian University

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The mediation phase of the proceeding with the Laurentian University Faculty Association and Senate has ended. As a result, 110 Laurentian faculty members lost their jobs and 69 programs were cut at the institution (please refer to the end of the email for the list of programs). The next few weeks will determine whether the new “business plan” is acceptable to the lenders. This phase of the restructuring will end on May 1.

On the weekend, the situation gained front-page traction in The Toronto Star. The article featured perspectives from students and faculty, including LUFA President Fabrice Colin, who clearly laid out that the situation is a disaster, with core programs having been cut.

Over 650 letters in support of LUFA were signed this weekend alone! Clearly people are getting more engaged and interested and want to call on the government to take action. This raises the number of letters signed to over 10,000! Please continue to circulate the letter for more people to sign. It is one way of getting people informed and involved.

Political action summary

Each week since the Laurentian CCAA proceedings began, different OCUFA member associations have stepped up to pressure the Ford government to invest immediately in the university to end the insolvency process. Many of the letters and motions referenced below can be found on the Northern Solidarity website.

The Trent University Faculty Association has written to Minister Romano, demanding he take immediate steps to stabilize operations and protect the investment Ontario citizens have made over many years to create a world-class university in Sudbury.

A letter to the editor published in the Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal on Saturday and resolution passed by the Northern Ontario School of Medicine Faculty and Staff Association (NOSMFSA) at its General Meeting on April 7 recognize the critical role that northern universities, including Laurentian University, play in supporting the educational, cultural, social, and economic prosperity of Ontario.

The University of Western Ontario Faculty Association issued a press release on April 8 urging the federal and provincial governments to end the CCAA process. A motion calling on the provincial government and the Minister to provide immediate funding to LU passed unanimously. Read the motion and press release on UWOFA’s website.

The Nipissing University Senate unanimously passed a motion on Friday April 9, which recognized, amongst other things, that: “a first principle for university quality and integrity is expressed in the bicameral governance structure shared between the Board of Governors and the Academic Senate, a process clearly identified in the Nipissing University Act and Laurentian University Act”; and that the CCAA process at Laurentian has bypassed transparency and academic decision-making.

The Lakehead University Faculty Association and NOSMFSA co-sponsored a phone zap on April 11 to tell the provincial government to step in and immediately #FundLU. More than 60 people registered. The key targets were Greg Rickford (Kenora-Rainy River MPP and Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines) and Ross Romano, as well as federal Liberal MPs and Cabinet ministers.

On April 13, the Carleton University Academic Staff Association (CUASA) sent a letter to Minister Ross Romano reaffirming that Laurentian University is a crucial public institution in Northern Ontario. CUASA again is calling on the provincial government to increase funding and restore Laurentian to good financial health.

On April 14, the Association of Professors of the University of Ottawa (APUO) released a statement in solidarity with the faculty, support staff and students at Laurentian University. The statement called for: 1) the immediate resignation of Minister of Colleges and Universities, Ross Romano, Laurentian University President Robert Haché, Vice-President Academic and Provost Marie-Josée Berger, Vice-President Administration Lorella Hayes, Board Chair Claude Lacroix, and Registrar Serge Demers; and 2) the Ford government to provide immediate and long-term funding for Laurentian University to end its current insolvency filing and secure its future.

Also on that day, the Saint Paul University’s Faculty Association (PASPU) sent a letter to Romano calling for him to fulfil his responsibilities as the Minister of Colleges and Universities and to specifically: establish a transparent, collaborative process including sharing key documents with parties; recognize the need for greater financial support from the province to support Laurentian University; allow Laurentian University’s federated colleges to finish the spring term, at minimum; and, make a clear, legal commitment to recognize and maintain Laurentian University’s tri-cultural mandate.

The York University Faculty Association passed a motion on April 15th calling for the resignation of Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano, as well as the resignation of Laurentian University President Robert Haché and his senior leadership team.

On April 16, the faculty and staff team of the Midwifery Education Program at Ryerson University wrote a letter of solidarity in support of the school of Midwifery at Laurentian University, calling for its reinstatement. You can also send a letter in support of the Midwifery program at Laurentian University here.

Le Droit published an opinion piece from APUO and PASPU that calls on Francophones in Ontario to mobilize in order to protect Laurentian University.

The North Bay Labour Council and the Nipissing University Faculty Association held a press conference via Facebook live—recorded and available here. Also, the North Bay Labour Council has an open letter to Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade Victor Fedeli (who is also the Progressive Conservative MPP for the Nipissing riding) for people to sign. The letter calls on Fedeli to support local universities and to provide the funding needed to support all public post-secondary education in northern Ontario, reverse the cuts to Laurentian, and ensure that this never happens to another Ontario university.

Federal political action

On April 13, the Canadian Association of Physicists released a statement of solidarity with all faculty, students, and staff at Laurentian. It strongly objects to the closures of academic programs at Laurentian University, particularly the physics programs and is calling for the CCAA closure decisions to be overturned.

Sudbury Liberal MP Paul Lefebvre announced at an emergency House of Commons debate on the Laurentian University financial crisis that he will table a private member’s bill this week. The bill would seek to amend the CCAA to prevent it from being used by an educational institution. He also expressed concern that it could be used as a tool to dismantle or privatize other public institutions. A link to a CBC article can be found here. Timmins-North Bay NDP MP Charlie Angus also spoke to the issue, emphasizing that Laurentian also needs immediate support. “What is happening at Laurentian is an act of national vandalism under the guise of the CCAA ‘protection’ act,” Angus said. His opening speech is available here and his follow-up here. Leader of the Green Party of Canada and MP for Saanich-Guld Islands Elizabeth May also quoted OCUFA’s call for Romano’s resignation during the debate.

On April 16, the Canadian Labour Congress sent a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recommending that the federal government work with the Province of Ontario to: provide immediate emergency stabilization funding for Canadian postsecondary institutions, including dedicated public investments to stabilize programming and retain staff at Laurentian University; amend the CCAA to exclude government and public-sector entities, including post-secondary institutions, from access to restructuring; and expand eligibility to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy to include public sector employers.

A reminder to continue to circulate these videos by the OFL widely on social media via Facebook and Twitter:
https://twitter.com/OFLabour/status/1381692588365873152
https://www.facebook.com/OFLabour/posts/10158826330310660

We need to continue to hold Doug Ford and Ross Romano accountable for the impact their decisions are having on Northern, Indigenous, and Francophone communities.

LUFA reaches a collective agreement

After nine weeks of mediation, LUFA has reached a renewal collective agreement, as required by the CCAA judge. A membership meeting on Tuesday, April 13 resulted in the agreement being ratified. The agreement will see a five per cent pay cut and freeze for two years, five forced furlough days each year, and increased workload for faculty at the university. The LUFA executive has expressed profound sadness at the situation and the senseless destruction this proceeding has caused to Laurentian’s standing, the lives of faculty who will be terminated, and the education of students who have been left in the dark with no institutional support.

Federated university agreement cancellations

The fallout from the unilateral cancellation by Laurentian to terminate agreements with its federated universities continues.

Laurentian has announced that affected students will have a “path forward” to complete their degrees by moving to a “similar or alternative program” at Laurentian, and all credits taken are protected. CTV News reports on the situation here.

Huntington University has announced that it will continue to operate as an independent university and own and operate its buildings on campus. Laurentian University and Huntington University have reached an agreement to transfer the Gerontology online program to Laurentian.

The University of Sudbury and Thorneloe University have both filed motions challenging Laurentian University’s repudiation of the federated universities’ agreements.

List of discontinued English language programmes

Actuarial Science
Anthropology
Archaeology
BA 4 years Concurrent education (Primary-Junior)
BSc 4 years Concurrent education (Primary-Junior)
BFA – Music
BFA – Music Performance
Biomedical Physics
Civil Engineering (first 2 years)
Concurrent Education – Pro year (Primary-Junior)
Ecology
Entrepreneurship
Environmental Geoscience
Environmental Science
Environmental Studies
Geography
International Management
Italian
Labour Studies
Major Restoration Ecology
Mathematics
Midwifery
Modern Languages
Music
Music Studies
Operations
Philosophy
Physics
Political Science
Radiation Therapy – Michener
Restoration Biology
Spanish
Web Data Management
Workplace and Labour Studies

List of discontinued French language programmes

Droit et politique
Éducation – intermédiaire/supérieur
Études de l’environnement
Études françaises
Génie chimique
Génie mécanique
Génie minier
Géographie
Histoire
Littérature et culture francophone
Marketing (FR)
Mathématiques
Nursing – Boreal
Outdoor Adventure Leadership (FR)
Philosophie
Planification financière
Promotion de la santé
Resources humaines
Sage femme
Science du language
Science économique
Science politique
Théâtre
Zoologie

List of discontinued graduate programmes

Maîtrise – Histoire – essai
Maîtrise – Histoire – thèse
Maîtrise – Sociologie – essai
Maîtrise – Sociologie – thèse
Masters – Experimental Psychology
Masters – History – essay
Masters – History – Thesis
Masters – Humanities
Masters – Physics
Masters – Sociology – essay
Masters – Sociology – thesis

Please regularly check our website and www.northernsolidarity.ca as we are adding new resources to our toolkit on a regular basis.

Romano strikes again, severs Northern Ontario School of Medicine with no warning or consultation

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TORONTO, April 16, 2021 — Only days after watching Laurentian University collapse without raising a finger, Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano is now steamrolling ahead with additional detrimental changes to Ontario’s university system. With no warning or consultation, Romano announced that the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) would no longer be able to offer degrees as part of Lakehead or Laurentian University and would instead become a fully autonomous degree-granting institution.

The move follows years of mismanagement of Ontario’s postsecondary system by Romano and Ford. The government’s stewardship of Ontario’s universities has been so deficient that both the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations and the Canadian Union of Public Employees have now called for Romano’s resignation.

“Minister Romano is giving a master class in how not to run a public university system,” said Rahul Sapra, President of OCUFA. “It is simply irresponsible to make decisions of this magnitude overnight with no consultation. If this Minister believed that his vision for Ontario universities had merit, he would be discussing his ideas publicly. Instead, he develops ideas in secret, behind closed doors, and rushes to implement these flawed proposals. This Minister has consistently let us down, so we have called for his resignation.”

Since 2005, NOSM has been providing medical education to support better health outcomes in Northern Ontario, especially in remote rural and Indigenous communities. Working with and granting degrees from both Lakehead and Laurentian universities, NOSM ensured that students enrolled at either institution could attain a medical education and receive a degree from a highly regarded Ontario university.

“We are both shocked and disappointed by this news,” said Brian Ross from the Northern Ontario School of Medicine Faculty and Staff Association—OPSEU Local 677. “One of the strengths of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine has been its integration with Lakehead and Laurentian universities. With Laurentian’s collapse and the announcement that our relationship with Lakehead is being severed, we are deeply concerned about the future of NOSM and medical education in Northern Ontario.”

Romano’s announcement was also a surprise to faculty at Lakehead University, who work closely with their colleagues at NOSM.

“First, Minister Romano allows Laurentian to collapse and now this? One has to wonder what his priorities are. He certainly doesn’t seem to care about students or the quality of education,” said Gautam Das, President of the Lakehead University Faculty Association. “We have spent years working with our colleagues at NOSM to develop programs and integrated educational opportunities that meet the needs of Northern Ontarians. Romano just threw all that work out the window.”

This is the latest in a string of unilateral, harmful, and controversial decisions made by Minister Romano and the Ford government:

  • Repealing large parts of the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, legislation that provided better working conditions and labour protections for thousands of precariously employed campus workers.
  • A substantial tuition fee cut and freeze without providing universities with a corresponding increase in funding.
  • Cutting the Université de l’Ontario Français, only to reverse course due to public outrage and the federal government’s efforts to save the institution.
  • Massive cuts to student financial assistance, making education more expensive and increasing student debt.
  • Imposing the unlawful Student Choice Initiative on universities in an effort to silence student voices, which has since been overturned by the courts.
  • Introducing a reckless new funding formula that will put more than $3 billion of postsecondary education funding at risk and fundamentally reshape Ontario’s postsecondary education system.
  • Allowing Canada Christian College to call itself a “university” and to award degrees in arts and sciences, despite its questionable academic credentials and the xenophobic views of its founder and President.
  • Squandering public funds on micro-credentials, which truncate the knowledge provided by university degrees and serve to de-skill students and workers—undermining their career prospects and future earnings.
  • Allowing universities to re-open in advance of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Allowing Laurentian University to collapse despite knowing about its financial issues since as early as fall 2018.
  • Consistently refusing to meet or consult with OCUFA and most other major stakeholders in the postsecondary education sector.

Ross Romano and the Ford government have lost the confidence of many working and learning at Ontario’s universities. It is time for Romano to step aside and make room for a new Minister who can competently and effectively do the work needed to guide Ontario’s universities as they rebuild from the COVID-19 pandemic. Minister Romano is clearly not up to the job.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 professors and academic librarians in 30 faculty associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

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For more information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Ben Lewis, OCUFA Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca

Laurentian’s senior leadership and Minister of Colleges and Universities should step down in wake of financial crisis

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TORONTO, April 14, 2021 — Today, OCUFA President Rahul Sapra and LUFA President Fabrice Colin called for the resignations of Laurentian University President Robert Haché, Vice-President Academic and Provost Marie-Josée Berger, Vice-President Administration Lorella Hayes, Board Chair Claude Lacroix, Registrar Serge Demers, and Ontario Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano for their roles in creating the financial crisis that has devastated the public university.

The call comes after the announcement that 69 programs and 110 faculty positions will be cut and following LUFA members voting no-confidence in Laurentian’s senior administration. Amongst those who lost their jobs were 17 faculty members who chose retirement to ensure that as many of their colleagues as possible would keep their jobs.

The cuts are appalling because they could have been avoided if Laurentian’s senior leadership and Romano had been doing their jobs. Instead, years of institutional mismanagement, provincial underfunding, and negligence created the crisis at Laurentian. Rather than addressing the financial challenges early on, Laurentian’s senior leadership waited until the last minute to impose the costly, secretive, and inappropriate Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act. Meanwhile, knowing what was at stake, Romano stood by and watched as the public university collapsed in upon itself.

In addition to the program and job cuts, Laurentian faculty were also put in a position where they had little choice but to ratify changes to their collective agreement that will see salaries reduced, teaching loads increased, and forced furlough days. Due to the CCAA process, information about these changes was available to members for less than 12 hours before they were required to vote to either accept concessions or risk having the university collapse completely.

“This was an incredibly difficult process and, unfortunately, its outcome means that important programs and jobs at Laurentian will be lost. We fought hard to minimize the damage but, without the provincial government at the table, we were in an impossible position,” said Fabrice Colin, President of LUFA. “It now appears clear that this was the outcome that both Laurentian’s senior administration and Minister Romano were working towards.”

LUFA and OCUFA are calling for new leadership at Laurentian to guide the university into the future. The current senior administration were complicit in creating Laurentian’s financial crisis and can no longer be trusted. For years, LUFA repeatedly raised concerns about the secretive and non-consultative approach the Laurentian administration took to making important financial decisions. These decisions, combined with the steady erosion of public funding, are the reason for the cuts announced as a result of the CCAA process.

Sapra expressed his heartfelt support for the faculty, staff, and students at Laurentian—especially those whose programs and jobs were cut.

“This is an incredibly sad week for the people of Sudbury, for francophones, for Indigenous communities, and for all the people of Northern Ontario,” said Sapra. “To those who have lost their jobs or seen their programs cut, my heart goes out to you. Rest assured that we will hold those responsible to account.”

LUFA President Fabrice Colin also joined with OCUFA President Rahul Sapra to call for the resignation of Minister Romano and the five government appointees to Laurentian’s Board of Governors.

“The fact of the matter is that, if Ross Romano and the provincial government had done their jobs, none of these cuts would have been necessary,” said Sapra. “We are extremely disappointed in Minister Romano and the provincial government for abandoning Laurentian. They knew about the depths of the university’s financial difficulties for months, if not years, and had numerous opportunities to take action to avert this crisis. While we were fighting for Laurentian’s faculty, staff, and students, Minister Romano stood by and did nothing.”

The devastating cuts at Laurentian are the direct result of negligence on the part of Minister Romano, who was well aware of the financial challenges Laurentian was facing at least six months before they became public. Faculty no longer believe that Romano is listening to their concerns, or those of staff or students. As a result of the Minister’s inaction, Ontario’s university faculty and academic librarians have lost confidence and trust in Romano’s commitment to the university sector.

“Minister Romano failed to do his job and support Laurentian’s students, staff, and faculty in their greatest moment of need,” said Colin. “He is ultimately responsible for this crisis and the damage it will cause to our community for years to come.”

Despite the announced cuts, faculty remain committed to rebuilding Laurentian. Its role as a tri-cultural institution that supports French, English, and Indigenous communities in Northern Ontario is too important. However, for this effort to succeed, new leadership is needed at the university and ministry. Laurentian’s president, senior administration, and Minister Romano must do the right thing and step down.

Founded in 1964, OCUFA represents 17,000 professors and academic librarians in 30 faculty associations across Ontario. It is committed to enhancing the quality of higher education in Ontario and recognizing the outstanding contributions of its members towards creating a world-class university system. For more information, please visit the OCUFA website at www.ocufa.on.ca.

Founded in 1979, LUFA represents over 400 full-time and over 300 part-time professors at Laurentian University, the University of Sudbury, Huntington University, and Thorneloe University. For more information, visit the LUFA website at www.lufappul.ca.

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For more information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Ben Lewis, OCUFA Communications Lead at 416-306-6033 or communications@ocufa.on.ca
Fabrice Colin, LUFA President at 705-698-6763 or fcolin@lufappul.org