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Board of Governors / Meeting Agendas, Minutes + Reports / Archive / 2002 / September 26, 2002 Meeting Summary

September 26, 2002 Meeting Summary

OPEN SESSION

A. Finance and Administration


  1. Donations: the Board approved terms of reference and accepted donations to new funds, and accepted donations to existing funds, as follows:
    MONTH NEW FUNDS EXISTING FUNDS
    June, 2002 $30,756 $142,987
    July, 2002 $27,600 $258,764
    August, 2002 $15,000 $337,294
  2. The Board received the year-to-date Financial Position Report as at July 31, 2002 for information.
  3. The Board approved the 2001/2002 Statements of Financial Information.
  4. The Board approved the appointment of Professors Robert Grauer and K. Laurence Weldon as Faculty representatives on the Academic Pension Plan Board of Trustees for the period July 1, 2002 through June 30, 2004,
  5. The Board received for information the Tri-Council Memorandum of Understanding on the Roles and Responsibilities in the Management of Federal Grants and Awards.
  6. The Board received information on the new Student Investment Advisory Service (SIAS), which will provide students in the Global Asset and Wealth Management program with an opportunity to exercise investment advice on a portfolio using normal trading strategies.

B. Academic Operations

  1. The Board approved the proposal for a Master’s of Public Policy Program in the Faculty of Arts, and the tuition fee of $3,000 per semester for the program effective September 1, 2003. The Board also approved the establishment of the BC Synchrotron Institute, and the awarding of BSc degrees in Information Technology and Interactive Arts (TechBC) to students admitted to TechBC prior to 2002 who successfully complete the program requirements.

C. Other

  1. The Board approved the recommendation that the Senate Committee on University Honours be asked to take on the responsibility for the Chancellor’s Distinguished Service Award.
  2. The Board heard that the Board Chair, Brandt Louie, was presented with the Queen’s Commemorative Medal for the Golden Jubilee in Victoria on September 26, 2002.
  3. The Board heard that SFU’s fall enrolment figures are 6% above target, an indication of both the high esteem in which SFU is held and the demand for spaces in the Lower Mainland. There was the expected high demand in Business and Applied Sciences, with the exception of computing science, but the Arts and Sciences have also experienced increases greater than in the previous two years.
  4. The Board heard that the Millennium Foundation report on the costs of post-secondary education revealed that, according Statistics Canada data, even after the 20% decline in grant funding and the 20% aggregate increase in tuition during the 1990’s, access and applications were up, and the real cost after adjustments for inflation has not increased over the decade.
  5. The Board heard a report on faculty recruitment in the 2001/02 academic year. The University hired 49 new faculty members and had 37 retirements and resignations. Out of the 40 Canada Research Chairs allocated to SFU, 12 have been filled and two remain outstanding from the first round. At SFU Surrey, 36 new faculty members were hired on a limited-term basis pending determination of the long-term plans for the campus. A full report on faculty recruitment activities planned for the 2002/03 academic year will come to the Board later in the fall.
  6. The Board heard that as an outgrowth of SFU’s Institute of Health Research and Education (IHRE), affiliation agreements with Genome BC and the BC Cancer Agency are to be signed. The agreements will give SFU researchers improved access to funding and to facilities. To date, three SFU researchers have been awarded over $1 million each for their work in genome sciences: Dr. D. Baillie and Dr. W. Davidson from Genome BC and Dr. F. Brinkman from Genome Prairie.
  7. The Board was informed that formation of the Great Northern Way Trust was finalized on September 16, 2002.
CLOSED SESSION
A. Finance and Administration
  1. The Board received the Performance Report on the University’s investment portfolios as of the end of June 2002.
  2. The Board approved a Capital Projects Financing Proposal that authorizes SFU to issue a private placement bond to raise up to $150 million for a number of ancillary capital projects at the University. Traditionally, funding for university projects with revenue streams, such as student residences, parking services, and food services was through the borrowing provisions of the University Act. The Provincial Government is increasingly reluctant to carry this debt on its balance sheet, and has been encouraging private financing. Approval from the Provincial Government is required before the bond issue can go ahead.
  3. The Board approved in principle a Memorandum of Understanding with the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Bid Corporation to build an Olympic Speed-skating Oval at the Burnaby campus. If Vancouver is chosen in July 2003, construction would commence within 20 months and be finished 2-3 years before the Games occur. The facility would greatly enhance SFU’s athletics program and provide significantly improved multi-purpose facilities for its varsity teams, and for the larger community at minimal cost. SFU’s contribution toward the total estimated cost of $70 million would be in the order of $5.3 million.
  4. The Board approved the construction of a new undergraduate residence and dining hall, with an estimated completion date of September 1, 2004. SFU has a serious shortage of residence capacity at present, with only 6% of its undergraduate population in residence, and 500 students on a waiting list.
  5. The Board approved the appointment of Mr. Bruno Wall to the vacant External Expert position on the Board of Directors of the SFU Community Corporation, effective September 1, 2002.
  6. The Board approved the award of a three-year contract for digital photocopiers to Toshiba at an estimated total cost of $1,010,244.

B. Academic Operations

  1. Faculty Appointments

    The following academic appointments were approved and have been accepted:

    Mr. Jason Bell Instructor Mathematics 05/09/01 - 08/08/31
    Dr. David Green Assistant Professor Biological Sciences 03/01/01 - 06/08/31
    Dr. Steve Kates Associate Professor Business Administration 03/01/01 - 07/08/31
    Dr. Tom Lawrence Associate Professor* Business Administration 02/09/01 - 07/08/31
    Dr. Matthew White Assistant Professor Kinesiology 03/01/01 - 06/08/31
    * and Weyerhaeuser Professorship in Change Management
  2. Administrative Appointments
    Dr. J. Dickinson Acting Director Kinesiology 02/11/13 – 03/08/31
  3. Other

    (i) The Board approved the early retirement of Dr. Bernice Wong, effective December 31, 2002.

    (ii) The Board approved the promotion to Assistant Professor of Dr. Eldon Yellowhorn, Archaeology, effective August 1, 2002.

    (iii) The Board received the resignations of Dr. Peter Clarkson, Business Administration, effective June 30, 2002, and Dr. Diane Lyons, Archaeology, effective August 31, 2002.

    (iv) The Board approved the modified appointment of Dr. James Dean, Economics, effective January 1, 2003.

CONFIDENTIAL SESSION

  1. The Board approved the President’s Agenda for the academic year 2002/2003. The President’s Agenda will be forwarded to Senate in December 2002.
  2. The Board approved the Annual Performance Review recommendations for the Senior Executive Group.

The next Board of Governors Meeting will be held in Room 126 of the Halpern Centre, Burnaby Mountain Campus, at 3 p.m. on Thursday November 28, 2002.

In the place where innovative education, cutting-edge research and community outreach intersect, you'll find Simon Fraser University. Our vision? To be Canada's leading engaged university.

Born in 1965, SFU has become Canada's leading comprehensive university with vibrant campuses in British Columbia's largest municipalities — Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey — and deep roots in partner communities throughout the province and around the world.