Senate is the academic governing body of UFV, with the university president and vice-chancellor Dr. Joanne MacLean as chair. They are responsible for making decisions on everything academic, including: approving new courses and programs, approving changes to programs, and setting entrance requirements and the academic calendar. The Board of Governors, which looks at the business side of the university, is advised by Senate on matters of mutual interest.
All at the university are welcome to attend Senate’s public meetings, held once a month. Senate makes decisions that impact the daily lives of both students and faculty. This article will recap the main agenda items of the hybrid Senate meeting on Friday, Mar. 15, 2024.
Dr. James Mandigo, office of the provost and vice-president academic, motioned for the Senate board to accept the recommended documents for review of the philosophy program. Some of the recommendations included discontinuing the extended philosophy minor, creating associate certificates for different focuses like “ethics and/or philosophy for children,” and developing new 100-level “applied philosophy” courses.
David Johnston, university registrar, motioned for the Senate to approve renaming the “Indigenous Maps, Films, Rights and Land Claims,” associate certificate to “Claims to Power and Place: Stó:l? Téméxw Responsibility, Reflection, and (Re)Storying.” It will also extend the program from three courses to four. These changes are scheduled to come into effect in May of this year.
Dr. MacLean announced in her report that UFV has now been informed that they will receive 2,588 provincial letters of attestation (PALs) from the provincial government. MacLean emphasized this is “good news for the university” from a budget perspective. “I can say certainly that the ministry has taken care of the public sector and ensured that we’re remaining in a good situation in terms of what this could have been or how they might have engaged in dividing up these attestation letters,” said MacLean.
Dr. Mandigo confirmed this information in the Provost report, writing that they received the specifics from the Minister of Post Secondary and Future Skills on Feb. 29.
Rachel is working towards a BA with a concentration in English and Theatre. She has been employed at The Cascade since Fall 2021 as a Staff Writer and a Jr. News Editor. Currently, she is the sectional News Editor and enjoys meeting and interviewing people as well as taking long walks in nature. Rachel also likes to stay up to date on the latest trends and informs students through her fashion column entitled Campus Fashion.