Laurentian report outlines recommended operations, governance changes

After an independent review of Laurentian University's operation and governance, a list of changes has been recommended in the Sudbury school's restructuring process.

Two reports conducted by the management consultant firm Nous Group have been released outlining the steps to help the university emerge from insolvency.

A list of 37 recommendations has been made to "improve the university's governance at the board and senate, including adjusting its bicameral model to improve information flow between the two bodies."

Of the recommendations, two relate to the university's governance model, 18 focus on improving the board's performance and decision making and the other 17 aim to help the senate operate more efficiently and effectively. The report outlines the changes over a six-month period.

In the operational review, the Nous Group identified "seven core transformation opportunities" with changes being implemented over a three-year period.

"We are confident that implementing these recommendations will allow the university to make the necessary changes to ensure the appropriate governance and operational frameworks are in place to best serve the needs of Laurentian’s future students," Lou Pagnutti, LU's chief redevelopment officer, said in a news release Wednesday.

"While there will be challenges as Laurentian executes this ambitious and long-term transformation, the university is focused on whatever needs to be done to make Laurentian the best environment it can be for its students. The report serves as a roadmap to success – and the university is dedicated to renewing Laurentian as the proud institution our community deserves."

Now that the recommendations have been made, the university must find money to make the changes.

"A major transformation program is needed for the institution to meet baseline standards for modern universities. This transformation has an estimated cost of $26M to $32.5M," the operational review said.

The Laurentian University Faculty Association (LUFA) said in a news release Wednesday that it’s disappointed and concerned after reading Nous' report.

"It's apparent bias in favour of the university administration. While it appreciates some interesting recommendations contained in the report, LUFA feels that it was co-opted in a process that was reduced to consultation with an external advisor," said Fabrice Colin, president of LUFA.

"LUFA was supposed to be an equal party in the governance review. It was a hard gain made by LUFA since the purpose of the review was to respond to the union’s concerns on transparency and oversight. The report does not provide an appropriate answer to these concerns."

Colin also stated in the release that another key problem is the lack of transparency of Laurentian's Board of Governors, something he said has been repeatedly pointed out by LUFA and other members of the Laurentian community.

"Adding LUFA representation on the board would be an extremely effective remedy, something the report doesn’t even consider," he said. "This report is extremely worrisome as it further undermines collegial governance at Laurentian University. The lack of transparency and collegiality is what led to the current situation."

Colin said LUFA members will also likely refuse to agree to a plan of arrangement and would like administration to reconsider.