| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 69.69 |
| Liaison | Rochelle Owen |
| Submission Date | April 6, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Dalhousie University
PA-3: Participatory Governance
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.75 / 3.00 |
Do the institution’s students have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a student council)? :
Do the institution’s students have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which students are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
The Dalhousie Student Union has an executive team comprised of the President, VP Finance and Operations, VP Internal, VP Academic and External (Advocacy), and VP Student Life. These positions are voted on by students, as are student council positions e.g. Faculty of Science rep, LGBTQ Students Community rep, Aboriginal Students Community rep. Council positions are appointed if the position is not filled during elections. Student council meetings are open to the public.
A Board of Governors (BOG) student representative is elected in the annual DSU election. The President of the DSU also sits on the BOG. The DSU President and VP Academic & External both sit on the Senate committee.
More info on the DSU: http://dsu.ca/about-us/who-are-we/executive
Information about the BOG:
http://www.dal.ca/dept/university_secretariat/board_of_governors/board-members-biographies.html
Do the institution’s staff members have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a staff council)?:
Do the institution’s non-supervisory staff members have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which staff are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
The Dalhousie Professional and Managerial group (DPMG) seeks to promote communication and advocate for the interests of professional and managerial staff at Dalhousie. The university consults with the Group on policy decisions with respect to compensation, hiring policies, terms and conditions of employments, the working environment, and related matters affecting the membership. See here for more information: https://www.dal.ca/dept/dpmg/about.html
Non-supervisory staff are not on the university's highest governing body, but they sit on other bodies, such as the Transportation and Security Committee.
Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a faculty senate)?:
Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body? :
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which teaching and research faculty are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
Faculty members are represented on the Board of Governors, appointed as Faculty Representatives by the Senate.
http://www.dal.ca/dept/university_secretariat/board_of_governors/board-members-biographies.html
Faculty members may also join the Dalhousie Faculty Association, which deals with matters of employee-employer relations for teaching, research, professional librarian and professional counselling staff. See more here: https://dfa.ns.ca/
Does the institution have written policies and procedures to identify and engage external stakeholders (i.e. local residents) in land use planning, capital investment projects, and other institutional decisions that affect the community?:
A copy of the written policies and procedures:
The policies and procedures:
Dalhousie’s Capital Planning department adheres to the following Capital Projects Governance Policy on projects with a scope larger than $250,000: https://www.dal.ca/dept/university_secretariat/policies/buildings-and-properties/capital-projects-governance-policy.html
Facilities Management holds community meetings for new construction to inform and obtain feedback from students, staff, faculty, and broader community members. See here for records of the public information sessions: https://www.dal.ca/dept/facilities/campus-development/community-meetings.html
Does the institution have formal participatory or shared governance bodies through which community members representing the interests of the following stakeholder groups can regularly participate in institutional governance?:
| Yes or No | |
| Local government and/or educational organizations | Yes |
| Private sector organizations | Yes |
| Civil society (e.g. NGOs, NPOs) | Yes |
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which external stakeholders are engaged in institutional governance (including information about each stakeholder group selected above):
Dalhousie’s Board of Governors is responsible for the overall conduct, management and administration of the property, revenue, business and affairs of the university, and is comprised of members from various external stakeholder groups. Further information on membership and overall responsibility of the Board can be found at: https://www.dal.ca/dept/university_secretariat/board_of_governors/board-members-biographies.html
There are also many informal advisory councils in operation at Dalhousie, with representatives from various external stakeholder groups including business leaders, public servants and political figures, which support the institution at large though play no part in governance of the university, including:
· Dalhousie Advisory Council – Appointed members provide advise to the President and senior administration on external issues and trends that may impact the university, and act as a sounding board on the development and/or evaluation of its broad strategic directions.
· External Advisory Council for the MacEachen Institute for Public Policy and Governance: https://www.dal.ca/dept/maceachen-institute/about/governance/external_advisory_council.html
· President’s Advisory Council on Sustainability: https://www.dal.ca/dept/sustainability/about/Presidents_advisory_council_on_sustainability.html
· Dalhousie’s Faculty of Management Advisory Board: https://www.dal.ca/faculty/management/about/Advisory_Board.html
· Schulich School of Law’s Indigenous Blacks & Mi’kmaq Initiative, Advisory Council: https://www.dal.ca/faculty/law/indigenous-blacks-mi-kmaq-initiative/council-committee.html
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.