Carleton’s Board of Governors provided a variety of updates on the processes behind upcoming policy changes, including the school’s free speech policy and Indigenous strategy, in a Nov. 29 BoG meeting.

Free speech policy

Carleton University president Benoit-Antoine Bacon said the campus free speech policy is “now in good shape,” at the Board of Governors (BoG) meeting on Nov. 29, and said he is hopeful that the provincial government will be satisfied.

The policy has been officially finalized, after it was presented to the Senate at a Nov. 30 meeting.

The BoG is also confident they will meet the provincial government’s deadline and requirements for the post-secondary free speech policy after consultation with the campus body.

Betina Appel Kuzmarov, an assistant professor of law and legal studies and member of the policy’s preparation task force, thanked Bacon for his “courage” to bring the policy to consultation.

“Given the timeline we had available to us, [it] has been as consultative as we hoped,” she said.

The task force sent out a draft of Carleton’s policy to the campus body for feedback, with the submission window closing in early November

In total, 135 students and staff members provided feedback on the policy that was taken into account, says Kuzmarov.

Concerns raised in the consultations included the definition of the term “hate speech,” whether protest over controversial speakers would be allowed and concerns about protecting minorities or marginalized groups. But, Kuzmarov says this division of feedback showed the task force that they were on the right track.

Kuzmarov said the goal with the task force was to create a policy that satisfied the provincial government’s requirements.

She also said another aspect of creating the policy was making sure it does not interfere with Carleton’s existing policies.

The government set the deadline for a free speech policy as  Jan. 1, 2019 and stated that any university that does not implement a policy that falls under their approval may face budget cuts.

“There are certain political positions that could not be squared within the policy itself,” Kuzmarov said.

Kuzmarov explained the task force paid attention to meeting the government’s requirements without going any further, calling it “a deeply divisive and deeply personal academic issue.”

In addition to the eight points outlined by the provincial government, the task force has also reached out to several post-secondary institutions to see how far they will follow the requirements and if they will expand upon them. She emphasized that several post-secondary institutions are not allowing the policy to be open to public consultation.

“We wish to stress particularly the idea that this framework document designed to enhance both the strong existing policies and network of policies that already manage free speech issues on campus,” Kuzmarov said.

Indigenous strategy

The BoG is also moving forward with the consultations to update the school’s Indigenous strategy, looking to produce a draft report by the summer of 2019.

“We want to recognize what we’ve done, but realize that we need to do so much more,” said Jerry Tomberlin, board member and Carleton’s vice-president (academic). Tomberlin emphasized the task force is not starting from nothing.

“Education is what holds the key to reconciliation. There is a history here and it needs to be taught.” – said Kahente Horn-Miller, associate professor of Indigenous and Canadian studies and a key leader for the task force

Horn-Miller says the task force is taking the 94 calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), starting with a plan to come up with recommendations for healing over the following year to make Carleton a safe space for learning, she said.

Carleton’s task force followed the structure of the Queen’s University task force which happened last year. Queen’s presented its TRC report in March, and hired Janice Hill to be director of Indigenous initiatives under the deputy provost (academic operations and inclusion) in September.

The commission said they hope to include Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, staff and faculty as well as off-campus voices such as Elders from nearby communities and members of local school boards. Carleton’s task force will also follow their example of travelling to local Indigenous communities to make sure all voices are heard, said Horn-Miller.

Carleton’s location in the capital plays a large, symbolic importance on their policy, Horn-Miller said, as it can provide healing across the country. She emphasized the  Queen’s task force recommendation to keep the continual recommendations of community members throughout the entire process.

There are over 800 self-identifying Indigenous students on campus, according to Benny Michaud, Indigenous liaison officer and assistant director of equity services.

Michaud added that from that group, student leaders will be chosen to help with the consultation.

Starting Jan. 1, 2019, the task force will begin their consultation with an environmental assessment of what’s happened at Carleton, followed by consultation with community sessions during the winter months.

Michaud explained timelines never take the same amount of time planned, as direction will be taken by the community on spending more time to focus on certain issues.

The task force said they hope to have a finalized report and implementation plan by December 2019. θ

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