The university’s deal with CultureWorks has raised several questions about privatization and outsourcing on Carleton’s campus. While the administration insists the deal is in Carleton’s best interests, union leaders and professors have raised concerns about the company, including how it would affect students, and what it means for the university.
There is a forum for these concerns to be raised: the university’s Senate. This body is charged with oversight of the university’s academic programs, and should have been given the chance to review the CultureWorks deal.
CultureWorks will bring foreign students to Carleton and provide them ESL training, using Carleton classrooms and facilities. The company will use the Carleton name and reputation and be charged with training future Carleton students.
The Senate should have a right to review any private company that operates so closely with the university.
CultureWorks might be great for Carleton. It may be terrible for Carleton. We don’t know, because our Senate hasn’t had the chance to review it.
In 2011, the university was considering a partnership with Navitas, a private company that would provide academic programs for credit to Carleton students. That deal was reviewed by an internal working group, which recommended the deal was not in Carleton’s best interests. Based on that review, the university abandoned the deal.
The CultureWorks deal was signed without any such review. This has huge repercussions for the university’s reputation, and raises questions about the administration’s integrity.
Why did one private company get oversight, while the other didn’t?
Whether good or bad for Carleton, the CultureWorks deal should have gone through Senate review. Anything less is an affront to Carleton’s academic integrity.
