Huron University College announced its plan to become an independent academic institution and grant its own degrees, moving away from its affiliation with Western University.
According to a statement from Huron, the final decision is up to Huron’s Board of Governors. If the board approves, it will authorize an application to the province for the authority to grant degrees.
In a student town hall on Feb. 22, Huron president Barry Craig said an approved proposal would come into effect for students entering Huron in September 2023.
In the same meeting, Craig explained that the proposal arose out of the college’s desire to have control over its liberal arts curriculum and student admissions, both of which are currently regulated by Western through its Affiliation Agreement.
Upon his arrival as president in 2016, Craig said he noticed “Huron did not have the same autonomy of similar liberal arts schools in Canada” such as Acadia University in Wolfville, N.S., Mount Allison University in Sackville, N.B., and Bishop’s University in Sherbrooke, Que.
“I know that what we do here at Huron is virtually the same as what goes on there, yet we don’t have the same degree of autonomy,” Craig said. “That is to say, we don’t control our core mission, which is our academic mission.”
Under the existing agreement with Western, which also includes Brescia University College and King’s University College, all Western-affiliated colleges are bound to admission requirements established by Western’s University Senate, and must also seek approval by the Senate in order to add new programs or courses.
If the proposal passes, Huron will govern itself through its own Senate and have control over its admissions standards and program offerings.
However, the announcement has surprised Huron students and raised concerns regarding access to Western campus resources.
Ziyana Kotadia, current president of the Huron University College Students’ Council (HUCSC), said that she was caught off guard by the announcement as it wasn’t something the student body had previously called for.
Since the announcement, Kotadia said she and her team have been working on informing the student body about the announcement, including creating a page with frequently asked questions.
However, Kotadia said there are still elements of the proposal that remain unanswered, including the future of the HUCSC’s partnership with the University Students’ Council (USC) at Western.
“It’s through the HUCSC agreement with the USC that students get access to services like a bus pass, health and dental plan, and campus representation on the USC,” Kotadia said. “So there are some question marks with those kinds of things.”
When asked whether students would still be able to access Western resources, such as libraries or mental health counsellors, Craig said those items are up for negotiation with Western president Alan Shepard.
On the issue of access to counsellors, Craig said he is committed to providing the same essential services that Western currently offers to Huron students, no matter the outcome of the negotiations.
“So either we contract [the service] and pay for it to be at Western or we have it ourselves, as I’m committed to no loss of essential services to the students through this process,” Craig said.
Despite Craig’s commitments, some students remain skeptical about the outcome of the negotiations and worry the split may devalue their degrees, even if they’re issued by Western at the time of their graduation.
Grace Goldberg, a second-year political science student at Huron, said she is worried terminating the affiliation will lower enrolment and harm Huron’s reputation. If that happens, Goldberg said she is concerned her degree would appear less valuable.
“I’m not saying [a drop in enrolment] will happen, but if it does, that’s going to affect me and how I look, how my scholarship looks, and how my education is perceived,” Goldberg said.
Goldberg added that with more time and information, she will probably feel better about the decision. However, Goldberg said some crucial components in relieving her worries include more consultations with students and definite answers about access to campus resources.
“I hope [Craig] takes it seriously to consult people because he did not consult any students before this went public,” Goldberg said.
Craig said he will be obtaining feedback from all affected parties, students and faculty alike, before formulating a final recommendation for the board meeting in June.
“I believe this is in the best interests of Huron, and I wouldn’t have brought forward a proposal that unsettled so many people unless I thought it was in our best interest to do that,” Craig said.
“Having said that, the decision to actually do it is not going to be made until we’ve heard from all of the people concerned.”
Featured image by Isabel Harder.
