King’s University College at the University of Western Ontario and the Roman Catholic Diocese of London, Ontario officially broke off their 59-year relationship on Dec. 31, granting King’s University College independence from the church.
“While our governing bodies, the Board and College Council, have directed all operations at the College since the early ’70s, they are now ultimately and legally responsible for all decisions and the future direction of King’s,” David Sylvester, the principal of King’s, said via email.
The Roman Catholic Church divides Ontario into districts, one being the Diocese of London, Ont., the governing body of the London community.
Mark Adkinson, director of communications and development for the Diocese of London, said the decision to grant King’s full ownership of the land and buildings on their campus was officially approved by the Vatican in August 2012, but didn’t take effect until December 2013.
Adkinson said this gives King’s “a little more autonomy” and “helps advance their government structure.”
King’s will remain affiliated with the church, but their relationship is now based on two separate entities working together rather than one working for the other, Sylvester explained.
“King’s will maintain a strong connection with the Bishop, given that we choose to be a Catholic university,” he said. “It will be more of a dialogue among equal partners.”
Sylvester said the Bishop of London, Rev. Ronald Fabbro, is supportive of the new development.
“He understood that incorporation was a good thing for King’s and for Catholic higher education in the Diocese of London,” Sylvester said.
Adkinson said King’s was one of the few post-secondary institutions founded by religious orders in North America that hadn’t already established independence from the church.
The University of Western Ontario was founded in 1878 by the Anglican Diocese of Huron, according to the university’s website. Western became non-denominational in the early 1900s. Similar to King’s, Brescia University College is an affiliate of Western and identifies as a Catholic college.
With King’s launching into their 60th anniversary year, Sylvester said their new-found control over the governance of King’s is the first of many ambitions they’re pursuing for this year.
“Our community has great ambitions to develop . . . incorporation, student enrolment growth, the addition of new faculty, and the opening of our new state-of-the art student centre this past week . . . all signs that King’s is heading in the right direction,” he said.
