REGINA (CUP)-The NDP government’s redefined concept for a new Aboriginal university in northern Manitoba risks undermining the school’s credibility, according to a professor at the University of Brandon.
The University College of the North was a promise from the New Democratic Party in the June 2003 election. The concept was that the government would establish an Aboriginal university in the north so it would be more accessible to residents of northern Manitoba.
Dick Henley, an education professor, claims the updated plans for the university are a far cry from what was initially promised. “The minister and the government have redefined what the project is,” said Henley, who is also president of the Manitoba Organization of Faculty Associations. “They just don’t want to put any money into it.”
The original plans for the university, put together by Aboriginal residents of the north, included the construction of a new building in Thompson, 766 kilometres north of Winnipeg, where the campus would be located.
The NDP has declared recently that they won’t construct a new building because that would limit the university to one location. Henley claims that without its own building, the university cannot hope to gain academic credibility. “Any university with any kind of status has its own building. If the government is going to create a new university, then create a new university,” said Henley.
However, Diane McGifford, minister of advanced education and training, said the new university should be more spread out across northern Manitoba so people will be able to stay at home while attending school. “The idea of pulling people out of their communities hasn’t been successful. There are real advantages to having them stay,” said McGifford. It is often hard for mature students in the north to be separated from their families, she added. McGifford said there are currently plans to establish main sites in Thompson and The Pas, a town located 600 kilometres north of Winnipeg.”There isn’t going to be a huge campus up north,” she said.
Aside from establishing a separate building and institution, Henley also stressed the importance of academic freedom for the university. “We’ve been asking the government for some time to guarantee this. If they can’t guarantee academic freedom, it can’t be considered a public university,” he said.
Henley said establishing the University College of the North as a public university would make it comparable to the status of universities like the University of Manitoba and the University of Winnipeg.
Verna Kirkness, a First Nations university administrator, was hired by the Department of Advanced Education before the 2003 election to conduct a survey of Northern residents regarding their education needs. After her report was submitted, an implementation team headed by Dr. Don Robertson, an early promoter of the project, was hired to compile a report of how the university should be run. McGifford said the purpose of this is to establish an institution that reflects the needs of the people. “It’s important that this is a collaborative effort. This is not a top-down project,” said McGifford.
Henley claims, however, that the needs of the northern residents are not being reflected properly in that the new plans differ greatly from the original recommendations issued by the group of northern Manitobans.
“They want a regional university. It doesn’t look like they’re going to get what they want,” he said. “If it’s going to go ahead, let’s make it a good school.”
Despite the ongoing research of Don Robertson and the implementation team, McGifford said that University College of the North facilities could be opened as early as September.
