Watch Last Week’s Webcast Online

This forum took place on Thursday, November 24th. The link to the recorded webcast is also on our homepage.

Voting

Voting is currently taking place now and runs until Monday, December 5th. For links to the candidates’ statements and information on voting, visit: https://facultystaff.students.ubc.ca/vancouver-faculty-representatives-board-governors.

We encourage all faculty to vote in this important election for our faculty representatives on the Board of Governors.

UBCFA Online Forum – Registration

Members are invited to continue discussions on the UBCFA forum site (https://ubcfa.wpengine.com/ubcfaforum). Access to forums is available to faculty members only and you MUST register to participate. Please email the Faculty Association at [email protected] to receive your username and password. Registration hours: 8:30 am – 4:30 pm, Monday – Thursday; 8:30 am – 4:00 pm on Fridays. Note: Faculty members who have registered for previous online forums are still registered but if you have forgotten your password, please email the Faculty Association.

Margot Young, Chair of UBCFA’s Status of Women Committee, has responded to the University’s call for feedback on the development of a new sexual assault policy. A copy of the response is available at this link.

To view Proposed Policy #131 (Sexual Assault), please visit this link: http://universitycounsel.ubc.ca/files/2016/06/Proposed-Policy-131.pdf. More information about the process and development of Policy 131 is available at: http://equity.ubc.ca/sexual-assault-policy-development/.

A sincere Thank you to the many members who contributed their views and helped us formulate our response.

UPDATE February 2017: The University has approved a second draft of this policy which is available at http://universitycounsel.ubc.ca/open-policy-consultations/policy-131-sexual-assault-and-other-sexual-misconduct/.

1. You can send comments directly to the UBC Board by way of the Office of the University Counsel at [email protected] or through the confidential feedback survey: https://survey.ubc.ca/s/policy131consultation2017/ by March 14, 2017.
2. Should you wish to have other input into the Faculty Association’s response to the second draft, please email your input to the Faculty Association’s Executive Director, Deena Rubuliak, at [email protected] by March 7, 2017.

The University’s most recent Broadcast Email on the Draft Policy and consultation can be accessed at: http://broadcastemail.ubc.ca/2017/02/16/consultation-on-the-second-draft-of-ubcs-sexual-assault-policy/

The UBC Faculty Association has responded to the University’s invitation to comment on Proposed Amendments to Policy 93 regarding Closed Meetings of the Board of Governors. A copy of the response is available at this link. 

Further information on the proposed amendments is available at this link: http://universitycounsel.ubc.ca/open-policy-consultations/policy-consultation-93/.

Thank you to all of the members who contributed their views as we formulated our response. 

Please take the opportunity to express your views on UBC’s Proposed Amendments to Policy 93 – Closed Meetings of the Board of Governors

The University is inviting comments on Proposed Amendments to Policy 93 regarding Closed Meetings of the Board of Governors.

The rationale that was presented to the Board of Governors for the amendments to Policy 93 is available at this link: bog3.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2016/09/5.2_2016.09_Policy-93.pdf.

Please review the Proposed Amendments to Policy 93 and if you have any questions or concerns with the proposed amendments, let us know by responding to this email or sending an email to the Faculty Association by Friday, October 21, 2016 to be considered as we formulate the Association’s response. You also have the option of forwarding your questions or concerns directly to the Office of the University Counsel (Deadline: October 31, 2016). If you do submit a response to the University directly, please copy us ([email protected]) so that we’re aware of your comments.

Thank you.

In July of 2016, the Faculty Association Status of Women Committee (Chair: Margot Young, Law) held meetings for all faculty at both the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses on the Draft Sexual Assault Policy referred for consultation to the University community by the UBC Board of Governors.

If you were unable to attend, there are other ways to have input into this consultation process:

• you can send comments directly to the UBC Board by way of the Office of the University Counsel at [email protected] or through the confidential feedback survey: https://survey.ubc.ca/s/sexual-assault-policy/ by October 31, 2016 (Updated);
• if you wish to have input into the Faculty Association’s response to the Draft Policy, you may send your comments to the Faculty Association’s Executive Director, Deena Rubuliak, at [email protected] by October 15, 2016 (Updated).

As of September 12, 2016, The University Sexual Assault Panel completed their report which is available at: http://equity2.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2016/09/USAP-Report-20-June-Submitted.pdf , and an update has been released from UBC President Ono (http://message.broadcast.ubc.ca/email/View.aspx?id=839428&q=1082523538&qz=53eb45)

You can access the Draft Policy at: http://universitycounsel.ubc.ca/files/2016/06/Proposed-Policy-131.pdf.

The University’s original Broadcast Email on the Draft Policy and consultation can be accessed at: http://message.broadcast.ubc.ca/email/View.aspx?id=814175&q=1050987285&qz=80b894

On 22 March 2016, the UBC Faculty Association filed a request for clarification from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of British Columbia as to legislative requirements for the management practices of the UBC Board of Governors. The full text of this submission may be found here.

Concerns have arisen that the University response to a recent Faculty Association freedom of information request may have failed to provide full answer to questions asked about the existence and scheduling of Board meetings. Further, evidence provided in the FOI response indicates possible problems with Board email practices, such as the use for Board business of private, non-UBC email addresses as well as email deletion practices in contravention of legal requirements.

We have asked the Privacy Commissioner to investigate all these matters.

On March 24, the Faculty Association responded to a UBC Broadcast email announcing the Association’s acceptance of the Board of Governors’ invitation to attend a meeting on April 14th. In our response, we indicated that the meeting format outlined in the UBC Broadcast email was inadequate to explore issues regarding university governance. Chair Stuart Belkin has since sent the Association a letter assuring us that we will be provided sufficient time to make our presentation and engage with the Board.

Please follow this link to view Mr. Belkin’s letter.

Dr. Jennifer Berdahl, one of the two UBC Vancouver faculty representatives elected to the Presidential Search Committee, has resigned. Her full resignation communication is at http://jberdahl.blogspot.ca and outlines her key reasons.

Members may view the full text of the notice to members regarding the resignation at this link