From the President

Dear Colleagues:

Welcome back! I hope you had an enjoyable summer and that you’re looking forward to an exciting new academic year. After bidding farewell to long-standing president Mark Evered in June, we will continue to build on his legacy. We look forward to greeting new students and faculty, building new relationships, and initiating important conversations after the summer months. As we ramp up for the new semester, I want to share some important updates from our community.

First, please join me in congratulating Craig Toews on his appointment to the re-established role of Vice President, External. Craig has been with UFV for 29 years and brings extensive leadership experience and a deep understanding of the UFV environment to this position. He’s responsible for fostering the university’s reputation and will lead the University Relations portfolio, Ancillary services, campus planning and government, community and corporate relations.

We also welcome long-time professor in the UFV Mathematics and Statistics department, Dr. Greg Schlitt, to the role of Acting Dean of the Faculty of Science. Greg will be replacing Dr. Lucy Lee who is on administrative leave until September 1, 2018. Greg’s professionalism, mentoring ways, and service to Math, Science, and the university at large, have all been exceptional and will serve UFV well as he takes on the Acting Dean role.

Dr. Satwinder Bains embarks on another exciting chapter in her career at UFV as she has been appointed Principal, UFV India. Satwinder will divide her time between the South Asian Studies Institute here in Abbotsford and providing oversight of academic operations for the team in Chandigarh.

Please join me in welcoming Dr. Cindy Jardine as our newest Canada Research Chair in the Faculty of Health Sciences. Cindy’s research is in the area of environmental health risk communication and much of her work is done as participatory research with Indigenous communities in northern Canada.

This fall, UFV is honoured to host The Witness Blanket, a large-scale art installation composed of hundreds of items reclaimed from residential schools, churches, government buildings, and traditional cultural structures from across Canada. The Witness Blanket stands as a national monument recognizing the injustices of the Indian Residential School era. This important installation will host ceremonies and gatherings during its lengthy stay at UFV – stay tuned for more details.

Other exciting changes this Fall include several strategic investments in teaching and technology on campus. Significant renovations and upgrades have been made to the Abbotsford library, the large lecture theatre, and science labs, along with a continued investment in classrooms through the Pedagogy Investment Fund. With the final touches still underway, we are pleased to reveal new and upgraded space for the coming semester.

UFV continues to find new ways to live our mission, educate our students, and advance our work. We are proud of our UFV culture and are taking efforts to ensure we continue to be one of BC’s top employers by cultivating connections and engagement with our colleagues and students.

We are making investments that strengthen our community, create an environment where our students and faculty can pursue their passions, and position our university for future success.
I’m deeply grateful to each of you for your contributions and extraordinary dedication to our students; I am honored to be a part of this remarkable and talented community. I hope you will join me at our annual UFV Welcome Back BBQ on Wednesday, August 23 at noon on the green at our Abbotsford campus.

Sincerely,

Jackie Hogan
President and Vice-Chancellor

Dear UFV community,

Yesterday the BC provincial general election period officially began, and voting will take place May 9. I encourage all members of our UFV community, individually and personally, to engage actively in this important democratic process.

I remind us all, however, that the University, as a public post-secondary institution, must comply with the restrictions legislated in the University Act, Section 66 [1], where we are directed to be “non-sectarian and non-political in principle”.  In other words, the University must not participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office, or be perceived to do so in any way.

I emphasize that this applies to UFV as an organization.  It is not in any way intended to restrict our involvement as individuals, as long as it is clear that we are not speaking for the University.  We must also be careful not to use our positions within the University or our affiliation with the University in any way that implies we represent the view of the University or any of its divisions or organizations.

As you plan your activities, please keep the comments above in mind and review UFV’s guidelines regarding the use of university facilities and resources for political activities.

I commend the UFV Political Science Student Association for organizing all-candidate debates here at UFV: the debate of Abbotsford-West candidates takes place on Monday, April 24; and the debate of Abbotsford-South candidates takes place on Tuesday, April 25. Both start at 7:00 pm in the lecture theatre, room B101, on the Abbotsford campus. I understand that Chilliwack and Abbotsford-Mission events are also being planned.  I encourage you to attend these and other community activities, learn about the issues, and vote!

If you have any questions regarding UFV’s statement on political activities, please contact my office.

Thank you,
Mark

Dr. Mark Evered
President and Vice-Chancellor

To the UFV Campus Community,

We are writing to bring to your attention a week-long celebration happening from October 3-7 in honour of all our students who participate in peer leadership roles at our university. Whether as a peer tutor, a mentor, a varsity athlete, a Peer Resource and Leadership Centre ambassador, a residence assistant, a Cascade reporter, a Global lounge volunteer, a student club executive, a research assistant, an Indigenous centre volunteer, a CiVL radio volunteer, an exam invigilator, a SUS elected official, and many more, our students are highly engaged in their own learning and in the experience of learning with their peers.  And so this week we join other universities around the world in honouring our students and thanking them for their time and commitment as peer leaders at UFV.

You can access information about the week of celebration through the Peer Resource and Leadership Centre site. During the week we encourage you to stop and thank our students who help make our University a vibrant and engaging learning environment.

Sincerely,

Mark Evered, President and Vice-Chancellor

Jody Gordon, Vice President, Students and Enrolment Management

Dear Colleagues,

The United Way campaign for 2016 is about to launch at UFV, marking the 33^rd consecutive year of staff and faculty support for the United Way.

We both give personally to this campaign. Will you give, too?

Join us, along with Chilliwack Mayor Sharon Gaetz and Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun, for the United Way Fraser Valley’s free pancake breakfast kickoff events at UFV.

CHILLIWACK PANCAKE BREAKFAST
Monday, Sept 12, 7-8:30 am
UFV Trades and Technology Centre (Building T), Parking Lot 1, 5579 Tyson Road

ABBOTSFORD PANCAKE BREAKFAST
Tuesday, Sept 13, 7-8:30 am
UFV Parking Lot 10, South East side across from the Bookstore, enter off Mackenzie Road

United Way of the Fraser Valley supports more than 25 community partners and programs from Aldergrove to Boston Bar, serving a population of a quarter of a million people. The dollars raised here stay in our community. Each year 1 in 3 people in the Fraser Valley benefit from a United Way program. The United Way aims to build strong communities, help kids be all they can be, and move people from poverty to possibility.

This year’s goal is for UFV to raise $25,000 for the United Way. Together, we can do this!

UFV faculty and staff have a proud history of supporting this worthwhile appeal, meeting the challenge of supporting various community agencies via the United Way. Through this campaign, you can designate your gift to a specific United Way agency of your choice, or to any registered charity. You can choose to make a one-time donation, or sign up to give through payroll donations.

If you wish to join us in personally supporting this worthy cause, please complete this fillable pledge form and return it to Human Resources in Abbotsford by Friday, September 30.

As an added incentive, we have assembled some great prizes. All those contributing will have their name entered for the prize draws. And, new this year, the UFV area that has the highest percentage of donors will earn a $1,000 award for a UFV student! Stay tuned for more details on this wonderful opportunity for a UFV student to also benefit from your team’s generosity to the United Way.

Thank you, from both of us. We hope to see you at the breakfasts.

Mark Evered                                               Sean Parkinson

President & Vice-Chancellor                        President

University of the Fraser Valley                     Faculty and Staff Association

Dear UFV community,

Yesterday, the student newspaper, The Cascade, published an article on how our University responds to students who have been sexually assaulted.  The headline was “Nowhere to go”, a statement that is completely false.  I am writing because I fear the impact on any student needing help who reads this and assumes that none is available.

Our University is known for the many faculty and staff who take a personal interest in our students. Many have a long, strong record of helping students in need. We have student leaders who are quick to support their peers. We have a full student service division with 8 trained counsellors ready to respond to any student need. We have University administrative staff and leaders who have a record of putting students first.  I would add that if a student prefers to speak with a female senior administrator about any concerns, two of our three vice-presidents, five of our six deans, and our Chancellor are women.  There are many places for a student to go.

Like most universities and colleges in our province and country, we continue to work toward improving the ways we will respond to sexual harassment or assault.  Our Vice-President Students is working very closely with the Ministry of Advanced Education and her provincial colleagues to develop best practices to guide post-secondary institutions on preventing, educating and responding to sexualized violence. We welcome constructive advice from our students.

I am precluded by privacy legislation from commenting on details of the Cascade article other than to state that we do not tell students who ask us to investigate a case of sexual harassment or assault that they cannot talk to family or friends outside the University. We encourage them to seek support from people they trust and respect, and provide them with immediate and full access to our counselling services. We also help them connect with community services. We do, however, ask them to help us protect the integrity of an investigation.

I have asked our Vice-President Students to provide the community with a summary of the processes and services available to students.  Her office is about to release a “Safe Student Community” website that describes student supports, processes and policies.  This will be published on Monday.  As always, we seek your guidance on how we can improve.  A mechanism for collecting your recommendations will be provided.

Let us all continue to explore the best ways to serve our students, a principle that has guided our University throughout our history.

Sincerely,

Mark

Dr. Mark Evered
President and Vice-Chancellor

February 19, 2016

Colleagues,

I am writing to describe some temporary and permanent changes to take place in the office of the University Secretary & Registrar.

As many of you know, our colleague Al Wiseman has been ill and it appears that he may be off work for a while longer.  Our thoughts are with him as he recovers.

Al has done an exemplary job serving as both University Secretary and Registrar, guiding us through significant governance and policy changes associated with the move to university status, and leading major changes in our registrarial services. We knew when we created this joint position that the demands would continue to grow and we would eventually have to consider separating the two elements.

Before Al became ill, we discussed the split and Al indicated his preference to continue in the role of University Secretary.  He has thoroughly enjoyed the work of Registrar, and he will miss especially the wonderful people he worked with in that role, but looks forward to the increasing challenges associated with service to the Board, Senate and other governance and regulatory bodies as full-time Secretary.

In his work as Registrar, Al was supported by Deputy Registrar Darren Francis.  Darren recently resigned to take up a faculty position at Kwantlen Polytechnic University.  We will use that vacancy to hire a full-time Registrar.  The Registrar will report to Jody Gordon, Vice-President Students & Enrolment Management. She will begin the search for a Registrar shortly.

Until Al returns, Maureen Murphy, UFV’s legal counsel, has agreed to serve as acting University Secretary. She will return to her previous role when Al comes back. But one of the important jobs of the Secretary is supporting the presidential search. To ensure continuity in that work, Maureen will continue to support the search process until the next president is selected. To assist with providing legal advice, Maureen will be supported by legal counsel Tamsin Miley.

I take this opportunity to thank Jody and Maureen for serving in acting roles while Al is away.  I know that both are grateful for the support received from members of their teams and secretariat and registrar staff.  And we thank all members of the UFV community for their patience and understanding during Al’s absence and these transitions.

Sincerely,

Mark Evered
President  & Vice-Chancellor

Faculty, Staff, and Students of UFV,

As the October 19 federal election draws nearer, I encourage all members of our UFV community, individually and personally, to engage actively in this important democratic process. I know that some of you are running for office, or volunteer on your own time to work on election campaigns. These are valuable contributions and we applaud you.

I remind us all, however, that we must comply with the restrictions legislated in the University Act; in Section 66 [1] we are directed to be “non-sectarian and non-political in principle”.  This means that UFV must not participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office, or be perceived to do so in any way.

Also, please recognize that none of us speaks for the University with respect to support for any particular party or candidate, and we must avoid all perception that we do.  We must also be especially careful not to use our positions within the University or our affiliation with the University in any way that implies we represent the view of the University or any of our divisions or organizations.

As you plan your activities, please keep the comments above in mind and review UFV’s guidelines regarding the use of university facilities and resources for political activities.

I commend the Student Union Society for joining the national Get Out The Vote campaign, urging students to pledge to vote: http://ufvsus.getoutthevote.ca/. The SUS is also hosting all-candidates debates on Thursday, Oct 1 in the new Student Union Building, Abbotsford campus (Abbotsford debate at noon, and Mission-Matsqui-Fraser Canyon at 2pm). The Chilliwack candidate debate is on Thursday, Oct 8, at noon in the CEP Chilliwack campus Building A atrium. I encourage you to attend, learn about the issues, and vote!

If you have any questions regarding UFV’s statement on political activities, please contact my office.

Thank you,
Mark

Dr. Mark Evered
President and Vice-Chancellor

A message from President Mark Evered:

UFV students, staff, faculty, alumni and friends,

It is with deep sadness that we recall the murder of 14 women on this day 25 years ago at L’Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal.

December 6 is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women in Canada. This year, UFV will be marking this day on Friday in order to reach more people on campus.

On Friday, Dec 5 at 12:30 pm, UFV will host a daytime candlelight vigil at the Chilliwack campus at Canada Education Park. The event will be held at the outdoor plaza just outside the Gathering Place on at the east end of Building A (by Givenchy Avenue). The public is invited to attend.

In addition, the UFV Faculty and Staff Association will have information tables set up between 11 am and 1 pm in Alumni Hall in Abbotsford and the atrium in Chilliwack on Fri, Dec 5. There will be videos addressing the issue of violence against women running on a continuous loop.

The safety of women is our responsibility — all of us! On this day, please reflect on that responsibility and commit to continuing to build a safe environment for women here at UFV, in our communities, and in our families.

For more details on the events planned for Friday, Dec 5, please visit the following link:

http://goo.gl/sTlqFv

Dr. Mark Evered

Dear Faculty and Staff:

The United Way Campaign for 2014 is about to launch at UFV, marking the 31^st consecutive year of staff and faculty support for the United Way.

United Way of the Fraser Valley supports 24 community partners and 11 local programs throughout an area stretching from 272^nd Street in Aldergrove to Boston Bar, serving a population of a quarter of a million people. The dollars raised here stay in our community. Each year 1 in 3 people in the Fraser Valley benefits from a United Way program.

We have a proud history of supporting this most worthwhile appeal, and meeting the challenge of supporting various community agencies via the United Way. Through this campaign, you can designate your gift to a specific United Way agency of your choice, or to any registered charity.

Please see the attached material from the United Way for more details. If you wish to contribute to this worthy cause, please complete the attached fillable pledge form and return it to Human Resources in Abbotsford by Friday, December 5, 2014.

As an added incentive, we have assembled some great prizes. All those contributing will have their name entered for the prize draws.

Thank you,

Mark Evered,                                                                               Vicki Grieve,

President and Vice-Chancellor                                            President,

University of the Fraser Valley                                            Faculty & Staff Association

Dear members of our UFV community:

I am writing to inform you of some changes in senior administration at UFV.  I have been reviewing the roles and responsibilities of the members of our leadership team as part of our internal review of the way we allocate our limited resources.  The challenge we all share is the need to ensure we operate as efficiently and effectively as possible in the face of significant financial challenges and increasing demands, obligations, liabilities, accountabilities and expectations.  At the same time, we must continue to move forward in the achievement of our goals and aspirations.

With some caution and reservation, I have decided to eliminate the position of Vice-President External.  We have been well served by the people who have held that position; they have played a key role in government and community liaison, partnership development, the transition to university status, leadership of our advancement office, alumni relations, marketing and communication, events management, student recruitment, and ancillary services (such as the book store, food services, catering, printing, etc), and a variety of other duties on our behalf, as needs arose.

Most recently, Harv McCullough, our former Dean of Trades and Technology, has held that position.  He will be stepping down this summer.  I am extremely grateful for his leadership and colleagueship, and he leaves a legacy of many achievements, most recently and notably the work that led to the establishment of the Agriculture Centre of Excellence.  Harv will begin his administrative leave, one that he deferred in order to take on the acting VP position.  As part of his leave assignment, I am asking him to continue with work supporting the ongoing development of the Agriculture Centre and the establishment of the network of educational, industry and business partners that form a vital part of this provincially-mandated project.

The duties of the Vice-President External will have to be redistributed.  Most will be reassigned to Leslie Courchesne, currently the Director of Marketing and Communication, and to Craig Toews, currently the Executive Director of Facilities and Campus Planning. Both will report directly to me.

Responsibility for the leadership of university advancement (UFV’s fundraising division), alumni relations, and government liaison will be added to Leslie Courchesne’s current responsibilities for marketing, internal and external communications, student recruiting and institutional events.  This combined unit will be renamed University Relations.  Leslie, as Executive Director, will report shortly on how she will structure this large division.

Responsibility for the leadership of ancillary services will move to Craig Toews, currently Executive Director, Facilities and Campus Planning, adding to his current responsibilities for campus planning and development. I have also asked him to take a leadership role in community liaison and partnerships, and resource development for the purpose of revenue generation.  His new title will be Executive Director, Campus Planning and Resource Development.

A few other changes in administrative responsibilities are needed to balance workloads.  Jackie Hogan, as Chief Financial Officer & Vice-President Administration, will take over responsibility for our Facilities division (from Craig Toews) and Information Technology Services (from Eric Davis).

A revised organizational chart will be distributed shortly.

This decision to eliminate a vice-presidency and reassign the work was not made lightly.  The number of administrative positions and allocation of funding for administration at UFV is already among the very lowest in the province.  Members of our senior administrative team already work hard at tough jobs, with limited resources and in a tightly-regulated environment that constrains our options and flexibility.  It is a tribute to their commitment to UFV that they are willing to take on additional responsibilities.  Please join me in thanking Leslie, Craig and Jackie.  I know I can count on you to give them your full support.

Mark

Mark D. Evered, PhD
President and Vice-Chancellor