Values. What we value defines us as individuals. Shared, values bring us together in common cause, for common good. Our core values are the very thread which weaves through and strengthens the fabric of our communities - Edmonton, our province, our country, and indeed beyond to the wider world.
Very much so, too, as a university, all of us and most certainly as alumni, students, faculty and staff, we are drawn together seeking shared outcomes, to better our community and our world. We are, as our university's founder, Henry Marshall Tory so famously and brilliantly said, drawn into the university community for "the uplifting of the whole people." Staying true to our values (living them) is, bluntly, the fulfillment of our promise to our community.
The events of the last two months were not the result of a simple clash of opinions, or something too easily dismissed as reduceable to a debate over institutional autonomy. Rather, the discord and upset (made clear in many calls, emails and letters) was the result of our failure to fulfill our promise to our community - a failure to listen to those in our community, to be reminded of the values that we hold close and that define us as a community, and indeed define our university's greatness. The very founding values of our university - those extant in "the uplifting of the whole people," and the same values, I suggest, of Alberta itself - were placed under attack.
There exists a disconnect with our stakeholders, a misunderstanding of our university's place in the social fabric of our community.
The University of Alberta's current strategic plan, For the Public Good, is not short on naming a long list of values. Understandably, perhaps, those values are for the most part, internally focused. What is missing, I suggest, is first, a consideration of our community beyond our walls; a need for a stronger underpinning of the expressed values in the institution's history and traditions, and that harken back to Henry Marshall Tory's first convocation address. Secondly, values must be more than rhetoric. They must be expressed in our behaviour, what we do, if they are to be lifted off the page and made a measure of who we are, and certainly, if they are to uplift us as an institution.
I am encouraged that our university Senate is actively discussing these matters and listening to the voices of our community as real change is contemplated.
I encourage you to read (or reread, as I did again this past week) Tory's first convocation address, in its entirety. He imagined a University of Alberta created by the people, for the people, of Alberta - one which is integral to the life of Albertans and gives prominence to the concerns of Albertans. A university that is actively engaged in building the social and economic prosperity of Alberta.
Tory delivered his speech nearly 110 years ago. The relevance of its truths has not dimmed with time's passing. Sir Keith Burnett, President and Vice-Chancellor at the University of Sheffield, writing in Times Higher Education warns that universities must stay focused on what counts. "We are imperiling true relevance and impact in the world if we do not shake ourselves and think what our worship of league tables " is putting at risk. He continues, "To my mind, academic freedom is the freedom to do what is needed as a scholar in response to the needs of the world around me." Finally, Sir Keith leaves universities with an admirable challenge: "Let's try to let academics be free to respond to the depths of scholarship and the wider needs of society."
Henry Marshall Tory's vision of a University of Alberta that is deeply connected to the community, which created and sustained it, has proven to be timeless and inspiring, well beyond our province. We owe a debt to Albertans, of the past 110 years, for creating, supporting and continuing to invest in an exceptional university. This is a debt that can only be repaid by reaffirming our commitment to Tory's promise, of living our values, of actively and sincerely engaging with our community.
Our Faculty of Engineering holds dear the timeless, founding values espoused by Henry Marshall Tory. We intend to deliver on his promise and to continue to be a valued, integral part of Alberta's remarkable social fabric. We recognize that our success in fulfilling our promise to our community depends on partnerships - the very partnerships that have recently become strained. Our Faculty will work diligently to repair and strengthen our valued partnerships. We will work tirelessly to fulfill our promise.
I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Until next time,
Fraser