Annual Report 2010/11

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Academic Programmingand DeliveryDegree programmingContinued progress in the implementation ofdegree programming was achieved during2010/11, with the addition of an accountingmajor in the Bachelor of Commerce program,and the completion of plans for two new degreeprograms—the Bachelor of Music and the Bachelorof Communication Studies—both of which beganaccepting students in fall 2011. Two additionalmajors in the commerce degree (human resourcesmanagement and marketing) are being planned forfall 2012 implementation. Two new minors in arts(French and Spanish) are being planned for the fallof 2013.The university achieved 105 per cent of itsenrolment target for baccalaureate programs in2010/11, which reinforces the success of degreeprogramming at the university. As previouslydiscussed, the next phase of program developmentincludes commencement of classes in the Artsand Cultural Management diploma in fall 2011, andimplementation of the new degree in psychiatricnursing.MacEwan University remains concerned with theimpact of provincial budget decisions for 2011/12and beyond. While some additional funding hasbeen received to support the Bachelor of Scienceprogram, this degree is still not fully funded,and the university continues to utilize reservesto support this program. The Bachelor of Musicprogram is currently operating with no provincialoperating funding, and university reserves arealso being drawn upon to implement this uniquesignature program. In addition, enrolment in thenursing degree continues to be reduced in order tooperate within funding constraints.Transfer arrangementsAs part of a Campus Alberta objective,additional steps were taken to expand transferarrangements for students from across Albertato access MacEwan University programs, and forMacEwan University students to pursue furtherstudies at other institutions. As discussed inpreceeding sections, an agreement was reachedwith Olds College to offer the first year of theuniversity’s Bachelor of Science degree at thecollege beginning in fall 2011, and the universitycontinues to develop transfer arrangements for itsdiploma graduates to pursue degree completionopportunities at Thompson Rivers University.The university would also like to accommodate arequest to expand its science degree to a northerncollege, but the fact this program remains onlypartially funded limits the university’s capacity toundertake such collaborative initiatives.Distributed technologiesThe university continued to expand its onlinecourse offerings through eCampusAlberta,achieving a 55 per cent increase in enrolment inthis area in 2010/11. Plans are being developedto offer the Bachelor of Commerce degree andthe Arts and Cultural Management diplomaonline. To ensure the quality of its online offerings,the university adopted the eCampusAlbertaEssential Quality Standards (EQS), which includesexternal peer review as part of its developmentmethodology.MacEwan University is a founder and active partnerof the eCampusAlberta Consortium. Developmentof new credentials and the re-development oflegacy curriculum are essential to the continuedsuccess of eCampus courses. Reduction andwithdrawal of curriculum development support forthe eCampus consortium presents a challenge forall members in sustaining this effort on behalf ofCampus Alberta.In all three cases, adequate levels of provincialfunding will be required to ensure the viability andsustainability of these programs.28 grant Macewan university
Scholarship, Researchand Artistic CreationDevelopment of institutional capacity for research,scholarly activity and artistic creation is a longtermprocess. The university’s Research Officeundertook a variety of initiatives during 2010/11to foster faculty research activity, includingsessions on external funding opportunities, onlineresources for funding agencies and applicationrequirements, and provision of peer-reviewservices for grant applications. Continued growthin the number of research publications andpresentations by university faculty is contributingto greater academic rigor within the university andto enhanced external credibility. It must be notedthat as more students enter senior years of degreeprograms, greater levels of internal and externalresearch funding will be required.Promotion of student research is an importantcurricular component of MacEwan University’sbaccalaureate programs. During 2010/11 theuniversity’s Research Office undertook a pilotinitiative to support student research, andestablished a sub-committee of the ResearchCouncil to manage the MacEwan StudentResearch Initiative, which included a sessionon grantsmanship and applying to the StudentResearch Fund, and two competitive grant calls forfunding student research projects. Thirty studentresearch projects were funded for a total of nearly$48,000.Research-related professional developmentfor faculty continued to be another high prioritystrategy to build research and capacity. Theuniversity’s research community participated inresearch-related conferences and workshopsrelated to ethics, animal care and grants.Supportive Servicesand ProcessesEnterprise Resource Planning (ERP)Progress was made towards the completeimplementation of the new PeopleSoft ERP systemduring 2010/11. The new financial system wasimplemented in July 2010, the human resourcessystem in January 2011, and the first two phaseson the student system (Campus Solutions) byApril 2011. The implementation process presentedsignificant challenges, and considerable workremains in order to realize the full benefits andpotential of the new system.Enhanced financial processes and structuresImplementation of the new financial system wasa critical step in the process of enhancing theuniversity’s financial processes and structures. Theuniversity implemented a new model for informationtechnology management, established an internalaudit function and approved an annual audit plan.Self-study, peer review and benchmarkingAs with many of the university’s objectives duringthis transitional period, the implementationof an institutional culture of self-review andbenchmarking is a long-term process. This processcontinued during 2010/11 with the development ofa standard process for evaluation of service andacademic support departments, and a mechanismfor action planning and follow-up from theseevaluations. Two service evaluation projects werecompleted during 2010/11, and three others wereinitiated.Student success initiativesA wide range of initiatives to promote studentretention and student success were undertakenduring 2010/11, many under the auspices, orthe involvement of, the university’s StudentSuccess Committee. Activities encompassed awide range of projects—from program-specificinitiatives to university-wide projects; rangingfrom improvements to orientation and studentadvising to the realignment of student spacesAnnual Report 2010/2011 29
Page 8 and 9: About Grant MacEwanUniversityBoard
Page 10 and 11: 10 grant Macewan universityOperatio
Page 12 and 13: PeopleSoft program has enhanced sys
Page 14 and 15: surveys of baccalaureate students.
Page 16 and 17: Progress Report on Achievement ofSt
Page 18 and 19: The university has developed a rang
Page 20 and 21: external webinars and workshops on
Page 22 and 23: • Complete the implementation of
Page 24 and 25: ecommendations on locations for the
Page 26 and 27: Performance MeasuresMacEwan Univers
Page 30 and 31: to enhance services. Implementation
Page 32 and 33: Discussion and AnalysisThe followin
Page 34 and 35: • Expenditures funded through the
Page 36 and 37: ContentsManagement’s Responsibili
Page 38 and 39: Independent Auditor’s ReportTo th
Page 40 and 41: Consolidated Statement of Operation
Page 42 and 43: Consolidated Statement of Cash Flow
Page 44 and 45: Notes to the Consolidated Financial
Page 60: Grant MacEwan UniversityP.O. Box 17

Annual Report 2010/11

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?