The largest research grant in Canada last year. The 耻苍颈惫别谤蝉颈迟测鈥檚 90th Rhodes Scholar. A plethora of new awards and honours for faculty. And Dal鈥檚 biggest fundraising year ever.
Those were just some of the highlights cited by AV俱乐部 President Richard Florizone during his annual 鈥測ear-in-review鈥� sessions this past week.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a pretty successful year, on many different fronts,鈥� he said.
Titled Inspiration and Impact, the town halls are an opportunity for members of the Dal community to look back at the past academic year, hear about progress towards the priorities outlined in the 耻苍颈惫别谤蝉颈迟测鈥檚 Strategic Direction plan (also titled Inspiration and Impact), and ask questions of Dr. Florizone and other members of the 耻苍颈惫别谤蝉颈迟测鈥檚 senior administration team.
Sessions were held on Studley, Carleton and the Agricultural Campuses this week. A fourth will take place on Sexton Campus on Friday, June 23.
Here鈥檚 a look at just a select few of the many highlights cited in the presentations thus far. (Want to see more? Attend the fourth session next week or watch it live on Facebook via .)
Academic leadership and research excellence
As in previous years, Dr. Florizone鈥檚 presentation was structured around the five priority areas of the 耻苍颈惫别谤蝉颈迟测鈥檚 Strategic Direction, which was approved by Board and Senate in June 2014 following the process: Teaching & Learning; Research; Service; Partnership & Reputation; and People, Infrastructure & Support. For each, Dr. Florizone presented quick highlights and achievements from the past year and shared updates around key metrics and milestones.
Under teaching & learning 鈥� 鈥渢he foundation of our mission,鈥� as he put it 鈥斅燚r. Florizone discussed the 耻苍颈惫别谤蝉颈迟测鈥檚 efforts to improve student retention from first- to second-year, a major priority identified out of the 100 Days of Listening. He also noted that Dal faculty continue to excel when it comes to major awards and honours, citing several examples.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not the biggest university in the country, and yet in three of the last four years our faculty have won the NSERC Herzberg Medal,鈥� he said, referring to to battery researcher Jeff Dahn鈥檚 recent win of what is considered Canada鈥檚 top science prize. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a really powerful base to build on.鈥�
Likely Dal鈥檚 biggest research story of the past year was the launch of the Ocean Frontier Institute 鈥斅燼 $220-million project backed by $94 million from the Government of Canada. Not only was it the largest research grant in Dal鈥檚 history, but it was the largest federal research grant in Canada last year. Like many achievements from the past year, it was built on robust partnerships across various sectors.
鈥淥ur challenge is this: how do we take that success in oceans 鈥� which has been interdisciplinary 鈥� putting those partnerships in place, and replicate that in other areas?鈥� said Dr. Florizone, speaking at the Carelton Campus session. 鈥淲hat about health, or materials and clean tech? Society, governance and culture, our other priority research area? Emerging areas like ICT, energy and the environment and agriculture?鈥�
Forging new connections and new contributions
Under the service category, Dr. Florizone discussed student entrepreneurship, community clinics (Dentistry, Law, Social Work) and the growth in interest for work-integrated learning 鈥� the integration of educational/academic experience in workplace settings.
鈥淚n some of your disciplines, this is second nature,鈥� he said, citing health-related fields where work placements are built into the curriculum. 鈥淔or other areas, what we鈥檙e seeing is it鈥檚 an area of increasing demand. It鈥檚 something students and parents are really talking about a lot鈥� [they鈥檙e] looking for not just a world-class great education in the classroom, but those linkages that give them more practical experience, give them an edge, and that might lead to a future job.鈥�
At AV俱乐部, more than 4,000 students took part in work-integrated learning last year, while even more (87 per cent of Dal鈥檚 student population) took part in some sort of experiential learning opportunities 鈥斅爄ncluding co-op placements, which have grown by 18 per cent over the past three years.
The year-in-review sessions are also an opportunity for faculty, staff and others to ask questions for Dr. Florizone and the 耻苍颈惫别谤蝉颈迟测鈥檚 senior administration team. The questions asked across the first sessions covered a wide variety of topics: ensuring fulsome supports for international students, acquiring more funding for graduate students, mental health supports on campus, faculty renewal and more.
The power of partnership
Additionally, Dr. Florizone discussed several of the major campus renewal projects underway (including the Sexton Campus IDEA Project, the new fitness centre and others); some of Dal鈥檚 sustainability achievements (such as Dal being named one of Canada鈥檚 Greenest Employers); and ongoing efforts to better support diversity and inclusion, including improvements in Dal鈥檚 employment equity numbers.
He also shared news that Dal鈥檚 fundraising numbers last year were record-breaking: at over $66-million raised, AV俱乐部鈥檚 Office of Advancement brought in more in external donations to support teaching, research, infrastructure and other universities priorities than in any other year in Dal鈥檚 history.
鈥淢oney matters 鈥斅燵it] allows us to fulfil our mission, and we celebrate that 鈥斅燽ut a greater reason this is important is it shows the confidence, interest and investment the external community is willing to make in all the work we鈥檙e doing together,鈥� said Dr. Florizone.
That message of partnership is one he returned to at the conclusion of his presentation, thanking faculty, staff and others for their role in moving Dal鈥檚 mission forward.
鈥淚f there鈥檚 one central idea to my presidency, it鈥檚 that nobody does anything alone, and that is as true for universities as it is for individuals. Whether it鈥檚 helping our students, creating major research collaborations to tackle the world鈥檚 toughest challenges, connecting with our communities, being a more diverse and welcoming campus, or even tackling our own capital and campus issues, the way we will succeed is through that partnership and engagement 鈥斅爊ot only with the outside world, but with each of you.鈥�
Miss the three sessions thus far? The fourth and final Inspiration and Impact: Our Year in Review session will take place Friday, June 23 at 10 a.m. in room B310 of Sexton Campus鈥� B Building. The session will also be streamed via Facebook Live on .