COLLEGE OF ELECTORS
MONDAY, October 7, 2024
Minutes of the College of Electors meeting held on October 7, 2024, at 5:00 p.m., in the Council Chamber:
PRESENT: Jennifer Dolman, (UTAA) (Chair), Brad Beveridge (Vice-Chair), Pavel Abdur-Rahman, Omar Bitar, Daniel Bowyer, George Buldo, Michelle Davis, Eileen de Villa, David Drew, Althea Fernandes, Imran Khan, Andrea Koop, Jing Fu*, Evie Jsein*, Vito Labate, Idas Levato, David McKnight, Andria Minicucci, Asif Mohammed, Ashleigh Molloy, Frid Mughal, Eric Noble, Ennio Palombizio, Nick Pantaleo, Jamie Philip, Naraindra Prashad*, Maina Rambali, Connie Sellors, Christophe Shammas, Rachel Shaw-Ng, Elizabeth Speakman, Milomir Strbac, KimEija Taipaleenmaki, Irene Vrckovnik, Terese Weisberg, Helen Wojcinski, Jinzi Zheng
REGRETS: Doris Chee, Sandra Griffiths, Sheila Ritcey, Robin Whiffen
SECRETARIAT: Gina DeVeaux, Acting Secretary, College of Electors; Miranda Edwards, Governance Coordinator
GUEST: Barbara Dick, Assistant Vice-President, Alumni Relations
*Attended remotely
OPEN SESSION
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Chair’s Remarks and Orientation
The Chair welcomed everyone to the first College of Electors meeting for the 2024-2025 year. She introduced the Executive Committee members and also welcomed Barbara Dick, Assistant Vice-President, Alumni Relations. -
Orientation
A three-part orientation was provided for members. The Acting Secretary spoke about University governance, specifically the University’s unicameral system, the membership of the Governing Council, and the structure of the Governing Council’s Boards, Campus Councils and Committees, as well as the College’s role within this structure.
Barbara Dick, Assistant Vice-President Alumni Relations outlined the vision of Alumni Relations namely that all University of Toronto alumni see themselves as proud, lifelong members of a shared community and that they were invested in the future success of the University. Ms Dick described the mutual value proposition wherein alumni and the University both benefited from alumni engagement. She noted that one of the goals of the Defy Gravity campaign was to inspire 225,000 alumni to get involved and to encourage them to contribute their time one million times collectively. The campaign was also seeking to raise $4 billion for the University’s highest priorities. Ms Dick highlighted several alumni engagement efforts including volunteer mentorship and events to support the university’s innovation and international strategies. She reported that as of September 24, 2024, 72.9% of the one million unique engagement instances had been achieved. She connected the success of the University’s engagement to its Alumni Engagement Metrics model which had been internationally recognized as a best practice approach by 50 of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) institutions.
In response to a question from a member, Ms Dick clarified that metrics were reported monthly with tracked participation at multiple events and experiential engagements. An annual survey was also conducted for additional information. In total, there were approximately 8000 different measures that were considered, thus enabling Alumni Relations to make data-informed decisions.
A member commented on international engagement and inquired about the trajectory of Alumni Relations’ efforts in correlation to the Defy Gravity goal of one million unique engagement instances. Ms Dick emphasized that the intention was to focus on areas of strategic approach through the consideration of strategic alumni markets. She commented that while most of the University’s alumni were in Toronto, markets such as Hong Kong provided opportunities for further engagement.
A member asked whether other university alumni associations were considered. Ms Dick said that part of the university’s membership in CASE involved being in conversations with other university alumni associations to identify key issues in the sector.
The Chair and Vice-Chair then detailed the College’s specific functions and key milestones for the upcoming year. The Chair highlighted the College’s membership and responsibilities with reference to the Constitution. The Chair reflected on the importance of each member’s role in governance, as the College represented all University alumni and must consider the needs of the entire institution. Members were encouraged to familiarize themselves with the work of the Governing Council and to regularly update their constituent alumni associations about the College’s work to help increase awareness of both the function of the College and the Governing Council.
The Vice-Chair described the College’s responsibility in nominating the Chancellor and alumni members of the Governing Council through consideration of the approved attributes and expectations and formal consultation with the Chair of the Governing Council, the President of the University and the President of the Alumni Association. The Vice-Chair reviewed the structure of the four standing committees of the College and their responsibilities as outlined in the Constitution. They included:- The Nominating Committee for the Executive Committee (NC-EC), which reviews nominations and recommends to the College members to fill the position of Vice-Chair of the College and three other seats on the Executive Committee;
- The Executive Committee, which serves a co-ordinating role for the College on matters dealing with the election of alumni governors or the Chancellor;
- The Nominating Committee for Alumni Governors (NC-AG), which identifies and assesses potential candidates in consultation with the College, interviews candidates at the direction of the College, and supports alumni governors who are elected;
- The Chancellor Search Committee (CSC), which is responsible for preparing the Chancellor position profile, preparing a report on the nominations received for Chancellor, and bringing forward a recommendation for the next Chancellor.
The Vice-Chair highlighted the election of Chancellor Wesley Hall by the College in the spring for a three-year term effective July 1, 2024. Chancellor Hall was the university’s 35th chancellor since its founding in 1827.
The Chair shifted to the College’s schedule of meetings for the 2024-2025 year and outlined key agenda items for each meeting. She returned to the duties and expectations of College members to summarize key responsibilities, including:
- Electing the alumni governors and Chancellor by:
- Assisting the development and implementation of the College’s recruitment strategies;
- Discussing the attributes and particular skill sets the Governing Council is looking for in a given year;
- Reviewing the applications received for alumni governors;
- Participating in the selection of candidates who will be interviewed;
- Participating in the development of questions used for the interview of candidates.
- Serving as liaisons to constituent alumni associations
A member asked if there were other methods to increase the College’s outreach besides engaging with people they know. The Chair explained that there was an ad campaign for alumni governors, and while word of mouth was not the only method to spread information about the College’s work, it remained a successful on-the-ground approach.
A member remarked on the unique one-year term of members, and asking a clarifying question about the ability to make connections within that time frame. The Chair noted that members were invited to give updates about what was happening in their associations, to give other members opportunities to engage with wider audiences.
A member asked about the highlights that should be provided to alumni associations and the Chair responded that the meeting report served that function.
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Call for Nominations for the 2024-2025 Nominating Committee for Alumni Governors
The Chair noted the role of the Nominating Committee for Alumni Governors (NC-AG), which included five members from the Executive Committee and three members elected annually by and from the College.
Nominations for the NC-AG were invited until October 14, 2024, and interested members were encouraged to nominate themselves or others for the three available seats. The Executive Committee would review the nominations and present a recommended slate at the November 6th meeting.
The Chair invited former members of the NC-AG to share their experiences serving on the Committee.
There were no additional comments made by members. -
Report of the Previous Meeting – May 15, 2024
On a motion duly moved, seconded and carried
The minutes of the meeting of May 15, 2024, were approved. -
Business Arising from the Minutes of the Previous Meeting
There was no business arising from the minutes of the previous meeting. -
College of Electors – Schedule of Meetings 2024-2025
The meeting schedule for 2024-2025 was outlined in the orientation and had been made available online for members to review. -
Date of Next Meeting
The Chair reminded members that the next meeting would be held on November 6, 2024, from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. -
Other Business
Governing Council Calendar of Business
Members were encouraged to attend at least one meeting of the Governing Council and its various Boards and Committees, including Campus Councils. They were reminded of the importance to understand the work of the Governing Council and the fiduciary duty of its members. The Chair referred to the calendar of business available online and noted the ability to subscribe to receive electronic notices of meetings and related materials via the Governing Council website. The next Governing Council meeting was scheduled for November 7, 2024, at 4:30 p.m., and would be live audiocasted.
The Chair thanked Barbara Dick for her presentation on behalf of the College.
The meeting adjourned at 7:00 p.m.
December 18, 2024