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Chairs' Boardroom, Simcoe Hall
REPORT NUMBER 557 OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
TUESDAY, MARCH 25, 2025
To the Governing Council
University of Toronto,
Your Executive Committee reports that it held a meeting in the Chairs’ Boardroom, Simcoe Hall on Tuesday, March 25, 2025 with the following members present:
PRESENT: Anna Kennedy (Chair), Sandra Hanington (Vice-Chair), Meric Gertler (President), Donald Ainslie, Jovan Bursac, Vikram Chadalawada, Robert Cooper, K. Sonu Gaind, Joanne McNamara, Cameron Miranda-Radbord, Grace Westcott, Mary-Agnes Wilson
REGRETS: Indi Gopinathan, Mark Lautens, Geeta Yadav
NON-VOTING ASSESSORS: Sheree Drummond (Secretary of the Governing Council)
SECRETARIAT: Miranda Edwards (Secretary)
IN ATTENDANCE: Kelly Hannah-Moffat (Vice-President, People Strategy, Equity and Culture), Heather Boon (Vice-Provost, Faculty & Academic Life), Karen Bellinger (Associate Director, Appeals, Discipline, and Faculty Grievances), Nadina Jamison (Chief Strategy Officer, Office of the President), Leora Jackson (Legal Counsel), Chris Lang (Director, Appeals, Discipline, and Faculty Grievances), Susan Mazza (Senior Project Manager, Office of the President), Bryn McPherson (Assistant Vice-President, Office of the President & Chief of Protocol), Kristin Taylor (University Counsel)
Pursuant to section 38 of By-Law Number 2,
consideration of items 12 to 14 will took place in camera.
OPEN SESSION
- Chair’s Remarks
The Chair welcomed members to the Cycle 4 meeting. The Chair told the Committee that a member had been in touch with her and the Secretary of the Governing Council with questions and suggestions regarding student housing and meeting records. She thanked the member for their constructive engagement and noted that these items may be topics of future governance meetings.
The Chair also shared with members that a member of the Governing Council had indicated that they wanted a resolution prohibiting masks at protests and rallies presented at the next meeting. The Chair reported that she had advised that, as Governing Council is an oversight body, that the member could provide this advice and recommended direction to the University under the President’s Report or in Question Period. She had also further informed the member that she would bring this issue to the attention of the President and the Provost, which she had since done.
The Provost, Professor Trevor Young, noted that this issue had been considered during policy reviews the previous summer and may be raised again during future policy reviews, including the forthcoming review of the Code of Student Conduct next year. He told the Committee that the User Guide on U of T Policies on Protests and Use of Campus Spaces had been in place for the past nine months and that his office believed it had been effective. He further noted that, under existing policies, individuals on campus were required to produce identification if asked.
Members discussed potential challenges to such a ban.
Finally, the Chair noted that a notice for a special meeting had been sent on March 24 for a meeting on March 26. As indicated in the notice the purpose of the meeting was to consider a senior appointment. She thanked members for adjusting their schedules to attend the meeting and acknowledged that not all members would be able to do so. - Report of the President
U.S. Relations
President Meric Gertler reported that the University continued to monitor the U.S. tariffs issue. He noted that work was underway to identify and address ways in which the trade war might impact Canadian universities’ operations, including through procurement mitigation strategies and requests for exemption from retaliatory tariffs for materials necessary to university operations. While the University had $15-20 million worth of annual direct procurement from the U.S., indirect impacts could be somewhat larger.
The President commented on the Trump administration’s interventions in the U.S. higher education and research sector. Executive orders had been issued to restrict science funding to federal agencies, resulting in staff lay-offs. In the week prior, the U.S. government had suspended $400 million in funding to Columbia University pending substantive administrative and governance changes. Notice of similar funding cuts had been issued to the University of Pennsylvania, and this process was expected to occur with other institutions.
The President reported that a number of researchers at the University of Toronto and its affiliated hospitals received direct or indirect funding from U.S. government agencies, which was now at risk. In addition, there were media reports that researchers in Canada might be required to complete a questionnaire from the U.S. administration regarding certain aspects of their research. The Office of the Vice-President, Research and Innovation, and Strategic Initiatives was monitoring the situation closely and had requested that any faculty member that receives such a questionnaire not respond and refer the matter to their office. The President noted that the U15 had recently stated it would intervene should universities’ academic freedom and research integrity be threatened.
A member inquired as to how the University would respond if it faced similar threats from the provincial and federal governments in Canada as those faced by U.S. institutions. The Vice-President and Provost, Professor Trevor Young, responded that the Ontario government could and did place obligations on the University via the Strategic Mandate Agreement and legislation. However, the Provost noted that the University had an excellent relationship with the federal and provincial governments, which had acknowledged the important role that universities play in Canadian society.
Federal Matters
The President noted that Mark Carney had been sworn in as the new Prime Minister on March 14th and had called an election for April 28, 2025. The University was monitoring federal party platforms related to research funding, international students, financial aid and other relevant areas of federal jurisdiction.
Just prior to this, the federal government had announced over $300 million in funding for research and innovation, including funds for the New Frontiers in Research Fund Transformation stream and support for the Canada Research Chairs program. The President was pleased to note that two of the five recipients of the New Frontiers grants were University of Toronto researchers.
Provincial Matters
The President noted that Premier Doug Ford’s new provincial cabinet had been sworn in last week and that the former Ministry of Colleges and Universities had been renamed to the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security (CURES),. The President reported that he had since had a cordial conversation with Minister Nolan Quinn, and was pleased that he had been re-appointed as Minister, given his familiarity with the files.
During the campaign, Premier Ford had committed $450 million over three years for STEM funding. The President reported that the University, in conjunction with COU, was working with the province to encourage the Province to release these funds. The President concluded by reporting that the University and the Province were finalizing the details of the new Strategic Mandate Agreement (SMA4).
Encampment Retrospective
The President reported that the consultants had completed the data gathering and consultation phase and were now drafting the final report, which the University expected to receive later this spring.
Questions
A member asked whether the University could officially comment on the Trump administration’s recent changes to higher education policies while still respecting the Memo on Institutional, Divisional, and Departmental Statements. The President responded that the University must carefully balance its approach, being mindful that funding is at risk while also continuing to champion academic freedom and institutional autonomy. He noted that university leaders often encouraged members of the broader community, as well as associations that represent higher education institutions, to be outspoken on these issues.
Update on the Draft Guide to Law and Policy Regarding Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Discrimination
The President invited Professor Kelly Hannah-Moffat, Vice-President, People, Strategy, Equity and Culture to provide an update on the Draft Guide to Law and Policy Regarding Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Discrimination.
Professor Hannah-Moffat reported to the Committee that her office had concluded the community consultations phase and that the Guide would be published on a new website that was planned to go live on April 15, 2025. A website format was chosen for accessibility purposes and to have a broader audience reach. The website would contain the Guide as well as scenario examples, information about complaints procedures, links to University policies, and a link to the Report of the University of Toronto Antisemitism Working Group (2021).
Interim Report on Prohibited Discrimination and Discriminatory Harassment
The President invited Provost Young to deliver the Interim Report on Complaints of Prohibited Discrimination and Discriminatory Harassment.
The Provost began by re-iterating his office’s commitment to reporting complaints data to the Executive Committee and the Governing Council, and stated that he valued discussion on both bodies about these metrics. He noted that his team had undertaken a tremendous amount of work to compile decentralized data from the offices of the Principals and Deans; the Anti-Racism and Cultural Diversity Office; Sexual & Gender Diversity Office; divisional EDI offices; CAOs of divisions; the Vice-Provost, Faculty & Academic Life; the Office of the Vice-Provost, Students; and Workplace Investigations.
The Provost reported that 621 complaints were made between July 1, 2022 to December 31, 2024. Complaints did not include content in annual reports by the three Campus Safety offices, reports of behaviour that fell outside the University’s jurisdiction, and concerns about speech or behaviour that did not meet the threshold for consideration under the Statement on Prohibited Discrimination and Discriminatory Harassment (for example, generalized speech which, even if substantiated, would not result in a complaints investigation).
About 43% of complaints had led to remedial action, 11% led to alternative resolution, 16% led to a referral, 12% were still in progress, 12% had been discontinued, and 5% of cases had insufficient data. The University’s complaints procedures were grounded in the Ontario Human Rights Code and Bill 166. In the Ontario Human Rights Code categories, about 44% of complaints pertained to race, 19% to disability, 16% to ethnic origin, 16% to gender identity and expression, and 15% to creed. In the Bill 166 categories, about 13% of complaints pertained to anti-black racism, 13% to antisemitism and 9.5% to Islamophobia.
Three major trends were identified: students were more likely to file complaints about faculty, faculty were more likely to file complaints about other faculty, and administrative staff were more likely to file complaints about other administrative staff.
The Provost concluded by thanking the Committee for its guidance and oversight on this issue. He noted that this work would inform the current review of the Statement on Prohibited Discrimination and Discriminatory Harassment as well as the annual report due by January 31, 2026.
A committee member inquired if the numbers of complaints were cause for concern. The Provost responded that the University had over 100,000 staff, faculty, and students and received about 200 complaints per year, which was a relatively small ratio. He remarked that there was no “right number” or appropriate target for how many complaints should be received. He noted that if the University received zero complaints, this was likely to be negative indicator that individuals did not wish to come forward. He said the most important thing was that every complaint was taken seriously and properly investigated, which was demonstrated by the data. Improving civil discourse on campus was an ongoing aim and the University was tackling this on multiple fronts, including through the work of Professor Randy Boyagoda, Provostial Advisor on Civil Discourse.
In response to a member’s question, Professor Hannah-Moffat stated that the University did not track any metrics regarding complainants’ satisfaction with procedural outcomes; however, she noted that there was no trend of complaints on that subject.
In response to a question about anonymity, Professor Hannah-Moffat stated that individuals could submit a complaint anonymously, but that anonymity was not possible if the complainant wished to pursue a due process investigation. She further noted that if her office received a pattern of complaints about an individual or office, then her office might undertake its own review and offer warnings or trainings. - Items for Endorsement and Forwarding to the Governing Council
- Tuition Fees and Budget
The Chair told members that items 3(a) (i), the Institutional Operating Budget, had been presented to Academic Board and Business Board for concurrent approval. Items 3(a) (i) and (ii) had been presented to Business Board for its approval. The UTM and UTSC Campus Councils had also heard the budget presentation for information.
The Chair invited the Board and Council Chairs to provide a summary of discussions at their respective bodies. The Committee heard summaries from Ms Ann Curran, Chair of the UTM Campus Council, Ms Grace Westcott, Chair of the UTSC Campus Council, Professor Doug McDougall, Chair of the Academic Board, and from Mr. Rajiv Mathur, Chair of the Business Board.
In response to a question about financial aid allocations, the Provost noted that the University’s budget is an activity-based model. He also noted that the financial aid formula was fixed across all divisions.
In response to a question regarding publicly funded vs. self-funded programs, the President responded that the administration recognized that high tuition programs presented a corresponding need for more financial aid. He stated that the University was committed to its access guarantee for domestic students which established that a lack of financial means should not be a barrier to program entry or completion.- Institutional Operating Budget Report 2025-2026 and the Long Range Budget Guidelines 2025-26 to 2029-30
On motion duly moved, seconded, and carried
YOUR COMMITTEE RECOMMENDED
THAT the Budget Report 2025-26 be approved and
THAT the Long-Range Budget Guidelines 2025-26 to 2029-30 be approved in principle.
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Tuition Fee Schedule for Publicly Funded Programs, 2025-26
On motion duly moved, seconded, and carried
YOUR COMMITTEE RECOMMENDED
THAT the Tuition Fee Schedule for Publicly Funded Programs for 2025-26 be approved.
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Tuition Fee Schedule for Self-Funded Programs, 2025-26
On motion duly moved, seconded, and carried
YOUR COMMITTEE RECOMMENDED
THAT the Tuition Fee Schedule for Self-Funded Programs for 2025-26 be approved. -
Annual Report: Student Financial Support, 2024-25
The Committee reviewed the Annual Report on Student Financial Support, 2024-25 for information.
- Institutional Operating Budget Report 2025-2026 and the Long Range Budget Guidelines 2025-26 to 2029-30
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UTFA Tentative Agreement between the University Administration and University of Toronto Faculty Association (UTFA) on revisions to Articles 7 and 13 of the Memorandum of Agreement between the Governing Council of the University of Toronto and The University of Toronto Faculty Association
The Chair told members that this item had been presented to the Academic Board and Business Board. The Committee heard summaries from Professor Doug McDougall, Chair of the Academic Board, and from Mr. Rajiv Mathur, Chair of the Business Board.
Members had no questions.
- Tuition Fees and Budget
CONSENT AGENDA
The Chair noted for the Committee that an item for confirmation had been removed from the Consent Agenda (UTM UMAGS Fee Increase).
On motion duly moved, seconded, and carried
YOUR COMMITTEE APPROVED
THAT the consent agenda be adopted and that Item 5, the Reports of the Previous Meetings, be approved.
- Items for Confirmation
- Operating Plans and Fees: UTM Student Affairs and Services for 2025-26
- Compulsory Non-Academic Incidental Fees: SCSU UTSC Sports & Recreation Complex Levy
- Operating Plans and Fees: UTSC Office of Student Experience and Wellbeing
- Operating Plans: UTSC Service Ancillaries
- Reports of the Previous Meetings of the Executive Committee
- Business Arising from the Reports of the Previous Meetings
- Minutes of the Governing Council Meeting – February 27, 2025
- Reports for Information*
- Report Number 283 of the Business Board (March 12, 2025)
- Report Number 255 of the Academic Board (March 6, 2025)
- Report Number 67 of the UTSC Campus Council (March 4, 2025)
- Report Number 70 of the UTM Campus Council (March 3, 2025)
- Report Number 245 of the University Affairs Board (February 26, 2025)
- Date of Next Executive Committee Meeting – March 26, 2025, 8:00 – 8:45 a.m. (Special Meeting) and May 6, 2025, 5:00 – 7:00 p.m
The Chair advised members that there was a Special Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, March 26, 2025 from 8:00 – 8:45 a.m. and the next regular meeting was scheduled for Tuesday, May 6, 2025 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. - Governing Council Meeting: Draft Agenda: April 3, 2025, 4:30 – 6:30 p.m.
The Committee received the draft agenda and meeting materials of the next Governing Council meeting for information. - Other Business
Some members expressed concern that there had only been two days’ notice of the Special Meetings of the Executive Committee and the Governing Council to be held on March 25, 2025 to consider the appointment of the President. The Chair explained that given the sensitive nature of the appointment of the President, this was the practice.
IN CAMERA SESSION
- Items for Approval
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Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters: Recommendations for Expulsions
The Committee approved the President’s recommendations for expulsion, as outlined in the memorandum and supporting documentation provided to Committee members.
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- Committee Members with the President
Members of the Executive Committee, with Board and Campus Council Chairs, met with the President. No matters were raised. - Committee Members Alone
Members of the Executive Committee, with Board and Campus Council Chairs, met privately. No matters were raised.
The Committee returned to closed session.
The meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m.
April 3, 2025