REPORT NUMBER 82 OF THE
UTSC ACADEMIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
Monday, January 26, 2026
To the UTSC Campus Council
University of Toronto,
Your Committee reports that it held a meeting online on January 26, 2026 with the following members present:
PRESENT*: Elaine Khoo (Chair), Rachel Sturge (Vice-Chair), Alison Mountz (Acting Principal), Karin Ruhlandt (Dean, Academic), Sukaina Abbas, Iris Au, Emily Bell, Christopher Cochrane, Keith Colaco, Jessica Dere, Sebastien Drouin, Atiqa Hachimi, Angela Hamilton, Inaaya Imran, Mariana Jardim, Thembela Kepe, Sarah King, Katherine Larson, Ainsley Lawson, Christine Lorence, Julian Lowman, Mary Elizabeth Luka, Sherlene Mollett, Julia Nefsky, Elizabeth O-Brien, Faith Opoku Agyemang, Anisa Persaud, Thy Phy, Silma Roddau, Mary Silcox, Antonio Sorge, Shelby Verboven, Jessica Wilson, Marco Zimmer-De Iuliis
REGRETS: Linda Johnston (Vice-President & Principal, UTSC), Folakunmi Awofisayo, Joshua Barker, Corinne Beauquis, Michelle Buckley, Andrea Charise, Suzanne Erb, John Hannigan, Lisa Harvey, Joseph Hermer, Mandy Liao, Randy Lundy, Mike Molloy, Hadiya Roderique, Mahinda Samarakoon, Michelle Silver, Ace Tabisaura, Mauricio Terebiznik, Phil Triadafilopoulos, Karina Vernon, Trevor Young, David Zweig
*All attendees remote. Meeting moved online due to inclement weather.
NON-VOTING ASSESSORS: Dallas Boyer, Kevin Mak, Karen McCrindle, Varsha Patel, Suzanne Sicchia
SECRETARIAT: Miranda Edwards (Secretary), Amanda Grant (Governance Coordinator)
IN ATTENDANCE: Andrew Arifuzzaman, Lee Bazely, Sasha Bogin, Sarah Chaudhry, Maggie Cummings, Jennifer Curry
OPEN SESSION
- Chair’s Remarks
The Chair welcomed members and guests to the Cycle 3 meeting. She thanked everyone for their cooperation in pivoting to an online meeting on short-notice due to the severe weather. She updated members on the recent Call for Nominations for the upcoming governance elections which had opened on January 13th.
The Chair invited Acting Principal, Professor Alison Mountz, to deliver special remarks to the Committee. Professor Mountz acknowledged the shared grief and mourning of the UTSC campus community after the killing of student Shivank Avasthi, a third-year life sciences student, who was killed by a senseless act of violence which took place on a campus trail on December 23, 2025. Professor Mountz recognized this terrible loss and stated that respect for Shivank’s family and the wellbeing of the campus community were her office’s top priorities. She noted that a beautiful student-led commemoration had taken place the previous week. She called on all campus community members to show each other compassion and stated that everyone had a role to play in restoring a collective sense of safety. She highlighted the various counselling and support services available through the Office of Student Experience and Wellbeing. -
Campus Curriculum Review Working Circle Milestone Report
Professor Katie Larson, Vice-Dean, Teaching, Learning and Undergraduate Programs delivered this report on behalf of the Curriculum Review Working Circle, comprised of students, staff, faculty, librarians, and community members. The report was released in November 2025 and was publicly available online. The review was launched in 2020 and rooted in the campus strategic plan, Inspiring Inclusive Excellence. It assessed progress on the 56 recommended actions outlined in the Circle’s 2022 report, and was intended as an activity of reflection on accomplishments and ongoing challenges; not as a concluding result. Professor Larson reported that the review centred Indigenous and Black knowledge, racialized perspectives and used an intersectional lens. Progress at the current stage was supported by targeted funding and pedagogical innovation, while challenges related to uneven uptake across departments, staffing constraints, short-term funding, and long-term sustainability. -
Annual Report: Office of the Vice-Principal Research & Innovation, UTSC
Professor Alison Mountz, Vice-President, Research & Innovation, presented the annual report. She began by noting the remarkable growth of the UTSC research community. The theme of this year’s annual report was “Thrive” as a representative reflection of the community.
In 2024-25, UTSC did well in competitions and grants, performing above average nationally and the tri-campus. In 2023-24, total external funding secured was just under $20 million which increased in 2024-25 to just over $22 million. Tri-agency funding held steady year over year in constituting about 64% of this figure. Over the past five years, total research funding increased from approximately $14 million to approximately $23 million - an increase of about 59%. Growth in tenure-stream faculty increased about 20%.
Professor Mountz highlighted notable recent activities which supported the UTSC research community including the launch of a community of practice for research leaders, the arrival of Harvest Walls, and funded clusters of scholarly prominence. Her office was also actively supporting researchers in expanding ways of telling “research stories” on digital platforms, beyond traditional peer-reviewed journals and conferencing. “UTSC Engaged” was a new initiative focused on democratizing knowledge and finding new ways of bringing people together to collaborate on solving research problems. Professor Mountz encouraged members to read the full Annual Report, which was publicly available online, for further details. - Minor Modifications: Undergraduate Curriculum Changes, UTSC: Humanities
Professor Larson presented curriculum changes for the Department of Historical and Cultural Studies and the Department of Language Studies.
Members had no questions.
ON MOTION DULY MOVED, SECONDED, AND CARRIED
YOUR COMMITTEE APPROVED,
THAT the proposed Humanities undergraduate curriculum changes for the 2026-27 academic year, as detailed in the respective curriculum report, be approved. - Minor Modifications: Undergraduate Curriculum Changes, UTSC: Management
Professor Larson presented curriculum changes for the Department of Management.
Members had no questions.
ON MOTION DULY MOVED, SECONDED, AND CARRIED
YOUR COMMITTEE APPROVED,
THAT the proposed Management undergraduate curriculum changes for the 2026-27 academic year, as detailed in the respective curriculum report, be approved. - Minor Modifications: Undergraduate Curriculum Changes, UTSC: Social Sciences
Professor Larson presented curriculum changes for the Department of Political Science.
Members had no questions.
ON MOTION DULY MOVED, SECONDED, AND CARRIED
YOUR COMMITTEE APPROVED,
THAT the proposed Social Sciences undergraduate curriculum changes for the 2026-27 academic year, as detailed in the respective curriculum report, be approved. - Minor Modifications: Undergraduate Curriculum Changes, UTSC: Sciences
Professor Larson presented curriculum changes for the Department of Psychology.
Members had no questions.
ON MOTION DULY MOVED, SECONDED, AND CARRIED
YOUR COMMITTEE APPROVED,
THAT the proposed Sciences undergraduate curriculum changes for the 2026-27 academic year, as detailed in the respective curriculum report, be approved. - Major Modification: New Freestanding Minor in Artificial Intelligence, Mind, and Society (Arts) (Undergraduate), Department of Philosophy, UTSC
Professor Larson presented a proposal for a new freestanding Minor in Artificial Intelligence, Mind, and Society. Professor Larson noted that the program exemplified UTSC’s strong commitment to interdisciplinary studies and inter-departmental collaboration. The proposed program would pair effectively with a range of programs including Computer and Mathematical Sciences, Psychology, Management, Media Studies, Linguistics, Political Science, Sociology, and health programs. The program would be distinct in its humanistic and philosophical approach but would also be a complementary component of the campus’ coordinated cluster of AI initiatives in other fields such as math and science.
Members had no questions.
ON MOTION DULY MOVED, SECONDED, AND CARRIED
YOUR COMMITTEE APPROVED,
THAT the new freestanding Minor in Artificial Intelligence, Mind, and Society (Arts) (Undergraduate), Department of Philosophy, as described in the proposal dated January 6, 2026, be approved, effective Fall 2026 for the 2026-27 academic year. -
Reports of the Presidential Assessors
Professor Karin Ruhlandt, Vice-Principal, Academic & Dean
Professor Karin Ruhlandt provided members with an overview of early application data. UTSC had seen an overall increase of about 5% in applications received, which compared well with UTM and the Faculty of Arts & Science (FAS), which had increases of 6% and 7% respectively. Over the prior two years, UTSC had seen a significant surge in application numbers but now appeared to be at the beginning of a plateau stage. There had so far been a decline in domestic applications of about 2% and an increase in international applications of about 14%. About 8% of applicants listed UTSC as their first choice of school. She noted that, in comparison, UTM and FAS were listed as the first choice of about 12% and 13% of their applicants, respectively. There was a notable 18% increase in applications to UTSC’s joint degree program with Centennial College. Professor Ruhlandt also remarked on the decreasing interest in computer science programs, which was likely a reflection of the decreasing number of entry-level jobs in that field caused by the rise of AI.
CONSENT AGENDA
- Minor Modifications: Undergraduate Curriculum Changes, UTSC
ON MOTION DULY MOVED, SECONDED, AND CARRIED
YOUR COMMITTEE APPROVED,
THAT the undergraduate minor curriculum modifications for the 2026-27 academic year, as detailed in the respective curriculum report, be approved. - Report of the Previous Meeting - Report Number 81 (October 16, 2025)
The report of the previous meeting was approved. - Business Arising from the Report of the Previous Meeting
There was no business arising from the report of the previous meeting.
END OF CONSENT AGENDA
- Date of Next Meeting – Tuesday, March 10, 2026
The Chair confirmed that the next meeting would take place on Tuesday, March 10, 2026.
The meeting adjourned at 4:45 p.m.
January 30, 2026