2014-17 Strategic Mandate Agreement: Georgian College of Applied Arts and Technology

Ontario’s Vision for Postsecondary Education

Ontario’s colleges and universities will drive creativity, innovation, knowledge, and community engagement through teaching and research. They will put students first by providing the best possible learning experience for all qualified learners in an affordable and financially sustainable way, ensuring high quality and globally competitive outcomes for students and Ontario’s creative economy.

Georgian College Vision/Mandate

To be the most personally connected learning organization in Canada – a catalyst for individual, organizational, and community transformation. Through partnerships, we will connect people from all walks of life to extraordinary learning experiences that will inspire innovation and prepare them for life and career success. With a reputation for excellence, Georgian graduates will be in demand by employers and will contribute to the economic vitality, sustainability, and quality of life in their communities. Our learners and employers will feel a lifelong connection to Georgian because of the positive difference we have made in their lives.

Preamble

This Strategic Mandate Agreement between the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (the Ministry) and Georgian College of Applied Arts and Technology (the College) outlines the role the College currently performs in the postsecondary education system and how it will build on its current strengths to achieve its vision and help drive system-wide objectives articulated by the Ministry’s Differentiation Policy Framework.

The Strategic Mandate Agreement (SMA):

• Identifies the College’s existing institutional strengths;
• Supports the current vision, mission, and mandate of the College within the context of the Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Act, 2002, and outlines how the College’s priorities align with Ontario’s vision and Differentiation Policy Framework; and
• Informs Ministry decision making through greater alignment of Ministry policies and processes to further support and guide the College’s areas of strength.

The term of the SMA is from April 1, 2014 to March 31, 2017. The SMA proposal submitted by the College to the Ministry has been used to inform the SMA and it is appended to the agreement.

The agreement may be amended in the event of substantive policy or program changes that would significantly affect commitments made in the SMA. Any such amendment would be mutually agreed to in writing, dated, and signed by both signatories.

Georgian College Key Areas of Differentiation

Georgian College is a comprehensive college serving Central Ontario and focused on social and economic development, high-quality educational experiences, access for all qualified learners, applied research and innovation, and pathways for students.

Georgian’s unique elements of differentiation are:

• Advancing access to high-quality, relevant programming throughout geographically and economically diverse communities.
• Promoting a culture of entrepreneurship by supporting students, employees, and partners to develop an innovative mind set and become value creators in their workplace and communities.
• Diverse and relevant educational pathways through the Georgian University Partnership Centre.
• Offering extraordinary experiential and work-integrated learning as the first co-operative education college in Ontario and one of the largest co-operative education colleges in Canada.

Alignment with the Differentiation Policy Framework

The following outlines areas of strength agreed upon by the College and the Ministry, and the alignment of these areas of strength with the Ministry’s Differentiation Policy Framework.

1. Jobs, innovation and economic development

   This component highlights institutions’ collaborative work with employers, community partners, and regions, or at a global level, to establish their role in fostering social and economic development, and serving the needs of the economy and labour market.

   1. Areas of institutional strength

      • Georgian’s distributed locations serve as catalysts for community economic development in an economically diverse region of central Ontario that has historically experienced postsecondary education participation rates lower than the provincial average.
      • The College is known for attracting dynamic industry and community leaders and providing industry with highly skilled graduates to help to grow and sustain their operations. In seven of the past nine years, Georgian has ranked in the top five among Ontario colleges in graduate employment and, based on 2010-2011 data, Georgian’s annual economic impact is estimated at $157 million regionally and $361 million provincially.
      • Georgian is one of the country’s largest co-operative education colleges with over 60 per cent of Georgian’s programs offering a mandatory co-operative education/internship component and more than 6,200 co-op employers.

        The Henry Bernick Entrepreneurship Centre at the Barrie campus teaches students skills that will help to increase opportunities for self-employment. Georgian is building community and industry capacity through the Centre and is integrating entrepreneurship learning outcomes and/or experiences in all of its postsecondary education programs. Georgian is expanding the number of student- run enterprises in which students and faculty partner to run businesses that serve their communities. Through its unique partnership with the Kauffman Foundation, the Centre offers programs to help students launch and grow their own businesses. Georgian is the first Canadian postsecondary institution to become a certified Kauffman FastTrac™ affiliate.

      • Georgian plays an important role as a community partner, a top employer, and a significant contributor to economic development in the region.
      • Georgian’s Centre for Social Entrepreneurship is one of Ontario’s few postsecondary centres that partners students with the not-for-profit sector to work on research and innovation projects that make a real difference in communities. Students gain valuable work experience while developing social entrepreneurial skills and mindsets through extraordinary work experiences integrated into their studies. Fifty-five students partnered with local organizations to complete community project initiatives in 2013 through the Social Entrepreneurship Centre, positively impacting 1,575 lives.
      • Georgian’s Automotive Business School of Canada is strongly supported by the automotive industry across Canada, which actively participates on the School’s Board of Directors, provides substantial scholarships, employs co-op students and graduates, and supports the Georgian College Auto Show.
      • Georgian has a broad set of program advisory committees at its campuses that guide curriculum content and industry partnerships and help to ensure the relevance and responsiveness of each program.
      • At the Centre for Applied Research and Innovation, projects designed to address real industry issues in partnership with business leaders are worked on by students and faculty who quantify and implement solutions, having a direct impact on the sustainability of a company. In 2013-14, the Centre for Applied Research and Innovation conducted 20 projects with 15 businesses.
      • Partnerships with HydroOne, PowerStream, and Toronto Hydro support Georgian’s electrical engineering technology programming through financial contributions and curriculum, research, and marketing activities.
      • Through an additional investment by PowerStream, Georgian is collaborating on a unique applied research initiative to better understand electric vehicles and their charging demands through the creation of a charging station, complemented by solar power, which was installed at the Barrie campus. The station is the first of its kind in Canada with three levels of charging and the superior ability to collect data related to transferring power from the grid to electric cars and vice versa.

   2. Additional comments

      • Georgian College’s employment rate 6 months after graduation is 87.7%, which is higher than the sector average of 83.1%.
      • Georgian College’s full-time employment rate in a related field is 49.6%, which is higher than the sector average of 45.1%.

      Institutional strategies

      • Georgian is planning on establishing the Simcoe County Social Enterprise Network as a Georgian social enterprise aimed at developing the capacity of community partners with three main goals: professional development, knowledge sharing, and community capability building. This will create innovative approaches to ensure all students have the opportunity to be exposed to social entrepreneurship skills and mindset through diploma-level social entrepreneurship courses, a graduate certificate in social entrepreneurship, integrated curriculum, increased experiential learning opportunities, and on-campus social entrepreneurship learning activities.
      • Georgian is working with the City of Barrie to create the “Barrie Entrepreneurs Connect Web Portal” for entrepreneurs to connect with one another and to find community resources, including opportunities, success stories, and announcements. Georgian’s Computer Studies students and faculty are creating the website, which will eventually be implemented in the other six campus communities.

   3. Metrics

      Institutional Metrics	System-Wide Metricsfootnote 1[1]
      Number of co-op employers Number of community/social entrepreneurship projects	Graduate Employment Rate Employer satisfaction rates Number of graduates employed full-time in a related job

2. Teaching and learning

   This component captures institutional strengths in program delivery methods that expand learning options for students, and improve their learning experience and career preparedness. This may include, but is not limited to, experiential learning, online learning, entrepreneurial learning, work-integrated learning, and international exchange opportunities.

   1. Areas of institutional strength

      • Co-operative education and work terms, work-integrated learning experiences, such as internships, clinical or field placements, and applied research connect students, community, and employers.
      • Students consistently report that Georgian faculty are personally connected to students’ learning experiences at the College.
      • Georgian consistently scores higher than the provincial average in the KPI Student Satisfaction and Engagement Survey.
      • Georgian has a strong focus on technology-enabled learning and indicates it was one of the first institutions to ensure every classroom and lab is equipped with leading edge learning delivery systems. The College has integrated sophisticated simulator technology in its marine, nursing, paramedic, and golf labs and has recently incorporated gamification and Second Life virtual simulation in human services programs.
      • Georgian embeds authentic experiential and work-integrated learning as signature learning experiences. For example:
        • Health sciences students acquire real-life work experiences in on-campus community health clinics, including massage therapy, dental, esthetics, speech and hearing, and opticianry;
        • Georgian accounting students collaborate with faculty to offer the Georgian Tax Clinic, an annual free, professional income tax preparation and e-file service to other students, delivered through a partnership between Georgian College and Canada Revenue Agency;
        • Students and faculty from a variety of Georgian programs, including Paramedic, Police Foundations, Dental Hygiene, Personal Support Worker and Practical Nursing, travel to the Dominican Republic every year, using their skills to provide interprofessional health services and educational and community development to help those in need; and
        • Students from select programs in the School of Hospitality, Tourism and Recreation have an opportunity to study in France for a semester to introduce students to the hospitality environment outside North America. In addition to a full schedule of classes, students complete an internship and participate in field trips.
      • Georgian is innovative in its use of telecommunication technology and has expanded video conferencing to connect all seven campus locations. Georgian is leveraging this technology to increase access and postsecondary participation rates across the catchment area.
      • Over the last three years, the Centre for Teaching and Learning has facilitated an innovative and robust project-based faculty learning system to support the development of high-quality online or hybrid courses that are currently available to students; in the past year, 41 faculty have registered for this session.
      • All Georgian courses have corresponding online course environments through the Blackboard Learning Management System. The Centre for Teaching and Learning provides several hands-on workshops and one-to-one tutoring on the use of Blackboard as a teaching platform and as a resource to student learning. For Hybrid courses and to support the concept of a “flipped classroom,” faculty have been engaged in recording and delivering segments online, reserving time for active and applied learning in the classroom.
      • Georgian reports high first- to second-year retention rates due to ongoing efforts to support at risk students through early-alert, peer mentoring, and learning strategy programs.
      • Georgian provides comprehensive professional development to faculty through the Centre for Teaching and Learning on innovative online teaching practices and curriculum design through workshops, mentoring, online learning, and open dialogue. Over the past year, the Centre for Teaching and Learning provided 219 workshops (including those held on Blackboard and through videoconferencing) and received 937 registrations.
      • In 2011-12, Georgian reported 55 registrations in Ministry-funded programs offered in eLearning formats; in 2012-13, this number had increased to 118.
      • Georgian’s Power of Education campaign has surpassed its $25 million goal, raising more than $40 million to facilitate the development and expansion of key programs and fund industry-driven improvements at Georgian’s campuses. Georgian has recently launched Phase 2 of the campaign Transforming the Student Experience, which will help Georgian to modernize registrarial and student services delivery, including launching a robust online student portal and optimizing facilities for integrated service delivery.

   2. Additional comments

      • The Ministry acknowledges that in three of the last four years Georgian has had the highest overall retention rate of students from first to second year (92.1% in 2012-13) in the province.
      • The Ministry also notes that, in the last two years, Georgian has been among the top colleges in offering cooperative education opportunities both in terms of students enrolled in a program with a cooperative stream (7,035 students enrolled in 2012-13) and the number of programs offered with a cooperative stream (45 programs in 2012-13).
      • In 2012-13, Georgian had 391 e-learning courses and 14 e-learning programs.
      • Georgian College’s graduation rate for 2012-13 of 63.0% was below the sector average of 64.8%.

      Institutional strategies

      • Georgian’s suite of experiential learning opportunities, including a large number of co-op opportunities, is being expanded to improve time-to-completion rates and costs.
      • The College is examining retention rates to further address the needs of students at risk and has recently implemented two early-alert projects to improve student success and graduation rates.
      • The entering student success program for pre-health students will be extended as a component to all Georgian programs.
      • To enhance program quality and to help strategically direct investments towards priority activities, Georgian is introducing a data-driven program and service assessment process.
      • Georgian is committed to expanding flexible and alternate delivery options, including more choice for students to study part-time and online.
      • Georgian values co-curricular activities and is launching the Co-Curricular Record, which provides students with the opportunity to formally record their learning and competency development that takes place outside the classroom.

   3. Metrics

      Institutional Metrics	System-Wide Metrics
      Online course offerings Course registrations through the Centre for Teaching and Learning	Student Satisfaction Survey results Graduation rates Retention rates Number of students enrolled in a co-op program at institution Number of online course registrants, programs, and courses at institution

3. Student population

   This component recognizes the unique institutional missions that improve access, retention, and success for underrepresented groups (Aboriginal, first generation, students with disabilities) and francophones. This component also highlights other important student groups that institutions serve that link to their institutional strength. This may include, but is not limited to, international students, mature students, or indirect entrants.

   1. Areas of institutional strength

      • Georgian College has implemented a program of First Generation Mentors to provide information, referral, and support. First Generation Mentors provide one-on-one advising and workshop facilitation and organized events at all campus locations to connect first-generation students with support services and other students.
      • The Centre for Access and Disability Services provides students with a wide range of supports that are essential for their success at college such as services related to academic accommodations, counselling, educational assessments, testing, faculty coaches and peer tutors, training in the use of specialized computer technology and in learning strategies to assist students with specific learning and physical disabilities. The College indicates the Centre is well used and has among the highest numbers of students with disabilities registered with this type of service at any Ontario college^{footnote 2[2]}.
      • Georgian is also the only Ontario college to offer a General Education credit to students with disabilities through two Summer Transition Programs (Students with Learning Disabilities/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder).
      • The Aboriginal Resource Centres, which are located at the Barrie, Orillia, Owen Sound, and Midland campuses, provide ongoing support to Aboriginal students and outreach to prospective students. Support services include:
        • A Visiting Elder program to offer spiritual guidance and traditional teachings;
        • A Getsijig (Native Education Counsellor) to provide personal, academic, social and career support;
        • Aboriginal Student Advisors to provide guidance, support, and referrals to College and community resources and to deliver student retention and success programs;
        • Community Liaison Education Officers to help with applications, assist with funding connections, provide a campus tour, and offer career advice and access to resources; and a
        • Special Events and Promotions Coordinator to organize and promote awareness of Aboriginal cultures and perspectives.
      • Students are also supported through the Anishnabe Education and Training Circle, which is a community advisory committee that has undertaken a number of initiatives in partnership with Georgian College since its formation in 1992. The overall goal of the partnership focuses on increasing the attraction, retention, and graduation of students of Aboriginal ancestry in the postsecondary environment. Every year, students and staff from the Aboriginal Studies department organize and host the Georgian College Traditional Powwow to celebrate indigenous culture and tradition. The 2014 Pow Wow was attended by more than 3,000 people.
      • Georgian’s International Education and Training Centre welcomes and assists international students as they make the transition to living and studying in Canada. 880 international students from 51 countries are enrolled at Georgian. Georgian indicates it received the highest score among Ontario colleges in the 2014 International Student Barometer, an international survey that measures the experiences of international students, ranking number three in Canada and number four in the world.

   2. Additional Comments

      • As a percentage of the total student population, Georgian College has an above- average number of:
        • Students with disabilities compared to the sector average (18.6% versus 15.2% in 2012-13).
        • First-generation students compared to the sector average (40% versus 30.3% in 2012-13).
        • OSAP recipients compared to the sector average (79.6% versus 67.2% in 2012-13).
      • As a percentage of the total student population, Georgian is below the sector average in both the number of Aboriginal students (3.6% versus 4.2% in 2012-13) and the number of international students (6.7% versus. 11.3% in 2012-13).

      Institutional strategies

      • Increase postsecondary participation rates among Aboriginal youth through innovative inclusion programs and services, increasing outreach efforts, and further developing programs to meet the needs of Aboriginal students, including entrepreneurship.
      • Georgian has traditionally reported the number of Aboriginal students as collected through the Aboriginal Resource Centres. A college-specific question has been incorporated into the KPI Student Satisfaction Survey and this data will be used in future report backs: 2012-13 – 8%; 2013-14 – 7%.
      • Grow International Student Enrolment, which has increased 80% from 2008-09 to 2012-13. Plans include implementing a new recruitment model with regional managers, pursuing emerging markets in Latin America (Brazil, Colombia), Korea, Turkey, Russia and Ukraine, and participating on Barrie’s International Relations Committee.
      • Georgian will expand English for Academic Purposes programming and supports to successfully move more international students into postsecondary education.
      • Georgian recently completed a review of the College and Career Preparation services and will streamline this program to ensure a consistent student experience across all delivery locations to strengthen pathways for academic upgrading clients to transition into postsecondary programs. Further, improvements will be implemented to track academic upgrading students as they transition to postsecondary programming.

   3. Metrics

      Institutional Metrics	System-Wide Metrics
      English for Academic Purposes students transferring to postsecondary education	Number and proportion of Aboriginal, first generation, students with disabilities, and francophone students at an institution Number and proportion of international students enrolled in Ontario (as reported in annual institutional enrolment reporting) Proportion of an institution’s enrolment that receives OSAP

4. Program offerings

   This component articulates the breadth of programming, enrolment, and credentials offered, along with program areas of institutional strength/specialization, including any vocationally oriented mandates. This component also recognizes institutions that provide bilingual and/or French-language programming for students.

   1. Areas of institutional strength

      The following areas of strength and growth include programming that provides college certificates, diplomas and degrees as well as university degrees.

      Current program areas of strength include:

      1. Integrated Community Inter-professional Health Education
      2. Justice and Human Services
      3. Science and Engineering Technologies
      4. Automotive, Business and Entrepreneurship
      5. Tourism, Food and Recreation
      6. Design and Visual Arts
      7. Skilled Trades Training
      8. Marine Engineering and Navigation
      9. Aboriginal Education

      Proposed program areas for growth include:

      1. Economic and Social Entrepreneurship
      2. Integrated Community Inter-professional Health Education
      3. Advanced Technology
      4. Regional Development: Tourism, Food and Recreation
      5. Design and Visual Arts and Society

   2. Additional comments

   3. Metrics

      Institutional Metrics	System-Wide Metrics
      	Proportion of enrolment at colleges by occupational cluster and by credential Institution’s system share of enrolment by occupational cluster and by credential Number of apprentices in each trade

5. Institutional collaboration to support student mobility

   This component profiles partnerships between institutions that ensure students have access to a continuum of learning opportunities in a coordinated system. This may include, but is not limited to, credit transfer pathways and collaborative or joint programs between or within sectors.

   1. Areas of institutional strength

      • Established in 2001 and recognized by the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, Georgian College’s University Partnership Centre enrols over 1,500 full- and part-time students and provides learners with multiple pathways to degree and graduate studies through partnerships with universities, offering its own degrees in niche areas as well as graduate level certificate programs, and expediting transfer credit recognition through seamless pathways to degree completion and articulation agreements. The programs span across the social sciences and humanities, sciences, business and education at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
      • The Georgian University Partnership Centre includes seven university partners offering undergraduate and graduate degrees. Partners include Central Michigan University, Lakehead University, Laurentian University, Nipissing University, University of Windsor, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, and York University. Additionally, Georgian offers three college degrees and 18 graduate certificate programs.
      • With Ministry approval, Georgian signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Lakehead University to continue to create and develop opportunities to increase student access to new, transparent, seamless, and effective educational pathways that recognize and acknowledge institutional differentiation. Building on earlier successes, the two institutions will expand and develop new student pathways and leverage existing infrastructure for integrated diploma/degree credentials. Both institutions will continue with the shared commitment to enhance educational opportunities for First Nations, Metis, and Inuit (Aboriginal) populations.
      • The Georgian University Partnership Centre will take a three-pronged approach to increase degree access for students in central Ontario:
        • In accordance with its Memorandum of Understanding with Lakehead University, develop integrated diploma/degree programs incorporating high affinity diplomas/certificates;
        • Expand Georgian’s applied degrees to provide relevant programming to the community; and
        • Promote pathways to and from universities to promote degree-level education.
      • Georgian College and Lakehead University already have established facilities and services, with capacity in both Barrie and Orillia. The two institutions can accommodate up to 2,000 students over the next five years with no new infrastructure capital investment. The Georgian University Partnership Centre and Lakehead University have an academic plan that is tailored to add programs that are relevant to the community and will both complement and stimulate the economy.
      • Georgian has developed 539 degree articulation and transfer agreements for 91 of the College’s programs with universities domestically and internationally, including agreements with Niagara College and the British Columbia Institute of Technology for students entering select business programs at Georgian.
      • Approximately 3,800 secondary school students have earned dual credits at Georgian through an innovative partnership with five area school boards. Approximately 1,000 have subsequently transitioned to postsecondary studies at Georgian. Other programs help to connect elementary and secondary students with Georgian and postsecondary education:
        • Grade 8 students can become Grizzly Cubs and experience college studies for a day and participate in Picture Yourself @ College through in-class visits;
        • The Prospecting Success program matches secondary school students with a college mentor; and
        • The After Graduation program helps senior students learn about exciting career paths directly from faculty and employers.

        Additionally, some students choose to complete their high school diplomas at Georgian through the School Within a College program, an alternative educational environment that has seen more than 2,000 students benefit.

   2. Additional comments

      • Georgian College has seven university pathways, above the sector average of 5.66 for 2012-13.
      • The Ministry notes the unique nature of the University Partnership Centre and the quality services and programming it provides to students in the Simcoe region.
      • Georgian College had 153 graduates enrolled in university programs in 2012-13.
      • The College will build on its MOU with Lakehead University to explore student pathways, learning opportunities, and potential research initiatives geared to meet the educational and economic needs of Central Ontario.

   3. Metrics

      Institutional Metrics	System-Wide Metrics
      Number of programs offered through the University Partnership Centre	Number of college and university pathways and/or articulation agreements (college-college, college-university, university-college) Number of transfer applicants and registrants Number of college graduates enrolled in university programs

Aspirations

The Ministry recognizes the importance of supporting institutions to evolve and acknowledges the strategic aspirations of its postsecondary education institutions; the SMA is not intended to capture all decisions and issues in the postsecondary education system, as many will be addressed through the Ministry’s policies and standard processes.

• Expanded Credentials

  The Ministry has noted the College’s aspirations to expand degree-granting activity and this will be examined as part of the Ministry’s policy review of Ontario’s credential options. The Ministry has also noted the College’s desire to offer a standalone Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing; however, any decision on this issue will be made only following the tripartite work currently underway.

• Capital Expansion

  Requests for capital project funding are outside the scope of the SMA process. However, future capital projects should be aligned with the College’s areas of strength highlighted in their SMA. Decisions regarding approval and/or funding for capital projects will be made within the context of the Ministry’s long-term capital planning process and the Major Capacity Expansion Policy Framework, released December 20^th, 2013.

• Georgian University Partnership Centre

  The Georgian University Partnership Centre and Lakehead University are able to expand enrolment in this underserviced area by 2,000 students without additional capacity. However, there is a need for greater capacity in this underserviced region.

Georgian and Lakehead have submitted a Letter of Intent and plan to submit a proposal to the government as part of the Major Capital Expansion process to increase enrolment by a total of 3,000 students over the coming ten years through the addition of up to 20 baccalaureate and seven college degrees in the areas of Engineering, Health and Wellness, Business, Technology, Science, Social Science, and Arts.

Georgian College and Lakehead University plan to offer an integrated Electrical Engineering program that grants students both a Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering and an Advanced Diploma in Electrical Engineering Technology. Lakehead University currently offers a fully approved and accredited Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering at its Thunder Bay campus. Ontario College Quality Assurance Service (OCQAS) has confirmed that Georgian is able to confer the Ontario College Advanced Diploma in Electrical Engineering Technology to students who achieve the required outcomes as part of the integrated program. Plans to deliver the integrated BEng in Electrical Engineering, commencing September 2015, are underway.

By 2020, the two institutions would build the Lakehead University at the Georgian University Partnership Centre School of Engineering on Georgian’s Barrie campus, which is a 57,000 sq. ft. facility for 600 engineering degree students, and an 88,000 sq. ft. School of Design and Visual Arts facility, which will deliver 1,000 degree and diploma students to Barrie’s downtown core. Both buildings will be owned and operated by Georgian College.

Planned new programs:

Engineering

• Georgian-Lakehead Integrated Degree:
  • Engineering - Mechanical
  • Engineering – Electrical
  • Engineering – Civil
  • Engineering – Software
• Other Partnership Degree:
  • Marine Engineering Technology

Health and wellness

• Georgian Degree:
  • Bachelor of Counselling Psychology
  • Bachelor of Business Health Management
• Georgian-Lakehead Integrated Degree:
  • Gerontology
  • Health Technology Systems
• Other Partnership Degree:
  • Nursing (Pending)

Business

• Georgian Degree
  • Bachelor of Business Management & Leadership
  • Bachelor of Business Hospitality and Tourism

Technology

• Georgian Degree
  • Bachelor of Technology – Big Data

Science

• Georgian-Lakehead Integrated Degree
  • Environmental Studies
  • Hon. Environmental Management
  • Science – General

Social Science

• Georgian Degree
  • Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies
• Georgian-Lakehead Integrated Degree
  • Aboriginal Language

Arts

• Georgian Degree
  • Bachelor of Interior Design
• Georgian-Lakehead Integrated Degree
  • Visual Arts/Fine Arts

The Ministry notes that a large number of new engineering degree programs are proposed province-wide. This will have an impact on the Ministry’s review of new engineering program proposals.

Enrolment Growth

The strategic enrolment and planning exercise is in the context of a public commitment in the 2011 Budget to increase postsecondary education enrolment by 60,000 additional students over 2010-11 levels. This government has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to ensuring access to postsecondary education for all qualified students.

Georgian College’s planned enrolment forecast as expressed in this baseline eligible enrolment scenario is considered reasonable and in line with Ministry expectations, based on the current and projected demographic and fiscal environment.

Baseline Projected Eligible Full-Time Headcounts

Financial Sustanability

The Ministry and the College recognize that financial sustainability and accountability are critical to achieving institutional mandates and realizing Ontario’s vision for the postsecondary education system. To this end, it is agreed that:

• It is the responsibility of the governing board and Senior Administrators of the College to identify, track, and address financial pressures and sustainability issues. At the same time, the Ministry has a financial stewardship role. The Ministry and the College agree to work collaboratively to achieve the common goal of financial sustainability, and to ensure that Ontarians have access to a full range of affordable, high-quality postsecondary education options, now and in the future; and
• The College remains accountable to the Ministry with respect to effective and efficient use of resources to maximize the value and impact of investments made in the postsecondary education system.

The Ministry and the College agree to use the following metrics to assess the financial health and sustainability of the institution:

1. Annual Surplus/Deficit
2. Accumulated Surplus/Deficit
3. Net Assets to Expense Ratio
4. Debt Servicing Ratio
5. Quick Ratio
6. Debt to Asset Ratio
7. Net Income to Revenue Ratio

Ministry/Government Commitments

Over time, the Ministry commits to align many of its policy, process, and funding levers with the Differentiation Policy Framework and SMAs in order to support the strengths of institutions and implement differentiation. To this end, the Ministry will:

• Engage with both the college and university sectors around potential changes to the funding formula, beginning with the university sector in 2014-15;
• Update the college and university program funding approval process to improve transparency and align with institutional strengths as outlined in the SMAs;
• Streamline reporting requirements across Ministry business lines with the goals of
  1. creating greater consistency of reporting requirements across separate initiatives,
  2. increasing automation of reporting processes, and
  3. reducing the amount of data required from institutions without compromising accountability.

  In the interim, the Multi-Year Accountability Report Backs will be adjusted and used as the annual reporting mechanism for metrics set out in the SMAs;

• Consult on the definition, development, and utilization of metrics;
• Undertake a review of Ontario’s credential options; and
• Continue the work of the Nursing Tripartite Committee.

The Ministry and the College are committed to continuing to work together to:

• Support student access, quality, and success;
• Drive creativity, innovation, knowledge, and community engagement through teaching and research;
• Increase the competitiveness of Ontario’s postsecondary education system;
• Focus the strengths of Ontario’s institutions; and
• Maintain a financially sustainable postsecondary education system.