Brown University is facing a lawsuit stemming from a rape allegation in 2006. The Associated Press reports is available online.

Depending what occurs as the lawsuit moves forward, the case could result in changes to how universities deal with serious criminal accusations within their campuses.

Many universities, including in Canada, have internal processes with lower standards of proof and less protections for the accused than available in the common law justice system which applies equally to criminal acts both on and off the properties of universities.

If this lawsuit is successful, it will force American universities to review how they handle accusations of criminal activity. While we’re not aware of the details of the Brown University situation, it is very concerning that the accusation of sexual assault was not criminally prosecuted or, at the very least, plea bargained within the criminal justice system. …

I’m having difficulties with my email server again today and I’m trying to resolve them. At the present time, some emails have been delayed up to four hours getting to me.

I probably should’ve invested in a better web hosting service. …

The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) has voted unanimously to lift its censure of the First Nations University of Canada (FNUC) in response to governance changes the University implemented in February.

The changes were finally begun after both the provincial and federal governments cut funding to the institutions following years of financial mismanagement and poor governance.

CAUT censured FNUC in late 2008 citing serious governance problems at Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations owned institution.

CAUT is calling on the federal government to restore full funding to the institution. The federal government restored partial funding to CAUT with restrictions preventing the limited funds from being used to cover losses stemming from previous mismanagement.

“Back in 2008 we took that very serious step hoping that it would help encourage change, and that change has come,” said CAUT Executive Director James Turk stated in the news release. “We were once one of the loudest voices in the country when it came to demanding changes at the institution – those changes have been made, so we’ve lifted censure, and it is time for the federal government to do its part.” …

I’ve quickly updated my website design this evening to include the Facebook like feature to each of my posts.

It took less than a minute thanks to this informative post I found via @BlogHighEd (http://www.bloghighed.org/) …

Robyn Urback misses the mark again

I’m reading the archives of my blog today as I prepare an application for a summer position I’m applying to. Sigh, a lot of things I wish I never wrote in the early days of the blog and other things I now laugh about.

This line really jumped out at me: “Does not mean that I am a fan of the Opera or anything all of the sudden….”

My resistance to the opera is something I laugh about now that I’m a major fan of the artform. …

Janet Steffenhagen, the education reporter for The Vancouver Sun, notes a report by the B.C. School Trustees’ Association calling for more leeway to charge Freedom-of-Information applicants for the full costs of their requests.

My response to the report is simple: start making raw data available on the Internet and the cost of administering information will go down.

Ms. Steffenhagen’s blog is unique among “old-school” education journalists in Canada. It is updated daily and a wealth of information. If you follow this blog because you are interested in education policy generally, you definitely want to follow her blog: http://communities.canada.com/VANCOUVERSUN/blogs/reportcard/ …

UCalgary GSA prez resigns, in an info vacuum it is asked “What are they trying to hide?”

Students at the University of Guelph will vote starting later today on their membership in the Canadian Federation of Students. The vote follows a court order which was required after the Canadian Federation of Students stonewalled students at Guelph in order to prevent the vote from occurring.

A couple of things jump out at me about this vote and the precedents they set in CFS referendums.

1) The vote is being held, as per the court order, over three days.

This overrides the CFS preference for two days of voting and is advantageous towards the NO (non-CFS) side in the vote. The CFS has a virtually unlimited budget and parachutes full-time campaigners into local referendums, whereas the non-CFS side must rely on grassroots students to volunteerarly man their campaign. With dozens of full-time non-student campaigners, the CFS is being able to mobilize their votes in a short period of time whereas the grassroots campaign must content with volunteers unable to skip academic requirements to mobilize votes. The more time the volunteers have to spread their message, the more likely they will fully mobilize their voters.

The fact the court ordered a three-day campaign sets a precedent which can be used against the CFS in the future.

2) Online voting

A major issue in the Canadian Federation of Students referendum at the University of Saskatchewan was online voting. The Canadian Federation of Students would not allow an online voting option for students at USask. Online voting at USask is primarily used by professional programs such as nursing and engineering. …

Stern’s next pinball machine is Iron Man and there is a video of a final product now on the Tubes:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Md3U4EP3I3A

It looks like it will be an enjoyable game, much like Spiderman was. I’m excited by the raising target feature. …

An interesting post on the New America Foundation’s Higher Ed Watch blog today noting that President Obama’s recent increase to the Pell Grant – a national bursary program in the United States – will only succeed if institutions do not divert funds away from needs-based financial assistance to enrich “merit” based scholarships.

The trend in higher education in recent times has been to use “merit” based scholarships to attract children from higher income categories. In Canada, this recruitment trend has resulted in institutions offering first-year “scholarships” – which are commonly referred to as tuition discounts within the sector – to practically every incoming student. The cost of these “scholarships” is staggering and they eat up a large amount of an institutions overall financial aid budget.

The problems associated with these tuition discounts are plenty.

Most administrators I’ve talked to about this issue state they would like to eliminate these “scholarships” and invest the funds into needs-based and upper year financial aid, but fear being the first university to do so. They are right to be concerned about being first – losing well-off students would be a major hit to the financial ledgers of ancillary services and potentially harmful to institutional reputation. Students from well-off families are more likely to be successful for a variety of reasons.

Hopefully, over the summer, I’ll have a chance to write in-depth my thoughts on this topic. Until then, I leave you with the link in the first sentence. …

The Ottawa Citizen reported today on allegations by Carleton University Student Assoication vice-president (student issues) and Ontario Progressive Conservative Campus Association presidential candidate Nick Bergamini that he was accosted by a group of individuals Monday morning on a bridge connecting Gatineau, QC and Ottawa.

Bergamini alleges he and his Israeli roommate, Mark Klibanov, were chased by a group of people yelling at them for their support of Israel and one yelled “you f—–g Jew.” One of the alleged assailants is said by Mr. Bergamini to have swung a machete at them.

The incident is under investigation by Gatineau police following the filing of a complaint by Mr. Bergamini on Monday.

Other than the details available from Bergamini himself, no one knows exactly what happened. I’m going to wait for the police to investigate before forming a full opinion on this matter. …

It is finally all coming together in my personal life.

School is improving and I am being very productive in my studies.

My mental health is stronger and my depression is mostly under control. I still have my bad days, but there are fewer and further between.

My physical health is good. Had a few rough days the last weekend but nothing really worth this sentence.

My part-time job is tough these days and there is always the risk of layoffs. I have survived the last few rounds of layoffs and do not have the seniority to survive another round.

I have managed to reconcile with an old friend who became my enemy. It was nice to find an understanding with him and for us to realize some of the misunderstandings that have occurred.

I write this post on my Blackberry while riding the GO bus to Mississauga for an evening out with friends.

Today may mark another watershed positive moment, only time will tend if my optimism and dedication to this goal is rewarded.

Joey …

My last post about the situation at McMaster University’s Degroote School of Business garnered a great deal of feedback from individuals in both factions and some individuals outside of the dispute.

Some are disputing my characterization of the situation as a battle between the academic and industry streams of professors. Others say there is not a history of infighting and the present fighting in unique. There are those who felt I was unfair towards their side or too kind to the other.

I thank everyone for their emails and input on the situation. I’m going to add two items to the discussion.

1) As posted in a comment, and emailed to me by a few people, The Financial Post ran a story in 2002 about the problems at Charles Schwab during Mr. Bates’ leadership of the Canadian division.

2) I believe the Degroote School needs a new strategic plan. Getting rid of Mr. Bates will not solve the present split within the faculty. Degroote is uniquely positioned with strong academic and industry faculty – a review conducted by outside parties to reorient the entire faculty can leverage synergies between the two camps to ultimately position the McMaster business school as the best in the country. It will take leadership and a willingness to impose the decision of an outside panel upon those in the faculty. …

The war between some faculty and the dean comes down to what a business school should be.