Senate Agenda - EXHIBIT V - March 19, 1999
FOR APPROVAL
i. The table shown in Appendix 1 describes the recent history of first year intake in Western's first-entry undergraduate programs and estimated program intake for 1999-2000. Two factors complicate the admissions decision making process for this year. First, Ontario's universities may now make offers of admission to OAC students as of March 10, 1999, and students have until June 1, 1999, to accept or reject those offers. In the past, offers were not made until mid-June and decisions were required within two weeks. The necessary data on applicants from the Ontario University Application Centre were received only weeks before the offer date. Second, this year's applications and offers of admission are being processed on an entirely new information system. The information necessary to make initial decisions on entrance requirements will not be available until a few days before the offers must be mailed.
Given these circumstances, it is not possible for the March offers of admission to follow past practice in SUEPP, SCUP, and Senate that involved formal approval of entrance requirements well before offers were made to students. Instead, this year's recommendation will focus on an overall University first year intake objective and program specific targets. Minimum admission levels will follow from these approved objectives as a function of number of applicants and the grade qualification of those applicants. Consistent with past practice, all offers will be conditional upon a minimum OAC final average.
ii. Last spring Senate approved a recommendation that first-entry intake be reduced to 3950 students in 1999-2000. This recommendation was made prior to the announcement of the Ministry of Education's Access to Opportunities Program (ATOP). This program will provide additional funding to accommodate a doubling of enrolment in Computer Science and in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Given the program-specific nature of these students and the additional funding, the objectives of the Senate motion would not be compromised if 1999-2000 intake objectives were increased to acknowledge the ATOP enrolment.
Recommendation:
a) That the first-entry undergraduate enrolment objective for 1999-2000 be set at 4150 students and that the approximate program-specific objectives be as described in Appendix 1
b) That entrance requirements be set by the Provost to achieve these objectives as a function of final admission numbers, qualifications of applicants, and estimates of the rate of offer confirmations in each program
c) That no program-specific entrance requirement be set below 75% except where performance is a major element of the selection process. Final admission will be contingent upon a final average of no less than 72%.
Implementation:
i. Given the increased applications at Western for 1999-2000 there is a real possibility that minimum entrance requirements in most programs will be higher than 75%
ii. Every effort will be made to maintain single minimum standard of admission in Arts, Social Science, Science, Information and Media Studies and Health Sciences. Possible exceptions will be in ACS, Kinesiology, and Nursing, where a higher standard may be necessary to meet enrolment targets. The objective will be to set the same standard for Engineering Science as for Science, but, given the special funding opportunities of the ATOP program, consideration will be given to maintaining the minimum entrance requirement at 75% even if other programs have a marginally higher entrance requirement in 1999-2000.
iii. As indicated in the Senate resolution of Spring 1998, consideration may be given in the admissions process to factors such as performance in program-relevant courses (e.g., mathematics and sciences in Science and Engineering Science), relevant extra-curricular activities, and the academic record of the secondary school.
iv. In this cycle, the period between the availability of initial application information (not including final year, winter semester applicant grades) and the offer date did not permit an admissions proposal to be brought to Senate for consideration before initial offers were made. As a result, the objectives of the existing Senate resolution guided construction of this proposal and approval was requested from SUEPP and SCUP before offers were made to OAC students in March. These proposals will be considered by Senate at its March 1999 meeting after which some limited adjustments could be made to total intake with changes to the non-OAC applicant pool.
v. As in the past, final admission will be contingent upon a final average of no less than 5% below the minimum grade set for conditional acceptance to any given program.
Recommended: That Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors, through the Vice-Chancellor, the introduction of a PhD Program in Education Studies, effective May 15, 1999.
Background:
The proposed program is an initiative of the Faculty of Education. The proposed program will provide a specialized course of study that simultaneously spans the traditional fields of Education; in doing so it will provide students with a deeper knowledge in a traditional area of education while at the same time allowing the student to acquire a deeper understanding of how that area is connected to and informed by other areas in the discipline. Historically in Ontario, PhD level study in Education has been limited to programs at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE). However, doctoral programs have recently been established at Queen's University and York University. This reflects a transition in the Province following the conversion of Teachers' Colleges into Faculties in the Universities in the 1970's, and the addition of research and publication to the Colleges' original mandate of teacher training.
The program objectives are to educate students to a level that they can contribute to the advancement of research and scholarship in Education Studies, and to provide society with graduates qualified as academic scholars and researchers. The program will address the need for new scholars and researchers in Education as academic renewal becomes increasingly an issue in Canadian Faculties of Education, and as requirements grow in public institutions and governments for greater and more sophisticated research.
To be eligible for admission into the program students must normally possess a masters degree in Education, or equivalent, from an accredited University, must have an A-standing in previous graduate work, and must be able to produce evidence of previous scholarly research. Students with a masters degree and an excellent academic record in a related field, who have experience in education and teaching in universities, colleges, or organizations other than public schools, and who may not have professional teaching credentials or qualifications, may also be considered for admission.
The faculty resources available to the program include 23 faculty members from the Faculty of Education. These faculty already have extensive experience in graduate teaching and supervision, primarily in masters programs.
The anticipated enrolment in the program will be a maximum of six new students a year, reaching a steady state enrolment of approximately 24 students.
The proposed program was approved by the Internal Appraisals Committee of the Faculty of Graduate Studies in January 1998, the Graduate Planning and Policy Committee of Senate in April 1998, and the Ontario Council on Graduate Studies in March 1999.
Recommended: That the Senate approve and recommend to the Board of Governors, through the Vice-Chancellor, the establishment of The Scotiabank Professorship in Research on Violence Against Women and Children funded by a gift of $1,000,000 from the Bank of Nova Scotia. The Professorship will be funded for 10 years, at which time the gift will be fully expended.
Background:
The Bank of Nova Scotia has announced a gift of $1.5 million, payable over five years commencing October 1999 (i.e., $300,000 per annum until 2004) directed to activities of the Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children. The Professorship is one of four components to be supported by this generous gift. The other three include:
• $75,000 to the Scotiabank Student Research Internship in Studies in Violence Against Women and Children
• $75,000 to the Scotiabank Scholarships for Studies in Violence Against Women and Children (to be approved by SCAPA, including detailed terms of scholarships) - two scholarships of $3,250 to be awarded annually for 10 years.
• $350,000 to the Scotiabank Community Research Fund for Studies in Violence Against Women and Children. This fund will be expended over 10 years to support the research activities of the Centre for Violence Against Women and Children
The Senate and Board of Governors must approve the establishment of Academic Chairs and Professorships. The Professorship will be funded on a term basis over a period of 10 years, as permitted under the policy.
A selection committee will be established by the Centre for Women's Studies and Feminist Research. It is expected that the appointment will be at the rank of Assistant or Associate Professor, on a Limited Term basis unless a Faculty is prepared to commit to a tenure track appointment. Under the latter circumstances, a Joint Appointments Committee will be appointed and the standard Senate-approved procedure for making joint appointments will be followed.
FOR INFORMATION
The response of the University of Western Ontario and Affiliated Colleges to the Ministry of Education memorandum of February 1, 1999, is attached as Appendix 2 (below).
On behalf of the Senate, SCUP has approved, for recommendation to the Board of Governors through the Vice-Chancellor, the establishment of The Rotman Family Fellowship in Neuroscience (described below) based on a generous gift from the Rotman Foundation.
The Rotman Family Fellowship in Neuroscience
Under the terms of an Agreement between The Rotman Family Foundation and The University of Western Ontario, the University will establish "The Rotman Family Fellowship in Neuroscience".
The Rotman Family Foundation and the University recognize and agree that one of the goals of the Fellowship is to develop a research program in Neuroscience based at the University in collaboration with the Rotman Research Institute of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care. For greater clarity, the Fellowship is to be under the direction and supervision of Dr. John Girvin, the Head of the Neurosurgery Division, Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences at the University.
Terms of Reference
Postdoctoral Fellow in Neuroscience
I. Qualifications:
a) Has completed an M.D. or Ph.D. with a primary focus in neuroscience. The individual may come from any of the neuroscience disciplines (neurology, neurosurgery, neuroimaging, neuropsychology, and neuropsychiatry).
b) Has demonstrated potential for research productivity in an academic career in neuroscience with peer reviewed publications of excellent quality.
c) Has demonstrated commitment to the study of neuroscience.
II. Duties:
a) Develop a research program by assisting in ongoing research in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at The University of Western Ontario and/or the Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, University of Toronto.
b) Develop an independent research program.
c) Initiate and maintain a consistent publication record in excellent peer reviewed journals.
d) Serve as a catalyst to foster interactive research in neuroscience.
III. Interactions:
Develop, as a primary responsibility, significant interactions that have been initiated between Department of Clinical Neurosciences of The University of Western Ontario and the Rotman Foundation Research Institute, Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care.
IV. Reporting Relationships:
Report to Dr. John Girvin, Head of the Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, The University of Western Ontario.
V. Recruitment:
The candidate will be recruited by an international search. To facilitate this, the recruitment may be done in conjunction with the postdoctoral fellowship recruitment of the Rotman Research Institute.
VI. Contract:
Postdoctoral fellowships will be for the duration of two years, with a possible extension based upon excellent performance during the first two years. There will be an annual review of the progress of the Fellow.
March 3, 1999
The Honorable David Johnson
Minister of Education and Training
Government of Ontario
Dear Minister,
Enclosed is the statement on the capital requirements for the double cohort on the Western campus, involving The University of Western Ontario, Brescia College, Huron College, and King's College. We are pleased with this initiative from the Ministry, and are eager to do our part to help Ontario respond to the double cohort while providing a publicly funded education competitive with that of the best publicly funded universities in the world.
In presenting our statement, we wish to focus on two points. The first is our profound disagreement with the method and results of the estimate of Notional Capacity in Attachment C of MET's February 1 memo. We urge you to ignore these figures, which we believe are badly flawed and not a good guide to MET policy. The second point is the urgent need for additional resources, both operating and capital, if Western is to meet the challenge of the double cohort and the demographically induced growth of enrolments over the next decade.
To meet the double cohort challenge we need to begin right now to hire the faculty and staff, and to invest in the new facilities, that are essential for the high quality of education which a growing body of Ontario university students have every right to expect. All parts of our Province will benefit over the next decade as university graduates and university research contribute to the economic, social, and cultural development of our Province.
Sincerely yours,
Signed by:
Paul Davenport, David Bevan, Gerry Killan, Dolores Kuntz
March 3, 1999
The University of Western Ontario
Brescia College
Huron College
King's College
This document responds to the memo on the Double Cohort to the Executive Heads of Ontario's universities from the Ministry of Education and Training, dated February 1, 1999 and signed by Mr. David Trick, Assistant Deputy Minister. The Double Cohort arises due to the change from a five-year to a four-year curriculum in Ontario's high schools, which means that students entering high school in September 1998 and September 1999 will have a common normal graduation date of 2003, putting unusual pressure on university admissions. The MET memo requested that the universities respond by March 1, 1999, setting out their strategies for meeting the Double Cohort and their resulting capital needs.
Given the short time frame set out in the request, consultation on campus has of necessity been very limited. Planning on an issue of this sort is particularly complex at Western, because our three affiliated colleges -- which have independent boards, missions, and budget -- must be included in Western's submission. This document represents the current views of the senior administrations of the four institutions. All figures on enrolment and costs refer to the four taken as a group.
During this expansion, we are committed to preserving what is best at Western. The Affiliated Colleges have always had a strong commitment to a high quality undergraduate liberal education, with intensive personal interaction, small classes, and a largely residential and increasingly diverse and service-oriented community. These are the very features which ensure that the affiliates add significantly to Western's overall educational profile. The Constituent University shares the same commitment to high quality undergraduate education, in a context of outstanding professional and graduate programs in a research-intensive educational setting. Our distinct and shared values must be preserved through the expansion of the coming decade.
As directed by the MET memo, this document contains Western's statement on the Capital Requirements of the Double Cohort. However, we wish to point out that the more important commitment from government should be to provide operating budget increases in support of the Double Cohort and the long-term growth in regular enrolment over the coming decade. To be most effective, that commitment to new operating revenues should be made in 1999, so that recruitment and hiring processes for qualified faculty and staff can start this year. With a steadily tightening market for new faculty, the longer we wait, the more difficult recruitment will be.
Our document considers the enrolment simulations and the estimate of Notional Capacity contained in the MET memo, presents estimates of the capital requirements needed to accommodate the Double Cohort and increases in regular enrolment, reviews efforts Western has made and will make to economize on space, and looks at long-term enrolment patterns after the double cohort subsides.
1. MET's Enrolment Simulations
The enrolment simulations included in the MET memo address two major issues: (1) the enrolment increases anticipated due to the Double Cohort, and (2) the longer-term permanent enrolment increases associated with the projected increases in the 18-24 age group population.
In the Double Cohort-related projections, two scenarios are presented. Scenario 1 assumes a singular and immediate change to four-year completion by students in secondary schools. Scenario 2 assumes a more phased-in increase where some secondary school students under the existing curriculum might accelerate to four-year completion, and the change to four-year completion for students studying in the new curriculum may be more gradual. The simulations also contain increases in graduate enrolments which are likely to follow increases in undergraduate enrolments, as the pool of students graduating with undergraduate degrees and seeking graduate education increases.
The MET simulations assume that participation rates in both undergraduate and graduate education will remain at 1997 levels. We have serious concerns about these assumptions which suggest constant or flat-line participation rates. In Ontario, participation rate of the 18-24 cohort has increased from 18.1% in 1989 to 21.8% in 1997 -- which is an increase in participation rates by a factor of 1.2. Other North American jurisdictions have seen similar increases, in particular in the United States where the participation rate is currently about 26%. Participation rates in graduate education across North America have also increased over the past decade. Based on these facts, there is no valid reason for the assumption that flat-line participation rates will continue into the future.
The MET assumptions of flat-line participation rates will likely result in significantly understated projections in undergraduate and graduate enrolments, both in Scenario 1 and Scenario 2. We urge that, before any funding mechanisms are discussed, the assumptions behind the enrolment simulations be reviewed and the assumptions revised to more realistic figures.
2. MET's Estimate of Notional Capacity at Western
The MET memo contains an Attachment C which sets out a measure of "Notional Capacity" defined as the maximum full-time enrolment from 1988 to 1997; plus the maximum part-time enrolment from 1988 to 1997, expressed as a full-time equivalent with a ratio of 3.5, less actual 1997 enrolment. We note also that the maxima of undergraduate and graduate students generally occur in different years, so that capacity is defined by a total number of students that the university never actually experienced.
Western's Notional Capacity is said to be 1,425 students, based on the full-time enrolment of 1992 and the part-time enrolment of 1991. We have calculated our capital needs below on the basis of 1998 full-time enrolments, which would reduce Notional Capacity to 1,144, because full-time enrolment rose by 281 from 1997 to 1998. Moreover, we have a number of concerns with the MET calculation of Notional Capacity as applied to Western, many of which would apply equally to other universities:
For all these reasons, many of which will apply in some form to other universities, we respectfully suggest that the Ministry put aside the flawed calculation of Notional Capacity contained in the MET memo, as we plan together a strategy to accommodate the Double Cohort. Working together, MET and the universities then need to develop more realistic enrolment assumptions for the decade ahead, which incorporate some increase in participation rates for both the transitions from high school to university and from first-degree to graduate programs. We can then work together on a strategy to accommodate the Double Cohort.
3. Additional Students, Faculty, and Staff
In our forecasts we follow the assumptions of MET Scenario 2, which result in a maximum additional enrolment from the Double Cohort in Ontario of 33,535 full-time undergraduates in 2004, and 4,065 graduate students in 2008. We further assume that with adequate funding Western takes its current share of the Double Cohort -- in 1997 Western's share of Ontario full-time enrolment was 9.8% for new first-year undergraduate students and 10.2% of graduate students. Using the figures from MET for the province as a whole, the maximum size of the Double Cohort enrolments at Western is estimated at:
Undergraduate enrolment in 2004 3,286 = 33,535*.098
Graduate enrolment in 2008 415 = 4,065*.102
The maximum total Double Cohort enrolment (undergraduate plus graduate) at Western is also 3,286 in 2004; it occurs before the Double Cohort for graduate students begins.
Total Constituent full-time enrolment in 1997-98 at Western was 18,783, with full-time faculty of 959 (excluding clinicians) and full-time staff of 1,785. The student/faculty and staff/faculty ratios for the Constituent University in 1997-98 were as follows:
Student/Faculty Ratio 19.6 = 18,783 Students / 959 Faculty
Student/Staff Ratio 10.5 = 18,783 Students / 1,785 Staff
Because of cuts to government funding, these student/faculty ratios for Western are 20% to 25% higher than a decade ago. Based on the most recent data available (1996-97), the average student/faculty ratio for Canada's nine other provinces is 16.0. Western believes that any investment in expansion of Ontario's universities must include the necessary additional funds to improve the quality of education and we urge the government to invest the resources necessary to bring Ontario's student/faculty ratio to that of the average for the nine other provinces.
The additional faculty appointments necessary to bring Western's student/faculty ratio to the Canadian average (excluding Ontario) and the hiring of new staff should begin in 1999 and be in place by 2004, when the Double Cohort enrolments reach the maximum level. Given what will be an increasingly competitive North American market for new faculty, hiring should begin in the coming year. The MET memo (p.3.) states that "Operating costs will be considered at the next stage of the project. It is not necessary to comment on operating costs at this time". Nonetheless, Western wishes to underline the crucial importance of MET commitments to increase operating budgets in a timely fashion to meet the demands of faculty and staff appointments.
4. Academic Space Requirements
In order to accommodate the Double Cohort related expansion, Western will require significant additional space in all areas, including classroom facilities, instructional laboratories, computer facilities, research facilities, faculty and staff offices, graduate and undergraduate student space, library facilities, student service facilities, maintenance space, and other central service space.
Based on the most recent information available (the 1995-96 COU report on Inventory of Physical Facilities of Ontario Universities), Western's required space per student is 12.4 Net Assignable Square Metres (NASM). Based on this factor, Western's additional space requirement amounts to:
40,746 sqm = 3,286 * 12.4
For construction purposes, we gross the NASM up by a factor of 1.4 to get gross square metres of 57,044. We will use a rough construction and renovation cost per gross square metre of $2,200 -- which includes utilities infrastructure costs associated with new construction. The estimated cost of this additional space is then $125.5 million. We would seek to put these funds to a number of specific projects, such as the following:
5. Student Residence Space
In the fall of 1999, with the opening of Elgin Hall, Western and its affiliated colleges will have about 4,340 beds for undergraduate students on campus. (This figure excludes 250 spaces at Westminster College, an independent institution whose residence policy is currently under discussion). All first-year students are guaranteed a residence place at Western, and we seek for academic reasons to have a reasonable proportion (about 25%) of the total residence space occupied by upper-year students. We estimate that next fall, of some 5,000 first-time full-time Year 1 undergraduates, about 66% will be in residence.
To gauge the impact of the Double Cohort on Western's residence, we focus on first-time full-time Year 1 undergraduates, for which the Double Cohort reaches a peak of 12,800 for Ontario in 2003 in MET's Scenario 2. Western's share of this, at 9.8%, is 1,254. If we seek to provide spaces for 66% of that group, we require 830 places. The two residences built at Western over the last four years have had a capital cost of about $45,000 per student space. The cost of the 830 places would then be $37.4 million. Western and its affiliated colleges would seek to fund a large part of this cost on the basis of rents paid by students and to keep the residences full after the Double Cohort, in part by renting to graduate students. Nonetheless, given the risks involved in building residences when future demand is uncertain, we are asking MET for one-third of the cost of new residences for the Double Cohort, to a maximum of $12.5 million.
Cost of new residence spaces $12.5 million = 830*$45,000*(1/3)
6. Information Technology and Distance Delivery
The Double Cohort will increase the demand for computer workstations on campus, which in turn increases the need for upgrading of our campus network. Many of our network systems are at or near capacity, and will not accommodate the demands of the Double Cohort. Our current estimates of the required investments are as follows:
The total cost of the Double Cohort information technology and distance delivery projects is $9.5 million.
7. Regular Growth in Enrolment
Estimates of the cost of the Double Cohort assume that the expansion of enrolments due to other factors will be funded, which has not been the case during the past decade, when real funding per student has been cut substantially. While the MET memo of February 1 does not ask for data on the cost of the regular growth in enrolment, Western wishes to indicate the approximate size of that cost. The memo predicts a peak Double Cohort enrolment in 2004, and sets out the following figures for regular enrolment (excluding Double Cohort) in 1998 and 2004:
| Regular Enrolment in Ontario | 1998 | 2004 | % Change |
| Undergraduate | 202,954 | 221,019 | 8.9% |
| Graduate | 24,893 | 27,109 | 8.9% |
Western is a large, research-intensive university in a relatively small metropolitan area that is not growing as fast as the Greater Toronto Area. Over the long run, we expect our regular graduate enrolments to grow more rapidly than the provincial average, and our regular undergraduate enrolments, more slowly than the average. For the purposes of these estimates, we suppose the following growth in regular enrolment at Western:
| Regular Enrolment at UWO | 1998 | 2004 | % Change |
| Undergraduate | 19,458 | 20,873 | 7.3% |
| Graduate | 2,761 | 3,092 | 12.0% |
| Total | 22,219 | 23,965 | 7.9% |
We expect our growth to be at the upper end of the BIU spectrum. For undergraduate students, much of our growth will be in year 4 (as three-year programs expand to four-year programs) and in professional programs, many of them second-entry. Our growth in graduate enrolment will raise the average BIU per FTE at Western. For simplicity, we will ignore these weighting issues, and note simply that regular growth in enrolment will increase full-time students by 1,746 between 1998 and 2004, which is 53% of the Double Cohort increase in 2004:
Regular growth in enrolment to 2004/Double Cohort in 2004 = 53% = 1,746/3,286
A rough estimate of the cost of these additional regular students would assume they have the same average capital cost as the additional students of the Double Cohort. We thus apply the 53% factor to all of the cost categories except information technology. For information technology, we apply the 53% only to the cost of additional computer labs. We are hopeful that the IT infrastructure for the Double Cohort described above can accommodate the additional regular enrolment students.
The total cost of expansion at Western from 1998 to 2004 is thus $221.7 million:
| Double Cohort | Regular Enrolment | Total | |
| Academic space and facilities | $125.5 m | $66.5 m | $192.0m |
| Cost of new residence spaces | 12.5 | 6.6 | 19.1 |
| Information technology, distance delivery | 9.5 | 1.1 | 10.6 |
| Total | 147.5 | 74.2 | 221.7 |
8. Seeking Economies of Space
The MET memo asks for comments on a number of ways in which universities might economize on space, so that capital expenditures can be optimized. We are pleased to offer the following comments from Western's point of view.
We cannot at this point estimate the impact, on our space needs in 2004, of our efforts to economize on our future use of space. We would suggest the following, however: if the full operating requirements of the Double Cohort are made available to Western -- and especially full funding for the additional faculty and staff positions which are described in section 3 above and which would remain permanently with Western after the Double Cohort -- we would undertake to reduce the needed capital investment by 30%, from $221.7 million to $155.2 million, to reflect two factors: (1) any unused capacity that currently exists at Western; and (2) the results of the economies of space listed above. We believe we could manage the construction and renovation of facilities, borrowing when necessary, with an annual Double Cohort capital payment of $32 million during the five years from 1999 to 2003.
Western urges the government to incorporate the following factors in its expansion-related capital funding program:
1 the program should not include a private sector matching component. It is important that full funding be provided to address the capital needs of the expansion, and that individual universities be allowed to achieve economies through efficiencies and/or direct funding from other sources.
Finally, it should be noted that the capital projects identified above will involve both renovations to existing space to improve utilization and the creation of additional space. Based on recent experience at Western, the costs associated with renovating existing space will be equivalent to the cost of new construction. Over the upcoming months, we will continue to work on the assessment of space needs and the division between renovations to existing space and new construction. A substantial share of our capital costs will be directed at renovations, including deferred maintenance, in existing buildings, to allow for a more intensive use of existing space, thereby keeping down the annual cost of building operations associated with the expansion of enrolments. We have urgent needs for the renovation of existing space devoted to laboratories in the sciences, medicine, and engineering. Overall, we can commit to a more intensive and efficient use of space as a result of new capital funds which we are requesting.
9. After the Double Cohort
As suggested in the MET memorandum, demographic changes in the province during the next 15 years will result in a substantial increase in the university-age cohort and an associated increase in demand, independent of the Double Cohort itself (see section 7 - Regular Growth in Enrolment). This demand for university places would be even greater if participation rates increase (see section 1). The facilities created in dealing with the Double Cohort will provide the University of Western Ontario with the ability to respond to these longer-term increases in demand.
The University's position as a large, research-intensive institution in a relatively small metropolitan area introduces a variety of factors that must be included in consideration of the details of these longer term enrolment patterns. We will be embarking immediately on consultations aimed at constructing a plan for responding to the anticipated growth in demand while preserving our commitment to the highest possible quality of education.
10. Conclusion
In our knowledge-based society, we can make no better investment for all Ontarians than the commitment of public funds to university education and research. The next decade affords a tremendous opportunity for Ontario to reinvest in the quality of its universities and in the new faculty and staff necessary to maintain accessibility and high quality for a growing population. We at Western look forward to our part of that reinvestment in university education in Ontario.