Information, public accountability, and more information.
Those were the topics of discussion at a meetingregarding the merger of two local educational institutions held in Humboldt on November 29.
Meyers Norris Penny (MNP) has been hired by the Ministry of Advanced Education, Employment and Immigration (MAEEI) to do a comprehensive, independent review of the proposed amalgamation of St. Peter's College (SPC) in Muenster and Carlton Trail Regional College (CTRC) in Humboldt. They held their first public information session in Humboldt on November 29.
With five meetings on the schedule in the next few days, the review seems to be set on fast forward.
According to information provided by Jeffery Boutilier with MNP, the objective of the meetings is to gather input and discuss any potential issues or concerns that people may have regarding the proposed amalgamation of the two educational facilities. MNP is also doing a desk analysis of the benefits and demerits of the proposed merger.
So far, MNP has held meetings with the students and staff of the two facilities, as well as with some of the stakeholders such as municipal representatives.
All of the information gathered by MNP will be put in a report to the ministry, after which it will be up the provincial government to decide how to proceed, Boutilier explained.
"The scope of our assessment doesn't include providing a recommendation to the government," he noted. "We will only be identifying issues and how they may affect the proposed merger."
SPC and CTRC have been exploring the possibility of a merger for approximately two years and first submitted a conceptual proposal to the provincial government in June 2010, Boutilier said. The proposal draws on the strength of the two institutions to create a greater menu of programming together, while creating a university-college, the first of its kind in the province, he added.
The merger would see a consolidation of expertise and resources that would increase campus and student services, while offering improved recruitment and service delivery, with no job losses, Boutilier reported the proposal states.
For the nine people who attended meeting in Humboldt, the major concern seems to be the lack of information available on the details of the amalgamation, as well as the fact that the two institutions already seem to be operating as one in some areas.
According to a couple of people at the meeting, funds are already being transferred between the two organizations, without any public accountability. With the advisor to SPC becoming the president of the college and acting as the CEO of the CTRC, there is no way to keep track of what's actually going on, they noted. As well, while the minutes of the CTRC board meetings are available on the web site, SPC is a private institution that does not inform the public of what goes on at their board meetings or of their financial dealings, it was noted.
"As a taxpayer, I do not know how St. Peter's decides things," stated a woman at the meeting.
The people at the meeting were also concerned about potential job losses, program cancellations, and a loss of focus on the trades-based and skills-based programs offered by CTRC.
The people at the meeting believe that an amalgamation might bring benefits to the region and the two organizations, but also that the process needs to be transparent and more information must be shared with the public.
"People are not understanding what is being proposed and what benefits there may be," said one person.
The people at the meeting also wanted to see a copy of the report that MNP will provide to the government, but Boutilier said that once the report goes to the ministry, it is up to the government if it will be shared with the public.
MNP will finish their report early in the new year and forward it to the MAEEI, after which the government will issue a final decision on the proposed amalgamation in late spring or early summer 2011.
A representative from the MAEEI was to attend the meeting, but did not show up.
Written submissions from the public about the proposed amalgamation have to be submitted to MNP by December 17.
