The number of voting members on Laurentian University’s board of governors is being reduced in size from 25 to 16.
These changes are in response to the Ontario legislature passing Bill 84 (Fewer Fees, Better Services Act) on March 3.
The legislation includes a Schedule 7, with amendments to the Laurentian University of Sudbury Act, which repeals and replaces various sections of the act, impacting the composition of the LU board of governors.
Information on the amendments included on an Ontario government website said that before the changes, the act said Laurentian’s board is to consist of 25 members, nine of which are elected from nominations submitted from its former federates (i.e., University of Sudbury, Huntington University and Thorneloe University).
Now that these universities are no longer federated with Laurentian, the new board size would be indicative of this reduced representation.
Under the new structure, those 16 voting members would include five Lieutenant Governor In Council (provincial) appointees, 10 other members, plus the university’s president.
“This new structure would also equip the university with a board size that can better respond to the university's focus on driving a future financially stable organization focused on supporting student success,” said the Ontario government website.
The matter came up during the public portion of the March 31 special meeting of Laurentian’s board of governors.
During that meeting, a notice of the proposed amendments to Laurentian’s board of governors (reducing the number of voting members) was provided to the group. The matter will be voted on at a subsequent meeting.
The bylaws of the board are required to be amended within 30 days of the bill coming into effect, which is scheduled to happen April 12.
Laurentian University Faculty Association (or LUFA) president Fabrice Colin asked what would happen in the case of a tie vote, as the number of voting members is going from an odd to an even number.
The university’s secretary, Kathleen Kwan, clarified that for a motion to pass at LU’s board of governors, nine members must now vote in favour. If a motion is tied, it’s considered not to have passed.
This is just the latest change to Laurentian’s board imposed by the province.
In December, as part of a provincial financial package to the insolvent Laurentian University, 11 members of Laurentian’s board of governors stepped down, including then board chair Claude Lacroix, and five other people were appointed to the board by the province.
Laurentian’s current interim board of governors chair, Jeff Bangs, is one of the recent provincial appointees.
After declaring insolvency in February 2021, and filing for creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), Laurentian continues to undergo court-supervised restructuring.
Laurentian University’s other governing body, the senate, is also currently reconsidering its size and composition.
A report recently released on Laurentian’s governance by an outside consultant, Nous Group, as part of Laurentian’s restructuring process, recommended that the senate reduce its size.
