Weekly Update – April 1
April 1, 2021
Weekly Update – April 1
CUASA Office Closure
Please note that the virtual CUASA Office will be closed tomorrow, April 2, for Good Friday.
Additionally, on Monday, April 5, CUASA staff will be providing only minimal emergency services. We will return to regular operations on Tuesday, April 6, at 9:00am.
Clarification on Fall 2021 Timetable
In our update last week, we shared information about our discussions with the University administration at our recent JCAA meeting, including the expectation that members will have the option of making changes to their preference for in-person or virtual teaching until sometime in May while the Fall 2021 timetable undergoes adjustments.
We wish to issue a clarification on possible timetable adjustments. Here is the information we received from Deputy Provost Lorraine Dyke on this topic:
Departments will receive the draft timetable this year on May 10 and will have until May 24 to request any changes they deem necessary. If a department requests a change from face-to-face to online, this can easily be accommodated as we do not have to find a physical classroom. Shifting a course from online to face-to-face may be more challenging based on capacity constraints. As we are planning our classroom capacities around physical distancing requirements, our classroom space will be more limited than normal. We do not yet know what the demand for these spaces will be but if it is high, we may not be able to find physical spaces for all of those requests.
CUASA Business
Save the Date: CUASA 2021 AGM
The CUASA 2021 April General Meeting will be held on Friday, April 30, from 1:00-3:00pm. The meeting will take place on Zoom, and all Association members are welcome to attend.
The meeting documents and Zoom details will be sent closer to that date.
Nominations for Steering Positions
The following Steering positions are either currently vacant, or will be up for re-election this year for terms beginning on July 1, 2021:
- Vice President
- Chair, Collective Bargaining (note: this position also serves as Chief Negotiator)
- Salary and Benefits Officer
- Communications Officer
- Chair, Nominations and Elections
- Chair, Internal Affairs
Nominations are due to the virtual CUASA Office by Friday, May 14, at 12:00pm. Elections will be held at the May Council meeting on Thursday, May 27. If you are interested in one of these positions, or wish to nominate a colleague, please contact us for a nomination form at [email protected].
Information on the nominations process can be found on our How to Volunteer page. Remember that our Association is only as strong as its membership, so we count on the time and commitment of our members to achieve our goals. Some of these positions come with a course release subject to the availability of funds (please ask if interested).
Carleton Updates
Call for Applications: OCUFA Awards
The Carleton University Teaching Awards Committee (CUTAC) is looking to nominate faculty for the 2021 OCUFA Teaching and Academic Librarianship Awards, which recognize outstanding teachers and academic librarians in Ontario.
If you are interested in applying or if you would like to learn more about the nomination process, please contact at [email protected]. Draft applications must be submitted to CUTAC by April 10. Find more details here.
Academic Community Updates
OCUFA/EKOS poll: Provincial government should provide additional funding to Laurentian
A new poll conducted by EKOS Research Associates for OCUFA shows that a clear majority of Ontarians believe that Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano and the Ford government should provide additional funding to Laurentian University and any other universities that face financial difficulties.
Click here to read more.
CAUT condemns Turkish President’s meddling in Boğaziçi University
CAUT has written to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to express concern about political interference at a leading research university in Istanbul.
Click here to read more.
