Co-convener: Philippe Caignon
Idea Groups
As part of the first phase of the strategic directions initiative, we created seven Idea Groups to focus on key strategic issues as we chart the future of Concordia. These groups consulted with members of our community, initiated conversations, and gleaned some of the most promising ideas for what’s next at Concordia.
Co-convener: Jason Camlot
Member: Scott Chlopan
Member: Patricia Hachey
Member: Marion Miller
Member: Mahesh Sharma
Member: Veronica Tamburro
Challenges
- To articulate an approach to teaching and learning that inspires and challenges while providing a sense of focused priorities.
- To offer students the experiential learning opportunities that they want and that are pedagogically effective in light of clear time and resource demands that limit the university’s capacity to provide more.
General objectives
- Identify key characteristics of 'next-generation learning', around which a framework can be built.
- Identify 3 to 5 forward-looking ideas for experimentation.
- Organize a process for collecting community input and validating a draft framework.
Experiential learning objectives
- Focusing on experiential learning in the form of:
- work-integrated learning (co-op and internships)
- community-based or service learning
- undergraduate research with faculty, and
- capstone projects
- Identify key hurdles that prevents us from broadly expanding opportunities for students.
- Identify 2 to 3 novel approaches or methods for expanding student opportunities that might be piloted.
- Randy Bass, “Disrupting Ourselves: the Problem of Learning in Higher Education”
- Georgetown University’s “Five Pump-Priming Ideas” for educational innovation
- “Future of MIT Education” final report
- Mimi Ito et al., “Connected Learning Principles”
- Cathy Davidson, “The Future of Thinking: Learning Institutions in a Digital Age” (starting on book page 185)
- David Edwards, “American Schools Are Training Kids for a World That Doesn’t Exist”
- Steven Mintz, “The Future of Higher Education”
- Concordia’s and other university’s RECODE applications
- Concordia’s Senate-approved principles on e-learning
- Stanford 2025 report
Convener: Ferhat Khendek
Member: Richard Courtemanche
Member: Ben Prunty
Challenge
To identify distinctive next steps for Concordia’s innovation and entrepreneurship activities.
Objectives
- Review various university initiatives in innovation and entrepreneurship, identifying components of those initiatives that Concordia might consider adopting.
- Given the proliferation of innovation and entrepreneurship initiatives at US and Canadian universities, consider what might come next, after innovation. What alternative language or framing might we consider?
- Identify 2-3 really forward-looking ideas for experimentation, in particular around connecting faculty researchers with opportunities for industry partnerships and commercialization.
- Other university RECODE proposals
Council of Ontario Universities reports on entrepreneurship - University Affairs opinion piece “Are we all entrepreneurs now?”
- Other university innovation and entrepreneurship strategies and initiatives
- Ryerson’s aim to become “Canada’s leading comprehensive innovation university” as articulated in its strategic plan and exemplified in its “zones”
Convener: William Cheaib
Member: Jill Didur
Member: Brian Lewis
Member: Emma Saboureau
Challenge
To devise ways to bolster Concordia’s international reputation and presence on the world stage through further global academic and development engagement.
Objectives
- Identify approaches that would increase the percentage of Concordia students to have an international experience during their studies.
- Present directions that balance geographic and disciplinary interests as well as resources.
- Identify strategies that support our faculty international linkages and research connections.
- British Council, “The shape of things to come: higher education global trends and emerging opportunities to 2020”
- Canada’s International Education Strategy
- Canada’s Universities in the world, AUCC Internationalization Survey - 2014
- Dalhousie University’s Internationalization Strategy
- SFU International Engagement Strategy
Convener: Paula Wood-Adams
Member: David Douglas
Member: Carlos Fuentes
Member: Christopher Jackson
Member: Javier Lee
Challenge
To facilitate much deeper and more frequent collaboration across departments, Faculties, and disciplines in light of the structures and standard practices that often get in the way.
Objectives
- Identify inspiring models and assess 2-3 alternative approaches to enabling greater cross-Faculty and cross-disciplinary collaboration and innovation.
- Identify 2-3 approaches or methods that can be piloted.
- Collection of models from Arizona State, Duke, UC Davis, University of Toronto, etc.
- Arizona State University 2011/12 Annual Report section on intellectual fusion
- Eilzabeth Capaldi, "Intellectual Transformation and Budgetary Savings Through Academic Reorganization"
- “Convergence: Facilitating Transdisciplinary Integration of Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Engineering, and Beyond”
Convener: Andrew Woodall
Member: Oreoluwa Albert Ajayi
Member: Guylaine Beaudry
Member: Stephen Brown
Member: Alexandra Buonanno
Challenge
To update and rethink how we equip a diverse range of students to thrive after graduation.
Objectives
- Review various articulations of ‘future work skills’ to help identify possible
‘next-gen skills’ offerings through the Student Success Centre. - Review and assess various university-based and non-university-based approaches to badging or alternative credentialing.
- Identify 3-5 really forward-looking ideas for experimentation.
- “Future Work Skills” report
- Parthenon Group, “The Differentiated University”
(in particular “Recognizing the Diverse Needs of Today's Students” and “Better Serving the Diverse Needs of Tomorrow's Students”) - Cathy Sandeen, “The Students of the Future”
- Brock University’s Plus Program
- UC Davis badging program as reported on in “Badging From Within”
- Stanford 2025
Convener: Isabelle Dostaler
Member: Ali Akgunduz
Member: Leisha LeCouvie
Member: Terry Wilkings
Challenge
To move from individual achievements to institutional impact.
Objectives
- Identify major components of a handful of institution-level public/community engagement strategies, including for alumni.
- Identify elements of a next-generation model that Concordia might adopt and
3 to 4 forward-looking strategies or initiatives for consideration. - Organize a process for collecting community input and validating a draft framework.
Starting point
- Strategic Framework, specifically the working group report on community engagement
- Academic Plan Objective 4
- "Sustainable Community Partnerships: Recommendations for Moving Forward”
- Other university public/community engagement strategies and initiatives
- Other models of novel forms of university knowledge mobilization and transfer
Convener: Lynn Hughes
Member: Mustafa Mehmet Ali
Member: Trevor Smith
Member: Malcolm Whiteway
Challenge
To identify strategies that help Concordia continue to intensify its research activity and increase our agility in seizing emerging opportunities.
Objectives
- Identify new structures, models, or practices that other universities successfully use to encourage external partnerships and international collaborations.
- Organize discussions and activities around planned roundtable of granting agency heads in April.
