Providence college denied university status

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This article was published 31/05/2023 (874 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Faculty and staff at Providence University College and Theological Seminary say they are disappointed a private member’s bill to grant the school full university status failed to pass before the Manitoba legislature breaks for the summer.

The bill was slated for a third and final reading Tuesday, but the NDP denied permission to discuss it, citing procedural rules.

“The opposition refused to let the bill go on to its third and final reading despite other private member’s bills going through,” said Kathryn Mulolani, marketing director at the school, located in Otterburne.

Although Providence is a degree-granting post-secondary institution, being granted full university status would put the school “more ‘on par’ with peer institutions” such as Canadian Mennonite University and the universities of Manitoba, Winnipeg and Brandon, Mulolani said.

Tory backbencher Andrew Micklefield sponsored the bill.

“It was curious for the NDP to stop Providence from receiving the recognition it deserves,” he said.

There was “nothing clandestine” about the process, he said, adding he was “scratching his head” to understand why the NDP didn’t allow the bill to pass.

Providence president Kenton Anderson said the NDP’s decision to halt passage of the bill “seems arbitrary and unfair to us, especially given the many affirming statements we have received from the NDP along the way.”

This included positive comments from education critic Jamie Moses, “who has been our conversation partner in the process,” he said.

Moses told the Free Press the NDP has no objection to Providence receiving full university status.

He said his party wants the school to go through a full public process and for the bill to be sponsored by the government — not be put before lawmakers as a private member’s bill.

Such a process would ensure proper steps are taken to ensure the school fits the requirements to be a full university in Manitoba, he said, adding he is “open to more conversation with Providence.”

“This is not a stop sign,” for Providence, he said, noting Canadian Mennonite University went through a similar process when it was granted full university status in 1998.

If the bill had passed, it would have removed Providence from its current classification as an “other” institution in the province under the Advanced Education Administration Act, Anderson said.

Such a designation “is clearly not helpful or even an appropriate recognition of who we are and the value we offer to the province and people of Manitoba,” he said.

Anderson said the goal of the bill was not to secure more funding, but its passage “would likely have had an effect on the way that we are managed and perhaps, funded.”

Providence receives $1.2 million a year from the provincial government, less than seven per cent of its annual budget.

Being granted full university status might have had some effect on the transferability of credit and degrees for students, “though we have not experienced much difficulty with this over the years,” he said.

“Providence is not giving up on this,” Anderson said. “It’s a long game and we remain hopeful. We made a lot of progress this round and we hope to build on it as we move forward.”

Providence, he said, “offers a lot of value to the province, and we expect that we will eventually be recognized appropriately.”

With about 600 students last year, Providence offers bachelor’s degrees in arts, sciences, business administration and theology and has majors in communications, aviation, biblical studies, health science and psychology. It will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2025.

fpcity@freepress.mb.ca

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