“Trinity Western University is in its adolescence!”

So opens President Jonathan Raymond’s most recent report to the Board of Governors (BOG), who held their fall meeting on November 1.

Despite some growing pains, such as low enrolment and budget concerns, the administration is formulating some big plans to ease the university through its teenage years.

One improvement in the works is the discussion of building a live-learn centre on campus, which would house residences, classrooms, and offices. “The new facility would provide significant momentum for our campus, offering new residential options and providing academic space,” said the report.

The centre can only take place via a planned gift from a donor. Although no comment could be made on specific parties involved, Ron Kuehl, Vice President of External Relations, said, “We’re in preliminary conversations with groups who are interested in being involved.” The report projects a completion date in two years. Kuehl told Mars’ Hill that this is indeed an achievable goal.

This is all part of updating the Campus Master Plan, which was deemed “obsolete” after the former plan, implemented in the 1999/2000 school year, was blocked by “the discovery of various physical and fiscal constraints,” according to the report.

Phase one of the plan, “focusing on defining the planning framework, principles and design criteria that would guide the development of our Campus Master Plan,” is expected to be done by the end of the year, says the report. This includes incorporating “unifying concepts and associated architectural styles,” and “spaces to communicate character, identity and mission,” among other comprehensive goals for the university.

The report also gave an overview of the updated budget for the current fiscal year. Because of dropping enrolment, the financial goals projected in the April BOG meeting are not being met, resulting in “a significant budget shortfall.” According to the report, this could be up to $2 million.

Cited as the most likely area to help balance the budget was compensation: higher staff turnover and an intentional “chill” on hiring have cut costs. Also noted in the report was less hiring due to the difficulty of finding “qualified individuals (skills, experience and mission fit) who will accept the salaries being offered.”

This is admitted to being a short-term solution, as the university desires to give more to its staff and faculty: “We are committed to increasing the affordability for our faculty and staff to be able to serve at TWU since, in most areas of the University, current salaries and wages are well below market,” says the report.

Kuehl also emphasised the push towards donor relations to help with the costs tuition does not cover. “Tuition does not pay for everything, and…the university gets no government funds,” he said.

Therefore, an annual fund is in place to fill the “gap” left between fiscal needs and revenue via tuition.

The report ended with a recommendation “to proceed with the Strategic Directions document,” which has been in revision since it was released in winter 2007. This document will cement the vision and direction for the university in the coming years, and has been open to student, staff and faculty input.

According to Kuehl, “the board basically said ‘keep going’ on planning the outline” for major university renovations. He said that they want the administration to continue in their preliminary planning, though all concrete decisions must pass BOG approval before they are enacted.

Also from the November BOG meeting

• Retired History professor Dr. John Klassen was nominated for Professor Emeritus status

• New degrees—BA in Canadian Studies, BA in Sociology, MA in Marriage & Family Therapy, International MBA—were proposed. All have been approved by the Graduate Academic Council

• Budget plan expanded from 3-year to 5-year plan

• “In light of the tragic events a few campuses have experienced, the University has commenced the process of preparing an Emergency Management Plan.”

• LC renovations projected to be done “in time for [students] to enjoy during fall finals.”