Perspectives & practice
My writing will focus on university governance issues and the implications of current events for university governance.
25 articles by Cheryl Foy · Newest first
Universities exercise statutory power. The exercise of that power comes with obligations which may be enforced by the courts. Some of the decisions that…
Read the article: Oversight of Quasi-Judicial Processes – Senates and BoardsIt was recently reported that the former KPMG audit partner who worked for Laurentian University has been sanctioned by the Chartered Professional…
Read the article: Learning the Lessons – Universities and Auditor Independence in CanadaOCUFA’s Submission on Improving University Governance Structures published by the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (“OCUFA”) on its…
Read the article: Letter to The Honourable Minister Quinn responding to OCUFA SubmissionThe Potential Governance Implications of Alberta’s Expert Panel on Post-Secondary Institution Funding and Alberta’s Competitiveness
Read the article: The 2025 Mintz Panel Report and University GovernanceStrategic Governance Consulting Services with Julia Eastman, recently completed an external governance review of the University of British Columbia…
Read the article: UBC Governance Reviewby Cheryl Foy
Read the article: Board Independence in the University Governance ContextSetting resolutions at the start of the new calendar year is a long-standing tradition for many in the Western world, whether it’s resolving to improve upon…
Read the article: New Year’s Resolutions for University Boards?And so ends my first year in business helping universities and other organizations improve their governance.
Read the article: With Gratitude As 2022 ClosesThis is the second in a series of blogs ( Read Part 1 Here ) examining what university boards can learn from the Ontario Auditor General’s Special Report…
Read the article: Lessons Learned from the Special Report on Laurentian University – Part 2 of SeveralIt won’t surprise you to know that I’ve spent some time in the last few days reading and rereading the Ontario Auditor General’s Special Report (“Report”)…
Read the article: Lessons Learned from the Special Report on Laurentian University – Part 1 of severalAs this blog is being written while I’m on a flight, I’ll use the following analogy: In this analogy, I am travelling on an independent airline and they…
Read the article: Time to Get Excited About Your University’s Policy FrameworkIn a survey I conducted of Canadian university governance professionals in 2021, 65% of those responding agreed that if their roles were better understood…
Read the article: Governance Professionals Foster Board Independence and EffectivenessIt is a best practice for universities to review their governance practices. I was pleased to work with my project partner Dr. Julia Eastman to conduct a…
Read the article: External Review of Dalhousie University Governance Now AvailableI recently had the pleasure of participating in a panel at the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) Council of Chairs of Ontario Universities (CCOU)…
Read the article: COU Conference: Summary of RemarksIn addition to taking to task Laurentian’s senior leaders, board, legal advisors and consultants, the OAG criticizes the Ontario government for weak…
Read the article: Responding to the Ontario Auditor General’s (OAG) Preliminary Perspective on LaurentianI was curious about one topic that has come up in recent years, your view on the Board’s role (if any) in influencing the balance between protecting…
Read the article: University Boards and the Challenge of Freedom of ExpressionI was really pleased to have an opportunity to speak at the Council of Ontario Universities’ successful virtual governance conference. I spoke on a panel…
Read the article: Strategy vs. Oversight? The Argument for a Fifty/Fifty SplitA Battleground Concept: The concept of academic freedom is difficult for many within and outside of the university sector to grasp – in Canadian labour…
Read the article: The Story of Residential Schools Critic Dr. Peter Henderson Bryce illustrates the Importance of Protecting Academic FreedomThe reaction to recent news stories about the discovery of the unmarked graves of hundreds (and as time goes on probably thousands) of indigenous children…
Read the article: TRC Calls to Action: Do you hear 966+ Indigenous children’s voices shouting them now?This column is a request to colleagues across the country to work together to create cultures inside your universities that allow you to resolve conflict in…
Read the article: Creating a respectful workplace? Don’t start with the lawAs we try to make sense of the senseless, we should derive comfort from the fact that universities are much-needed instruments of cultural and social…
Read the article: Reflections on the tragedy of Flight 752While some do it well, I can quite comfortably say that many organizations, including universities, generally do contract management poorly. Lawyers see and…
Read the article: University leadership has a responsibility to support effective contract managementAll universities should have a chief legal officer, or what is commonly known as a general counsel or GC. This is an executive-level role with primary…
Read the article: All universities should have a general counselSheryl Sandberg’s book, Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead , has been both embraced and criticized. Around the table, as a newly formed general…
Read the article: Women general counsel do ‘lean in’Each time a corporate scandal hits an organization like a tsunami, think about what the in-house lawyers were doing before, when it hit, and after.
Read the article: In-house counsel wanted: lawyers without courage need not applyWelcome to my university governance blog.
My writing will focus on university governance issues and the implications of current events for university governance. This blog, like my book, is written to support my governance colleagues and those serving on university governing bodies across Canada. Underpinning all of this work is a belief in the important role universities play in civil society and the belief that effective governance is essential to maintaining a sufficient degree of autonomy for universities to do this important work. The views expressed are mine and mine alone.