Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ Athabasca U President Firing: Board Members Raise Questions

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

There's a coda to the story about the agreement reached between Athabasca University and the Alberta government on relocating staff to the small northern community, reported here this week. It's this: after the agreement was signed, and while on leave for his wife's funeral, AU President Peter Scott was fired by (some) members of the government-appointed board and replaced, without apparently any process at all, by a more government-friendly appointee. It feels to me to be petty and vindictive. Tony Bates pulls no punches in his criticism. "Danielle Smith's government is truly awful in many ways," he writes. "It has failed to understand or appreciate the uniqueness and value of Athabasca University, which serves students from far beyond the borders of Alberta. It placed the financial welfare of a few merchants in the town of Athabasca over the needs of 25,000 students – and what for? 30 more people in town. It's a sick joke." No argument here.

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
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Last Updated: Dec 23, 2024 1:47 p.m.

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