A full six days into his role as Athabasca University president, Neil Fassina had his ear to the ground. On that sixth day, Oct. 18, Fassina spoke with the Advocate about his plans for the school.
A full six days into his role as Athabasca University president, Neil Fassina had his ear to the ground.
On that sixth day, Oct. 18, Fassina spoke with the Advocate about his plans for the school. Right now, a lot of it is just taking the time to listen.
“In the short term, one of my personal goals as being the president is to capture the full - as full as I can get it, anyways - the full picture of what that environment looks like, in terms of what the challenges are, but also, what the opportunities are, ” Fassina said. “That's the immediate priority. ”
Already, he said, he has met with staff and received emails about both their concerns for the school and the opportunities ahead of it.
He might have had just under a week of experience, but already, Fassina is dreaming big.
“This university has an incredible history of stepping out of the box such that, when it makes substantial, strategic decisions, the post-secondary environment looks to it and goes, ‘Wow, I wish I had thought of that,' ” Fassina said.
He alluded to the university's decision to offer online courses and degrees, one of the first post-secondary institutions in Canada to do so.
“That concept was not the norm, ” Fassina said. “If you look today, the online opportunities that are presented by the bricks-and-mortar universities have gained a lot more, sort of, volume in the market. You think about how big of a step that was for Athabasca at the time, and how long it has taken the broader market to catch up to that. My goal is then working again with that university community - how can we decide what that next big visionary step is? ”
The new president noted that he had a thorough understanding of the issues facing the university, which he attributed to the presidential search committee being frank in their hiring approach.
Fassina was hesitant to name the challenges, instead focusing on what he thought the opportunities are for the institution.
“It's not that our challenges aren't real, ” he said. “But, any time we make a decision around a challenge, it has to be in a certain direction. ”
So far, Fassina said one of his main takeaways from his mission to listen is that the university is “like a family, ” in the sense that, while everyone might not get along all the time, the dedication to making the school work is “palpable. ”
He added he has started realizing just how many students benefit from the school's unique offerings, not just on a national scale, but on a global one, too.
“It's that recognition that we're able to open doors for individuals that might otherwise not undertake or not pursue advanced learning, ” he said.
While there are undoubtedly many challenges ahead of Fassina, the most looming of which might be a tight budget, he remains steadfastly optimistic.
“I am optimistic on the future of this university because I believe its opportunities outweigh the challenges it faces, ” he said. “I do not believe that any of the challenges that are before us are insurmountable. Call me an idealist at heart, but I believe that because of the community that is Athabasca University and its commitment to this university that, not only will we find a way through those challenges, but we will find our way to the opportunity.
“At the end of my presidency, I would love to be able to be in a spot where no one ever asks the question, ‘What about the sustainability of Athabasca University?' ” he added. “Because, it's known that not only is it sustainable, it's exceptional. ”
