Business schools 'scrambling' to look at their own donor terms

There's more than one reason why Daphne Taras is closely watching the University of Calgary as it faces criticism following a CBC investigation into its relationship with pipeline company Enbridge.

Taras is dean of the Edwards School of Business at the University of Saskatchewan, but spent many years as a student, professor and associate dean at the University of Calgary's Haskayne School of Business, before leaving in 2010. 

Perhaps we've been getting just a little bit careless- Daphne Taras, former associate dean

She sent an email to all of her current school's staff and donors last week to explain how such allegations of corporate interference are not problems at her institution in Saskatoon.

"We won't get caught up in that mess," she writes.

• How the University of Calgary's Enbridge relationship became controversial
• University of Calgary needs to take hard look at corporate sponsorships, critics say

As governments pulled back on funding of universities and colleges over the last few decades, post-secondary institutions are relying more on corporate and individual donations. 

• University of Calgary, Enbridge deny interfering with academic freedom

Taras says it is pretty rare within the donor relations world for a company to be able to influence a post-secondary institution, but "there are the unusual situations."

University will investigate

The University of Calgary will investigate what happened in the creation and operations of the Enbridge Centre. The Faculty Association and Students' Union both welcome an in-depth look into what exactly took place.

An expert will be called in to conduct an independent review. The university would not provide details about when it expects any results.

The Faculty Association and Students' Union want a broad investigation that examines conflict of interest allegations against university president Elizabeth Cannon and board oversight of corporate gifts. They also want any findings from the investigation to be sent to the Office of the Ethics Commissioner for further review.

Cannon said in a statement that she welcomes the review, despite telling the CBC one week earlier, "I don't see at this point the necessity to have a formal investigation." 

Culture change

University officials have said changes have been made since the Enbridge Centre launched, such as stronger governance structures and documentation practices. Last week, Cannon resigned as an independent director of the Enbridge Income Fund. The university president's compensation for that board position amounted to $130,500 in 2014. While Cannon faced criticism for having a potential conflict of interest, she had publicly disclosed the position and said she always speaks as a university president.

A former U of C professor says further changes are required on campus.

David Keith, who nows works at Harvard, suggests a culture change is necessary, so better procedures are in place to protect academic freedom. The university should be able to engage with the oil industry, receive financial support from corporations, yet also be empowered to both criticize and applaud the private sector.

"The institution really needs to examine, in a deep way beyond just one single person, the way it manages institutes that are meant to do high quality analysis on issues that really matter for public policy in Alberta," said Keith.

Universities 'scrambling' to look at donor terms

A lot of people are "scrambling" to look at their own donor terms, says Taras, who currently chairs the Canadian Federation of Business School Deans.

​The CBC investigation is a good thing, she said, since it is sparking academics and university administrations across the country to reflect and evaluate the relationships they have with corporate donors.

"Perhaps we've been getting just a little bit careless," says Taras. "There's so much attention on university leaders and deans for fundraising. There's been a dramatic, dramatic increase in pressure to fundraise."

The University of Saskatchewan has many corporate sponsorships and relationships of its own. The business school is located in the PotashCorp Building on campus and is named after Murray Edwards, the founder of several oil and gas companies including Canadian Natural Resources.

Taras speaks highly of the U of C's president.

"Elizabeth Cannon's leadership is superb. Whatever mess she is in now, she'll fix it."

Enbridge denies it had any influence into the operations or mandate of the academic centre it sponsored at the University of Calgary. The university agrees, saying the company didn't make any decisions.

Read emails involving Elizabeth Cannon and the Enbridge Centre here