Western’s faculty association urging university to use ‘rainy day’ funds to avoid long-term negative impacts

Western University will develop a new strategy following reduction of international study permits, CTV London’s Reta Ismail explains.

During Thursday’s Western University’s Board of Governors meeting, President Alan Shepard said he wrote an op-ed for a Toronto newspaper, reflecting on the impacts of cutting off international students.

“Urging that Canada reverse course on its decision to limit the number of actual graduate students admitted to the country for study,” said Shepard during the meeting.

According to Shepard’s report to the Board of Governors, “Western has received its allocations and is developing a strategy to optimize our admission and commitment plan.”

University of Western Ontario Faculty Association (UWOFA) President Johanna Weststar said they recognize lack of provincial funding, and the chilling effect on the international student market.

However, Weststar said her membership doesn’t understand Western University’s Senior Administration’s response to this crisis.

“Western has a very large rainy day fund. It is raining, but they refuse to use it. Instead, they want to make cuts that will have long-term negative impacts, in order to balance their short-term budget.”

According to Weststar, Western is in a strong financial position with $3.07 billion in net assets, $51.4 million in operating reserves, and a $219.5 million surplus in 2024.

She added that the caps on international student enrolment have not affected the university like the college sector or some other universities.

UWOFA is calling on the administration to use the healthy reserves, bolster the budget, and give the university an opportunity to make long-term decisions and to avoid making cuts to staffing and programs.

“In a short-term time of turmoil, there are definitely some pressures on the system, but Western is healthier than all of its peers,” said Weststar.

“We have the reserves to be able to buffer ourselves in the short-term, so that we can make smart, long-term decisions and not these detrimental kind of short-term kneejerk decisions that are going to effect us negatively in the long-term.”

Upon request for comment, Western’s Provost and Academic Vice-President, Florentine Strzelczyk, issued the following statement:

Western is mid-stream in budget planning for the coming fiscal year. As part of the normal budget process, all faculties and operational units are having discussions about balancing individual budgets. No final decisions have been reached.

The university’s budget will be finalized in April and taken to the Board of Governors for approval on May 1.

Western has a history of strong fiscal management and this has served us well. That said, over a decade of policy decisions have left Ontario’s universities with the lowest per student funding in the country, and the federal government’s restrictions on international student visas are adding further strain on institutions.

As always, Western is planning proactively to ensure our focus remains on making strategic investments in our students, faculty and staff to deliver the high-quality teaching and research that sets us apart.

The board is expected to approve the final budget on May 1.