Media and Opinion Editorials

Opinion: As 9I��’s president, I have a duty to all students, no matter their views

deidre.mccabe@9I��.Ca — Fri, 15 Aug 2025 18:07:12 +0000

Opinion: As 9I��’s president, I have a duty to all students, no matter their views deidre.mccabe@… Fri, 08/15/2025 - 14:07

This piece appeared as an op-ed in English in the Montreal Gazette on August 8, 2024

My convocation speech is interrupted by a shout from the back of the audience: “Shame on you, Saini! Listen to your students!”

Similar shouts have been heard at campus protests across the country since Oct. 7, 2023, becoming louder with the appearance of encampments. They seek to coerce universities into taking a side, through institutional decisions and actions, in a geopolitical conflict half a world away, something well outside our missions.

Every time this call has been directed my way, I’ve privately wondered: Which students? The handful who shout loudest and most often, almost always hiding behind a mask? Or those who report being targeted by intimidatory tactics on campus, made fearful to the point of avoiding classes? Or those hurting deeply and looking for empathy and help? Or those who remind me this conflict has two sides and that the distinction between perpetrator and victim has been a matter of debate? Or the silent majority whose whispers about simply wanting to pursue their education are drowned out by incessant declamations? I have the duty and privilege to work with and listen to all my students — 40,000 of them, with wonderfully and dramatically diverse identities, nationalities, beliefs and political views. On the crisis in the Middle East, I hear students express conflicting perspectives on a war that has devastated Israelis and Palestinians alike and has profound and intensely personal impacts for many members of our community. University leaders have a duty to recognize and demonstrate care in the face of the real and complex emotions evoked by this crisis. Carrying out this duty is a far more challenging task than the coercive forces seeking to bully universities into one-sided actions would have the world believe. Caving in to such pressures would not only have universities stray far beyond their academic mission, but also undermine it.

As a child of parents who survived gratuitous bloodletting during India’s partition and having myself lived through three wars, I am fully aware of the devastation, divisions and sectarianism violent conflicts unleash. While I long for Palestinians and Israelis to find enduring peace, this can only be achieved through a resolution that is just for both parties, and responsibility for reaching it resides first and foremost with them. It is not for universities to force a solution on one party or both, even if they could. The role and value of universities — indeed, their duty — is to educate, ideate and serve as forums for constructive dialogue. This role seems obvious, yet it is exceptionally complicated to execute. This is especially so in a moment like the present, when nuanced argument is far too often overtaken by absolutist ideologies that sequester themselves within echo chambers. When advocates demand universities align themselves uniquely with their rhetoric or take actions that essentially aim to decimate or denigrate another party, such a role becomes a non-starter. Too often, such advocates assert that their demands are unquestionably valid and must be met, failing which they will take any and all means to impose their will. This is what universities are up against. It is daunting and dangerous, including and especially for society as a whole. Our work, then, lies in creating opportunities and issuing invitations to resist polarized rhetoric, and instead lean into the grey, messy zone between “truths” that some perceive as categorical. It is here that learning, ideas, inquiry and discovery become possible. Inviting students to step into this space is admittedly not easy at this time. But I have hope.

In recent weeks, I have met with multiple groups of 9I�� students. They hold diverse identities and opposing views about the conflict. Throughout these conversations, students expressed anguish about the calamity abroad and related fears about the rise in hate at home. They also articulated their need for a university setting that sees their humanity, engages with empathy, acts with principle, and provides a climate where they can thrive academically and be proud of who they are. These expectations are eminently reasonable. Their transversality demonstrates the possibility for exchange and discourse across differences. In this way, the university becomes a model for civil society. So, of course I agree with the call: “Listen to your students!” All my students.

Deep Saini: 9I�� encampment an illegal occupation, not a peaceful protest

deidre.mccabe@9I��.Ca — Thu, 18 Jul 2024 14:25:49 +0000

Deep Saini: 9I�� encampment an illegal occupation, not a peaceful protest deidre.mccabe@… Thu, 07/18/2024 - 10:25

This piece appeared as an op-ed in English in the Montreal Gazette on May 22, 2024

Tensions and divisions since Oct. 7 are not just university problems. We require collaboration and courage from all levels of government.

The human suffering in the Middle East has brought enormous pain to people worldwide, including at 9I��. Especially for members of our community who have personal ties to the region, it has been a time of grief, anger and anxiety.

Diverse, often opposing viewpoints, have given rise to fierce debates. People within and outside academic communities have gathered at universities to amplify their views.

To educate, to learn, to research, universities must welcome debate and challenge convention. And that is precisely why protests must be roundly protected, regardless of the cause they support. But what we are seeing on many campuses goes beyond protest.

Since April 27, 9I��’s downtown campus has been the site of a growing pro-Palestinian encampment occupied by hundreds of mostly masked persons who say they will not leave until the university cuts ties with Israel.

Through discussions in good faith with the encampment participants, we have tried to reach a mutual understanding, including by offering to:

Examine divestment, in ways that are geographically neutral and align with our values, from companies whose revenues largely come from weapons, using our established policies and within an accelerated timeline;
Increase 9I��’s links to scholars and institutions in Gaza and the West Bank, and provide urgent support to displaced students and scholars;
Where permitted, extend 9I��’s transparency in our investment reporting to include equity holdings under $500,000.

Participants in encampments elsewhere have seen such offers as important steps and have reached agreements with university administrations. Yet at 9I��, the occupants continue to eschew meaningful conversation.

The participants are asking, primarily, for divestment and severance from organizations — including academic ones — because of where they are situated. Doing so would compromise 9I��’s mission and ability to create a healthy, safe environment.

Experience has taught us that maintaining a neutral institutional stance on geopolitical matters best supports — as a whole — our 50,000 members who hold varied political views, represent diverse identities, origins and beliefs, and ardently espouse various causes. Students and academics are trained to interrogate and contest assumptions and authorities. An inclusive environment, open to diverse viewpoints and difficult conversations, is essential to advancing knowledge.

However, resorting to intimidatory tactics is antithetical to our values. What is happening at 9I�� isn’t a peaceful protest; it’s an unlawful occupation.

The space is barricaded, with participants refusing entry to those who do not pass their vetting, including fire inspectors or police. They blocked a building’s emergency exit, creating a hazard. Profanity-laced graffiti has repeatedly defaced our historic buildings. 

The encampment has notably drawn counterprotests. Hundreds of individuals faced off on our campus a few weeks ago, separated by approximately 100 police officers. Throughout, slogans are being chanted that — regardless of their intent or origin — have harmful impacts, causing some members of our university community to feel unwelcome and threatened. 

We have been compelled to move our spring convocation, depriving graduates of celebrating this milestone on our beautiful downtown campus, as they usually would.  

Most recently, members of the university’s leadership and their families have been targeted at their homes by groups clearly linked to the encampment. This crosses the line into harassment and intimidation.

From the outset, we have collaborated with police and sought their help to end the occupation peacefully. While we continue working hard to maintain a climate where all members of our community feel safe, realizing this objective will require more co-ordinated action.

Ultimately, ending a decades-long conflict is beyond the mandate and means of any university. The encampments at 9I�� and other campuses throw into relief the tensions and divisions in Canadian society that have sharply escalated since Oct. 7. These are not just university problems. They are regional and national.

Universities require collaboration and courage from actors at all levels of government to work toward peaceful and effective solutions.

Deep Saini is president and vice-chancellor of 9I��.

Positioning Canada’s universities for the future

deidre.mccabe@9I��.Ca — Thu, 18 Jul 2024 14:09:37 +0000

Positioning Canada’s universities for the future deidre.mccabe@… Thu, 07/18/2024 - 10:09

This piece appeared in English in University Affairs on December 6, 2023

Deep Saini began his term as the chair of the board of directors for Universities Canada in October 2023. The 18th principal and vice-chancellor of 9I��, he is a career academic with a research background in plant biology. He most recently served as president of Dalhousie University and, prior to that, was vice-chancellor and president of the University of Canberra in Australia. Dr. Saini grew up in India and received his PhD in plant physiology from the University of Adelaide in Australia. I recently caught up with Dr. Saini to discuss his aspirations and thoughts on the current challenges facing Canadian higher education.

University Affairs: What do you hope to accomplish in your new role as chair of the board of directors of Universities Canada?

Dr. Saini: We are at a time where we need to be much more deliberate about educating Canadians about the value of universities to this country. In my view, the role of Canada’s universities has never been more critical to the advancement of our society. We are the economic and social anchors within our local economies, and yet that is not widely recognized. At the national level, universities are where major issues get debated, where solutions are found, and where the talent that drives our country forward is developed. Universities also serve as Canada’s global ambassadors in terms of educational diplomacy; we are among the biggest connectors in the world. We are also the town square of our country and the conveners of societal debate, especially on big issues where we are in a position to play the honest brokers. However, we don’t always step up and assume all those roles with equal emphasis. Those are some of the major ways in which I would like to better position Canada’s universities.

UA: The role of universities as a town square appears increasingly under threat with isolated incidents of conferences being canceled and professors being censored or punished for expressing certain political positions. How can universities protect their space where civil debate can happen freely and opinion can be challenged respectfully?

Dr. Saini: This is a very timely question because we’re living through that right now. The first thing is education. Ignorance thrives in dark places. An education, however, has the power to shine a light on those dark places, to open new horizons and sensibilities that prevent disinformation and misinformation from taking root. Secondly, speaking up on difficult issues is never easy, and there have always been people who have tried to stifle academic freedom and free speech. As university leaders, we have a moral obligation to stand up with courage to defend the freedom to debate difficult issues. Of course, if debate degenerates into incitement of violence, hatred, or breach of law, we have to step in as well. But there must be a pretty good reason for such an intervention and the bar for that has to be quite high. For example, being uncomfortable with an issue or feeling insulted are not sufficient reasons to stop debate. We must learn as a society that uncomfortable encounters happen in life, and that that’s very much part of a good debate. A healthy debate that puts our preconceived notions to the test is often how we arrive at the right decision, so it is indeed something that is worth protecting.

“Ignorance thrives in dark places. An education, however, has the power to shine a light on those dark places, to open new horizons and sensibilities that prevent disinformation and misinformation from taking root.”

UA: Universities across the country are also increasingly facing threats to their institutional autonomy. Whether it is demands to tie funding to labour market needs, government representation on boards, or more recently in Quebec, the tuition levels for out-of-province and international students. How do you defend against those encroachments and protect institutional autonomy?

Dr. Saini: There is one common element among the nature of these encroachments: they generally come from a position of ignorance, and very often those who are doing the encroaching don’t quite have the facts. The interference also often comes from a position of some kind of power. The antidote to ignorance is evidence and information. We haven’t always been very good at distilling down the facts to a level that general population can understand. We must sharpen the art of translating facts into simple language and presenting the information in a way that is more accessible. This often means that, in addition to correcting ignorance and misinformation, we also have to confront deliberate disinformation. That’s when it gets tricky, because university leaders must tread the fine line between speaking up and safeguarding the interests of the institutions they serve. The stakes for society and humanity are increasingly high, so those of us who are in a position to influence decisions with facts must find the right combination of courage and tact to speak up.

UA: It is rare for a university leader to have served in leadership positions at six Canadian universities, not to mention your international experience in Australia and India, where you grew up. How does that breadth and depth of experience influence your leadership style?

Dr. Saini: Let me point to three aspects of my journey that are particularly relevant in this regard. In the 41 years since I arrived in Canada, I’ve experienced this country almost from coast to coast and in a very immersive way. I know exactly how it feels to be in a university in Alberta versus Quebec or Ontario versus Nova Scotia, and what issues and opportunities are specific to each context. I believe that’s an asset that I offer to bring people together.

The other element is my international experience. I’ve experienced Australia as a graduate student and then as a university president. I’ve experienced India as an undergraduate student and a master’s student, and, more recently, given India’s emergence as a global player, I am often working to connect India with the rest of the world and vice versa. From this broad East-West perspective, I see clearly how the centre of gravity of the world is shifting eastward, and how we in the West can position ourselves to seize the attendant opportunities.

And third, we live in a time when inclusion, access, and the need to diversify our workforce is critical for success. I don’t see diversity as just a nice thing to do; I see it as an operational necessity and a competitive advantage. I am a stickler for excellence, but I also believe very strongly that nobody should be deprived of the opportunity to excel because of their background or circumstance. We are a very diverse country, and we must harness all that diversity to the benefit of the country. I believe I can bring my lived experiences to both the debate on this issue as well as the implementation of appropriate measures to attain our objectives.

UA: Many international students are struggling to pay very high tuition fees, then looking to pursue a chosen career in Canada that sometimes does not materialize after graduation. How concerned are you that Canada and its academic institutions are not fulfilling their promise to international students?

Dr. Saini: I agree with some of that but not necessarily with the rest. Yes, in an ideal world, I would want everybody to have an education that is free and accessible, and high tuition has introduced a very different element to international education than when I was a student. This said, education costs money, and someone has to cover the cost. While domestic students are funded through a combination of tuition, government grants and tax-financed infrastructure, it is tuition alone that is available to the universities to cover the entire cost of educating an international student. That’s where the disparity comes from. There is also the issue of value for money. I would say that students who come to study at our universities are getting some of the best education in the world at a fraction of the price that they would pay, for example, south of the border. The problems you point to relate to the many sub-standard actors who have gotten into the act. As a country, we need to pay attention to this, and not simply leave it to the devices of free enterprise. It has introduced a distortion in the system that is unhealthy for the country.

UA: What aspect of your new role are you most looking forward to?

Dr. Saini: Universities in Canada come under provincial jurisdiction, so we spend a lot of time working with the provinces. Universities Canada is the only institution that provides a unifying forum that functions at the national level. There is a lot of diversity among universities and the situations in which they exist – geographically, economically, politically, and so on. But they are united in one regard that they collectively comprise one of Canada’s biggest national assets. This opportunity to function at that level, to engage with university leadership from across the country, and to help showcase the value of this amazing national asset is what I’m most looking forward to.

UA: What do you consider the most pressing concerns facing universities in the next decade?

Dr. Saini: We have already spoken about some of them, and I could add the often-discussed funding challenges to that. But let me go to two different ones.

One is the assault on trust by the modern vehicles of misinformation and disinformation. Universities were once the bastion of trustworthy information, but the pillars of trust in our society are being demolished, partly by bad actors and partly by the social media channels that have spawned on the technologies we created through our own ingenuity – with the former often exploiting the capabilities of the latter. Social media is incredibly powerful. I liken it to a matchstick – you can light the world with it, and we have, or you can burn the world down with it, and I fear we could end up doing that. We need to take control of these tremendously powerful channels of misinformation and disinformation.

Second, I constantly hear from students just how worried they are about the future, and how they want to do something about it. That anxiety concerns me deeply, but accompanying this is also an opportunity to harness the tremendous energy of our youth to address the big problems that are rapidly coming at us, including climate change and what I see as an increasing global disorder. As the institutions where those young people reside, learn and develop themselves, it is incumbent upon us to step up and help channel their interests, passions and energy to help steer the world back in the right direction.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

President’s Perspective: A serious threat to our special culture

deidre.mccabe@9I��.Ca — Thu, 18 Jul 2024 13:57:52 +0000

President’s Perspective: A serious threat to our special culture deidre.mccabe@… Thu, 07/18/2024 - 09:57

This piece appeared as an op-ed in English in the 9I�� News in November 2023

On October 13, the Quebec government announced plans to change the tuition model for students from outside the province studying at Quebec’s universities. The changes, which wouldn’t affect students who are already studying at 9I��, are expected to take effect in the fall of 2024.

Under this plan, the tuition rate for Canadian students from outside Quebec would almost double – from $8,992 to around $17,000. The changes would affect students in undergraduate programs and in non-research and professional master’s programs.

We spoke to President Deep Saini about the potential impact of these proposed changes, and about 9I��’s position on the government’s plans.

Can you give us a sense of how these proposed changes would affect 9I��?

In addition to the tuition changes that would impact Canadian students from outside the province, the government also announced plans to change the funding model regarding international students, with the government clawing back more money from those tuition fees. If implemented, these changes together will have profound and far-reaching consequences for 9I��. These range from a drop in the number of students and important revenue losses, to devastating consequences for some faculties, and a suspension or re-evaluation of some major infrastructure projects.

Can you tell me more about how these changes would affect 9I��’s student numbers and the University’s finances?

Such a dramatic increase in tuition rates will significantly reduce the number of Canadian students that we attract from outside Quebec. While we will step up recruitment efforts to fill these vacant spaces with students from other jurisdictions, we estimate that, in our best-case scenario, 20 per cent of those spaces will remain unfilled. In the worst case, the number could go as high as 80 per cent.

If you add in the losses expected from the claw back on international student tuition, 9I�� is looking at an annual revenue decline between $42 million and $94 million.

As troubling as the financial concerns are, I am also deeply worried about the implications that this could have for our students and for the type of experience they have at 9I��.

Some 9I�� Faculties will lose most of their students from the rest of Canada. The consequences will be especially devastating for the Schulich School of Music. Almost 40 per cent of its undergraduate students are from the rest of Canada.

The Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the Faculty of Education and the B.A. & Sc. interfaculty programs will also be severely affected by a loss of out-of-province students.

Given that a third of our student-athletes are from other parts of Canada, our varsity teams will also experience a major impact. We may have to suspend or cut some 9I�� Redbirds and Martlets teams.

Because of the financial uncertainty surrounding the new tuition policy, it could become necessary to implement some major cost-cutting measures, including a hiring freeze. We will do everything we can to avoid significant job reductions, but we may be forced to consider that possibility as well.

Could you elaborate on the implications these measures could have for the student experience?

The 9I�� student community is unique in Canada and its remarkable diversity is an absolute hallmark of what makes 9I�� such a special place. Our students come from Quebec, both anglophones and francophones. They come from across Canada, and they come from around the world. This is a university where a student from Trois-Rivières can share a classroom with students from Toronto, Tokyo, Turin, and Truro, Nova Scotia, and those interactions will help shape the way they all see the world.

The measures proposed by the government would almost certainly change the makeup of our student body and that presents a serious threat to the special culture we have developed and nurtured here.

The government has argued that the presence of out-of-province students, particularly in Montreal, contributes to the decline of French in this city. It has also stated that most of these students do not remain in Quebec once their studies have been completed – though we have not seen any data on that. 9I�� is sensitive to these concerns. In fact, just before the government announced these proposed changes, we were finalizing our own plans to launch an ambitious initiative that would have addressed them. I would like to talk more about that in a minute.

Do students from outside the province always stay in Quebec after finishing their degrees? No, but many of them have stayed and have built their lives here – joining the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal or an indie rock band, opening restaurants, launching businesses, contributing to the city’s flourishing AI and gaming sectors, and much more.

As for the students who do return to their home provinces, they bring with them a deeper appreciation of Quebec culture, a better understanding of Quebec society, and a strong affection for this city and province. Some of these alums go on to prominent positions in government, in business, in academe, and in other spheres. They have built a network of contacts here and those connections will pay dividends for them and for Quebec as well.

Let’s also not forget that out-of-province students, while they live here, contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to the Quebec economy each year.

You mentioned a 9I�� initiative that would address some of the government’s concerns about out-of-province students.

Before the government outlined its plans to change the tuition model, we were preparing to announce the creation of a Rayonnement du français initiative and we were going to make an initial commitment of $50 million over five years to launch it. There are many facets to it, but the idea at its core is to make it easier for our non-francophone students, as well as our faculty and staff, to become better integrated into Quebec society, both linguistically and culturally.

We plan to offer a greatly enhanced range of French programs for our community, as well as a series of initiatives that would give students further opportunities to experience immersion programs as well as internships in French with Quebec employers. The initiative would also create opportunities for stronger partnerships with our sister universities in Quebec.

Learning French is one of our best tools for encouraging the retention of people from elsewhere and I am living proof of that.

When I joined Université de Montréal in 1987, I didn’t speak French. A year and a half later, thanks to support from that institution, I was teaching plant biology to students, in French.

If I hadn’t had the opportunity to learn the language, I wouldn’t have stayed in Montreal for so long, and I probably wouldn’t have come back either. I would never have had the chance to raise my children in this city or to send them to a French-speaking school.

We attract tremendously talented people to 9I�� from different parts of Canada and from around the globe. We want to make it easier for these people to choose to remain in Quebec, to choose to contribute to Quebec.

It is unfortunate that the government’s recent announcement has complicated our ability to launch this initiative, given the financial uncertainty we are now contending with. That said, we are still committed to doing this further down the line.

How have discussions with the government gone so far?

Shortly after the proposed changes were first announced, I had a one-on-one meeting with the Minister of Higher Education, Pascale Déry, and I expressed my grave concerns about the potential impacts these changes would have on 9I�� and our sister universities.

More recently, Concordia University President Graham Carr, Bishop’s University Principal Sébastien Lebel-Grenier and I met with Premier François Legault and Minister Déry. We used the opportunity to present a joint proposal, one that, for our part, was closely connected to the aims of our Rayonnement du français initiative.

We asked the government to set aside its proposed changes to tuition and, instead, allow us to partner with them to promote the French language, and to build a more prosperous Quebec.

We would do this through a range of initiatives designed to help non-francophone students from outside Quebec integrate linguistically and culturally into the workforce and Quebec society.

While the government welcomed these ideas and our commitment to preserving and promoting French, we await further news about whether they will accept our proposal.

What happens next?

The conversation is not over. We will continue to demonstrate the negative effects these measures would have on 9I��, on the higher education sector, and on the future of Quebec society. Discouraging talented people from coming to 9I�� and Quebec will not benefit the province and will undermine the kind of positive economic growth that the government seeks. We are determined to keep our doors open to students from across Canada and around the world.

I am heartened by the fact that we are not alone. In an op-ed in La Presse, the heads at Université de Montréal, Université Laval, Université de Sherbrooke, Polytechnique Montréal, and HEC Montréal, wrote that we must recognize how students from outside the province “contribute, like Quebec students, to the excellence, quality, diversity and relevance of our institutions.” I completely agree with that sentiment expressed by my colleagues.

9I�� is a globally pre-eminent university that is locally anchored. This is a Quebec institution, first and foremost, that has made many important contributions to society, both at home and abroad. We are determined to continue to play that role, and we remain committed to working with the government to achieve our shared goals of protecting and promoting French while strengthening Quebec’s economy and social wellbeing.

9I��, une université québécoise, pour l’avenir du Québec

deidre.mccabe@9I��.Ca — Tue, 16 Jul 2024 14:58:36 +0000

9I��, une université québécoise, pour l’avenir du Québec deidre.mccabe@… Tue, 07/16/2024 - 10:58

This piece appeared as an op-ed in French in Le Devoir on November 27, 2023.

Le 13 octobre dernier, le gouvernement du Québec a annoncé son intention de plus que doubler les droits de scolarité exigés des étudiants canadiens universitaires hors Québec et d’imposer une récupération des droits de scolarité versés par les étudiants internationaux. Fièrement québécoise, l’Université 9I�� fournit de nombreuses et importantes contributions à la société. Tout en étant ancrée au Québec, elle assume un rôle de calibre mondial en enseignement supérieur et en recherche fondamentale. À ce titre, les mesures proposées par le gouvernement risquent de nuire gravement à la capacité de l’Université de promouvoir le français, de renforcer l’économie et de faire rayonner le Québec, tant au Canada qu’ailleurs dans le monde.

Avant même que la nouvelle politique du gouvernement soit adoptée, les répercussions se font déjà sentir. L’agence de notation Moody’s a donné un avertissement concernant les conséquences importantes de cette décision sur la cote de crédit de l’Université. En effet, une augmentation des taux d’intérêt pour nos projets d’infrastructure en cours coûterait à 9I�� et au gouvernement plusieurs dizaines de millions de dollars.

Nous partageons la volonté du gouvernement de protéger et de promouvoir la langue française. D’ailleurs, bien avant l’annonce de ces mesures, l’Université avait présenté son plan de francisation à la ministre de l’Enseignement supérieur, Pascale Déry. Le programme Rayonnement du français, qui représentait un investissement de 50 millions de dollars sur cinq ans pour la francisation des membres de la communauté mcgilloise, était au centre de cette volonté.

Malgré les difficultés actuelles, l’Université maintient son engagement de protéger et de promouvoir le français. Le 6 novembre dernier, nous avons présenté, conjointement avec les autres universités anglophones, une proposition visant à aider les étudiants non francophones de l’extérieur du Québec à mieux s’intégrer à la société québécoise, sur le plan tant linguistique que culturel.

Un récent sondage montre d’ailleurs que 64 % des Québécois préfèrent que l’on francise les étudiants de l’extérieur du Québec plutôt que de doubler leurs droits de scolarité. Le gouvernement a l’occasion de faire des universités anglophones de véritables partenaires dans la promotion du français, pourquoi ne pas la saisir ?

Ce que nous avons toujours souhaité, c’est de permettre aux plus grands talents de la planète de venir étudier à 9I��, de choisir de rester au Québec et de contribuer à notre société. Bien que 9I�� ait une capacité extraordinaire d’attirer ces talents, elle se mesure néanmoins à d’autres universités. Si les droits de scolarité des étudiants de l’extérieur de la province augmentent comme le gouvernement le propose, les universités québécoises seront de loin les plus coûteuses au pays. Elles ne pourront tout simplement plus se mesurer à leurs homologues canadiennes dans la course aux meilleurs étudiants. Ainsi, la mesure proposée nuira non seulement à nos universités, mais aussi à notre capacité de recherche fondamentale et d’innovation, et affaiblira ainsi le Québec.

Il est important de rappeler que 9I�� est au coeur de nombreux réseaux de recherche, collaborant avec d’autres universités au Québec, au Canada et à l’étranger. Ces réseaux permettent le regroupement de talents, d’idées et de connaissances dont une économie a besoin pour se développer. 9I�� a ainsi contribué, en partenariat avec d’autres universités du Québec, à nourrir de riches écosystèmes d’innovation, par exemple dans les domaines de l’intelligence artificielle en créant Mila avec l’Université de Montréal, de la recherche médicale avec l’Université de Sherbrooke, ou des batteries avec l’Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières.

Au moment où le Québec fait face à de nouveaux défis, le gouvernement doit permettre à l’Université 9I�� de continuer à promouvoir l’innovation dans les domaines d’avenir et à favoriser l’attrait des meilleurs talents, quelle que soit leur origine.

Il faut donner au Québec les moyens de ses ambitions. De notre point de vue, cela passe également par une plus grande confiance en la culture du Québec, et en sa richesse et sa vitalité. Les universités québécoises, tant francophones qu’anglophones, sont un vecteur de notre culture. Elles permettent à des milliers d’étudiants de tous les horizons de la découvrir, de s’en imprégner, puis de la partager tout au long de leur vie, et ce, partout où ils se trouvent.

Limiter l’accès aux études supérieures en exigeant des droits de scolarité trop élevés plutôt que d’accueillir, de franciser et d’intégrer les d’étudiants hors Québec à notre main-d’oeuvre est un non-sens. Cela ne ferait que freiner l’essor de notre économie et empêcherait notre culture de s’épanouir, tant à l’intérieur qu’à l’extérieur de nos frontières.

Nous recommandons donc au gouvernement du Québec de reporter toute décision le temps d’étudier en profondeur la question des droits de scolarité, afin de s’assurer que ces derniers sont concurrentiels par rapport à ceux des autres universités canadiennes. L’avenir du Québec en dépend. L’économie et la prospérité du Québec dépendent de la contribution unique de chaque université.

Deep Saini: “There are so many opportunities out there for 9I��. We must be bold”

deidre.mccabe@9I��.Ca — Thu, 11 Jul 2024 18:50:03 +0000

Deep Saini: “There are so many opportunities out there for 9I��. We must be bold” deidre.mccabe@… Thu, 07/11/2024 - 14:50

This piece appeared in English in the 9I�� Reporter on December 15, 2022.

Deep Saini begins his mandate as 9I��’s 18th Principal and Vice-Chancellor on April 1, 2023. He’s looking forward to getting to know all the new faces that will fill those first weeks. And he takes comfort in knowing there will be a familiar face looking upon him from his office wall.

“I have a portrait of my dad in my office as a mark of gratitude for what he did for me,” he says. “But more importantly, it reminds me of the transformative power of education.”

Education is the grand throughline of a life and career that has taken Deep Saini around the world. He grew up in India, where he completed his honours BSc and MSc from Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana. He then moved to Australia to earn a PhD in Plant Physiology from the University of Adelaide.

He came to Canada in 1982 on a postdoctoral research fellowship at the University of Alberta. Save for a three-year return to Australia – where he served as Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Canberra – Canada has been his home ever since. Saini was a professor at the Université de Montréal for 18 years before he took on a series of leadership roles at the Universities of Waterloo and Toronto. Since 2020, he has served as President and Vice-Chancellor of Dalhousie University.

But Deep Saini’s extraordinary journey really started with that of a little boy – his father – a hundred years ago.

As a six-year-old in Punjab, India, in the 1920s, Chanan Singh Saini’s future was decided. The youngest son in a family of subsistence farmers, he worked the fields beside his brothers to put food on the table. The family couldn’t afford to hire hands; there was absolutely no chance of anybody going to school. Like so many before him, Chanan would spend his life on the farm.

The family grew sugarcane. One day, Chanan’s father sent him to the village to fetch oil for the little mill that crushed sugarcane to make sugar. As the youngest, Chanan was the most dispensable on the farm.

On the outskirts of the village, the boy passed the one-room elementary school that had just opened. Had he passed a few minutes earlier or later, he might have missed the teacher handing out candy and little alphabet books. A real recruitment drive.

The lure of candy and a book proved too much for Chanan. Forgetting all about the mill oil, he sat down and spent the whole day in the classroom. It was his first-ever day of school.

Deep Saini sees the world in terms of opportunities and possibilities. He recently spoke with the 9I�� Reporter from his office at Dalhousie. Literally minutes before the interview, he and his wife, Rani, finalized the purchase of their new home in Pierrefonds-Roxboro on Montreal’s West Island. They’re excited to return to Montreal, where they raised their family, and to be close to their grandchildren. (Both their daughters now live with their own families in Ottawa.)

His mind is also racing with opportunities for 9I��.

He’s been following the progress on Montreal’s soon-to-be-completed light rail line to the West Island. How might the REM enhance the student experience at Macdonald Campus, he wonders? Saini was thrilled to see 9I�� recently open its new medical campus in Outaouais. What about other satellite campuses, or partnerships with other universities, or “sharing” distinguished professors, such as Nobel laureates, using remote learning technology?

Opportunities. Possibilities.

“Montreal is Canada’s university town,” says Saini. “I’m so pleased to see how well 9I�� and Université de Montréal are collaborating, and how well 9I�� and École Polytechnique de Montréal and others are collaborating. I think a whole new world is emerging in Montreal, and we’re an essential player in it.”

“There are so many opportunities out there for 9I��,” he says. “We need to be bold.”

Saini started his presidency at Dalhousie mere weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic turned the world upside down. Barely settled in his new position, he led Dal through the same challenges that 9I�� faced, including the sudden shutdown of university activities in March 2020; the quick pivot to remote learning and work arrangements; revised logistics for students living in residences; mental health support for people living in isolation; the coordination of on-campus testing; hybrid learning and the eventual return to campus.

Now, as the world lurches forward in the wake of two-plus years of pandemic, Saini sees an occasion “for some serious creative destruction.”

Again: where some see uncertainty, Saini sees opportunity.

“We have to rebuild cohesion within organizations while taking advantage of the new technologies that allow us to work remotely,” he says. “How do we create a more family-friendly work environment that retains the collaborative energy found in traditional, in-person workspaces?”

Saini admits to knowing very little about Teams or Zoom prior to the pandemic. “Now I feel like I live on Teams,” he chuckles. “And I will never give it up.”

He believes platforms like Zoom and Teams offer some advantages over traditional classrooms or conference rooms.

"We can be in a meeting with 1,000 people, yet you and I, looking at each other on-screen, can feel that we are talking one-on-one,” Saini says. “I’ve had virtual town halls where I’ve had this kind of an experience with a person asking a question. Whereas in a physical town hall, that person could be sitting in the 70th row in the back of a room, where you can barely see them.”

However, Saini also understands that as brave as this new world may be, it still requires good old-fashioned human contact.

“You can’t shake hands with somebody on a screen. You can’t enjoy the same experience of sitting down over lunch with a colleague,” says the man who drinks very little coffee and yet would occasionally line up at the Tim Hortons on campus just so he could chat with students. “Striking a deal is very different on Zoom than in real life.”

“If we went back to where we were pre-pandemic, it would be a big opportunity lost. We have to be ready to merge the old ways of working with some of the incredible lessons we learned during that time,” Saini says. “How do we bring to bear all the knowledge and learning and experiences we had through this pandemic to create a better academy, a better society? This a very exciting opportunity to rethink who we are.”

Chanan was excited when he came home from that first day of school, but his brothers punished him for shirking his farm duties. He feared further repercussions. It was safer to stay on the farm.

But a few days later, the teacher, he of the candy and alphabet books, knocked on the family door. The teacher implored Chanan’s father to allow the boy to return to class.

Chanan’s father resisted. He didn’t know much about education, and he failed to see how it was going to improve the family’s situation. He needed his children working on the farm and, quite literally, bringing home the bread.

But the teacher felt a responsibility to the students in his class. More importantly, he felt a responsibility to those who weren’t in his class. Yet. He refused to take no for an answer. He argued his point, even offering to pay the boy’s nominal tuition. Eventually, he wore down Chanan’s father.

The next day, the boy was back in school.

Saini sees research universities – especially publicly funded ones like 9I�� and Dalhousie – as having twin responsibilities to students and society.

Students, he says, “are why we are here.”

He’s an advocate for connecting with students in myriad ways. “Student unions are an important interface, of course, but I don’t think that should be our only point of contact,” says Saini. “We need to be out in the corridors and on the grounds of the University and listen to the students through multiple channels. What are they telling you?”

Students have told Saini many things, especially about their hunger for experiential learning, interdisciplinary education, and a global experience. Even the universities that deliver on those fronts can always find room to improve.

As for serving society, Saini believes that research universities play a vital role in the world moving out of an “unprecedented confluence of wicked problems and challenges”—but it will take an unprecedented coordination and collaboration.

“Who is going to lead the way?” he asks. “It’s not just oceanographers or geographers or engineers or economists or managers or petroleum experts or battery designers or humanists or social scientists. It’s none of them alone, but all of them together.”

“Working in a silo is increasingly a thing of the past. Researchers need to join forces because the big problems of today reside at the intersections – and so do the solutions.”

He feels that the wide-ranging breadth of 9I�� expertise makes the University particularly well-positioned to create those solutions.

“9I�� consistently ranks among the world’s top universities – out of some 30,000 plus institutions. It speaks volumes about the quality of the University and its people,” says Saini. “There are not many universities in the world that have the bench strength and intellectual firepower that 9I�� does. But with that, comes enormous responsibility. If we are not going to take on these challenges, who will?

“Those who come up with solutions will be remembered in history as those who have taken humanity forward."

Chanan proved a brilliant student. He earned small scholarships that helped put him through elementary school, then middle school, then high school. After serving in the military, Chanan joined the forestry service at the lowest entry position. He kept pursuing his education through short courses and earned roughly the equivalent of a forestry degree. Moving up the ranks, Chanan retired in a middle management position, a remarkable achievement for someone coming from his background.

Throughout his life, Chanan valued education above all else. The father of four boys, he wanted to know more about his sons’ grades and test scores than medals in field hockey or track and field. If one of the boys earned 98 per cent on an exam, Chanan was the kind of father who would ask “What happened to the other two percent?”

Chanan brought other members of the extended family into his home and helped them forge new futures that, a short time before, would have seemed impossible. The actions of that one village schoolteacher rippled through generations.

Between them, the four sons enjoyed successful careers in the fields of financial audit, engineering, forestry, and advanced education.

Deep Saini wholeheartedly believes in the power of education to transform lives and the world – but only if Universities are themselves able to adapt.

He comes to 9I�� as the University’s first Principal of colour. It is a significance that is not lost upon him. Early in his career in Canada, he suffered racial slurs, even from coworkers. Again, he saw opportunity. Saini became a champion of equality, diversity, and inclusion issues.

Under his leadership, the University of Canberra launched its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Strategic Plan, which saw a dramatic rise in the percentage of Indigenous students, as well as Indigenous faculty cluster hires. During Saini’s tenure at Dalhousie, the university appointed several professionals to expand and oversee engagement, employment equity, and inclusion, with particular emphasis on African Nova Scotian and Indigenous Communities. The university also launched a Black Studies Research Institute and the Truro start program, giving students from underserved communities the opportunity to start their studies on Dal’s Agricultural Campus, in small cohorts with dedicated resources, before transferring to the larger Halifax campuses.

“I am always aware that I have a leadership shadow that people watch,” Saini says.

“The way I conduct myself opens doors for others. If I have been successful and I’ve conducted myself in an honorable way, others see that people from minority communities can be very effective. And that, in a very subtle way, changes the culture.”

“Most universities today have very good EDI policies,” he says. “Of course, if I see a policy gap, I will step in to address it. But policies and legislations alone don’t change culture. I’ve always felt that my strength is helping move that cultural needle.”

Chanan Singh Saini never forgot the family farm, or how he was able to move beyond it. Every so often, he would take his own sons to visit that teacher, long retired, who had offered candy and a book, but ended up giving Chanan the world.

Years later, as he prepared for the next leg in his own remarkable journey, one of Chanan’s sons would reflect on those visits with wonder undimmed by the decades.

“Visiting him was a very spiritual experience,” Deep Saini would recall, “just seeing this one man, a teacher, who changed absolutely everything.”

9I��, une institution québécoise à part entière

deidre.mccabe@9I��.Ca — Tue, 20 Jun 2023 18:51:48 +0000

9I��, une institution québécoise à part entière deidre.mccabe@… Wed, 06/21/2023 - 10:18

9I��, une institution québécoise à part entière

Deep Saini
Principal de l’Université 9I�� depuis le 1^er avril 2023

Je suis arrivé à Montréal en décembre 1987, ne parlant pas un mot de français. Moins de deux ans plus tard, j’enseignais la biologie à l’Université de Montréal, en français. Je suis resté 18 ans à Montréal. C’est ici que ma femme et moi avons élevé nos enfants, qui sont allés à l’école en français. Aujourd’hui, je reviens dans cette métropole que j’aime tant : Montréal, c’est chez moi!

Des milliers d’étudiants et de chercheurs de l’Université 9I�� ont suivi un parcours similaire au mien, qu’ils soient québécois, canadiens ou qu’ils viennent d’ailleurs dans le monde. Ils ont été formés à Montréal et ont fait avancer la recherche et l’innovation québécoises. Plusieurs sont restés et se sont intégrés à la société québécoise. Certains sont partis vers d’autres horizons pour revenir plus tard. D’autres ne sont pas revenus, mais ont gardé des liens étroits avec 9I��, Montréal et le Québec.

Nous connaissons tous Moderna, qui a notamment développé un vaccin contre la COVID-19. Le cofondateur, Noubar Afeyan, d’origine arménienne, a passé une partie de son enfance à Montréal et a obtenu son diplôme en génie chimique de 9I��. Récemment, il expliquait devant un auditoire à la Conférence de Montréal que la décision de Moderna d’opter pour la région métropolitaine comme lieu de sa première usine hors des États-Unis reposait sur le fait que Montréal possédait toutes les qualités pour assurer le succès de ce projet, notamment la présence d’une université reconnue internationalement en recherche sur l’ARN messager : 9I��. Voilà un exemple éloquent qui démontre que le Québec profite de l’excellente réputation de 9I�� et de son vaste réseau de diplômés.

Aujourd’hui, plus de la moitié de nos étudiants sont des Québécois, et la majorité de notre population étudiante parle français. Tous nos étudiants peuvent rédiger leurs examens, leurs travaux et leurs mémoires en français. De plus, notre programme de droit est bilingue. Enfin, nous avons ouvert un campus à Gatineau, où nos étudiants apprennent la médecine en français.

Nos collaborations avec les universités francophones sont nombreuses. Pour ne donner qu’un exemple, parlons du Mila, fruit d’un partenariat entre 9I�� et l’Université de Montréal, et qui fait de la métropole québécoise une plaque tournante mondiale de la recherche et de l’entrepreneuriat en intelligence artificielle.

Université québécoise et fière de l’être, 9I�� contribue à l’économie, au développement du savoir et à la culture du Québec. Elle est également l’université la plus internationale du pays, et l’une des plus internationales au monde. Nous jouons donc un rôle spécifique au Québec, comme chacun des 19 autres établissements universitaires québécois.

Le débat sur le financement des universités anglophones est stérile. Toutes les universités sont financées par le gouvernement du Québec selon la même formule. À part quelques enveloppes spécifiques destinées par exemple aux établissements en région, les universités québécoises reçoivent toutes le même montant par étudiant.

Certes, 9I�� bénéficie de généreux dons de ses diplômés. C’est aussi le cas, de plus en plus, pour les autres universités québécoises, quelle que soit leur langue d’enseignement. Faudrait-il pénaliser les établissements qui reçoivent davantage de dons? Ce faisant, c’est le Québec qui serait perdant, car ces dons financent la recherche de pointe, notamment dans les soins de santé.

9I�� attire également d’importantes subventions de recherche des gouvernements québécois et canadien, et de source privée; cela est la résultante de notre excellence dans ce domaine. Voudrait-on freiner les recherches réalisées en nos murs et auxquelles sont souvent associées d’autres universités québécoises? En quoi serait-il bénéfique pour le français au Québec de réduire la recherche faite à 9I��, souvent par des francophones?

La ministre de l’Enseignement supérieur, Pascale Déry, est à revoir la formule de financement des universités. Cette révision a, entre autres, comme objectif de contribuer à la vitalité du français au Québec, notamment dans le domaine de la recherche scientifique.

9I�� partage entièrement cet objectif et souhaite collaborer avec le gouvernement afin de l’atteindre. Il faut en effet protéger et promouvoir le français, et 9I�� s’y emploie déjà. Toutefois, assurons-nous qu’en protégeant le français, on n’affaiblit pas les institutions qui contribuent à la vitalité, à la compétitivité et à la prospérité du Québec. Apprécions toutes nos universités à leur juste valeur. Aidons-les à se développer, peu importe la langue d’enseignement, car la prospérité pérenne de notre société nécessite des efforts coordonnés de chacune d’entre elles.

Publié dans Le Devoir, le 21 juin 2023

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