Dear Editor:
Mr. Lautens indicates in his July 4 column that he has "given up trying to illuminate the Capilano University dispute." This is good because he clearly does not understand how Capilano operates. Capilano has a co-management model that allows faculty members to be involved in decisions (course offerings, program development, who teaches which courses, etc.) affecting their everyday lives. For example, when it comes to the cancellation of programs, historically, programs have been measured based on key performance indicators. If there were obvious problems, someone from the program had the opportunity to explain what was going on, and had an opportunity to correct problems. If the problems persisted, the program was cut. So, yes, academics were able to peacefully decide which programs would be discontinued. As a long-serving board member has pointed out, it is only in the last few years that protesters have arrived at board meetings becauseof a lack of transparency and after the procedure for identifying trouble spots was itself dumped without an adequate replacement. Faculty involvement is the Capilano way, even when the decisions are difficult.
Tim Acton
North Vancouver
