College Dean's Message

Tan’si, folks!

Since taking up the role of dean and vice provost of CSSH, I have been struck by how many of the colleagues I have had the good fortune to interact with may not yet be fully informed about what the college is designed to do and what its current capacity allows it to do. When clear information isn’t readily available, myths and rumours naturally tend to arise. These have included ideas that the college is mainly about central control or cost-cutting.

Given this context, I thought it was worth using our CSSH newsletter to set out what the college is meant to do. It is also worth being candid about some of the current capacity and funding dynamics that are currently shaping how we do it.

As some of you may be aware, the U of A’s One University model identifies three core functions of each college: 

The Office of Education provides coordinated enrolment planning and recruitment, along with consistent academic processes and timetabling. These efforts are meant to support the student experience by reducing barriers to movement across programs and by improving the predictability of course scheduling, an especially complex task across four large faculties with as wide a range of teaching cultures as those within the CSSH faculties.

The Office of Research offers end-to-end support for grants and creative work and ensures that CSSH researchers can form cross-faculty teams for major initiatives. They work collaboratively with the Research Partner Network, helping coordinate institution-wide research development support.

Finally, the Strategic Initiatives area advances, among many thing, Indigenous initiatives, ACB and international work, and links these efforts to university-wide institutional strategy.

The college is also meant to support continuing and professional education, where central units set platforms and standards, and colleges identify offerings that reflect local strengths. Taken together, these functions are geared toward CSSH aligning teaching, research and partnerships in ways that exceed what any one faculty tends to accomplish on their own.

One example of this interdisciplinary potential is the work emerging from the Lougheed Schools — made up of the recently renamed Peter Lougheed School of Leadership (formerly the PLLC) and the newly launched Peter Lougheed School of Politics and Democracy. Together, the Lougheed Schools draw on expertise across the arts, social sciences, education, business and law to help prepare students to be engaged citizens and leaders who can work across sectors and communities. Their development illustrates the kinds of cross-faculty collaborations and shared ambitions that the college model is designed to enable and strengthen.

All of this is to say that the college exists to coordinate and build on the work across faculties that faculties either do not have the capacity to attend to or are already engaged with. Its purpose is not to replace faculties or diminish their disciplinary identities. Instead, the college aligns the conditions under which faculties can deliver their programs and research with greater coherence and impact. Interdisciplinarity sits at the heart of these efforts.

Within CSSH, this coordinating function spans budget planning, space use, strategic hiring, research development, academic program oversight and enrolment management across the faculties within its ambit. With these functions aligned, duplications are meant to decrease, with the intention that students and staff will encounter a more consistent and navigable university.

The challenge is that this is not happening as efficiently as it might be, a point which has been made to me by a number of you. We are working on it, but as you might have already gathered, this work takes time, specialized staff and stable investment. Which we are also continuing to work on securing.

Of course, we cannot deliver all of this at once. And so, the work must be sequenced, both around the natural workflow of the university’s seasonal “rhythms” and according to the capacity of our various offices to take on the work in a sustainable way.

Of course, words are easy to write (even for a long in the tooth academic like me) — actions are far more difficult to implement. And in any case, I doubt that initial skeptics of the college model will have been won over in the course of the past 500 words (or so) of my explanation. 

As such, in upcoming dean’s newsletters, we plan on introducing specific people and teams within the college office, and give them the opportunity to talk about their roles, their priorities and the current projects they are working on to give you all a sense of the frustrations, the joy and the satisfaction they have experienced as they taken up these roles over the past number of years.

Stay tuned, and please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have.

Pishshapmishko,

Chris Andersen

Office of Access, Community and Belonging & Indigenous Initiatives

CSSH SHOUT OUT!

Usually, our CSSH Shout Outs go to an individual or a unit, but this month’s is a bit different – in fact, we hope you see yourself in it!

We’d like to shout out to everyone across CSSH who’s helping build a vibrant, interconnected community this November by celebrating our graduates — whether you joined a convocation platform party, hosted a grad lunch, paused so you didn’t walk through someone’s photo in front of Convocation Hall, or simply smiled and congratulated the happy folks in robes and the families holding flowers. These are all vital ways in which we create a sense of belonging in our university community.

Amplifying the Student Demographic Census

U of A students have received personalized links to complete the Student Demographic Census — a short, confidential survey that helps identify barriers, improve supports and strengthen belonging. Responses are used only to enhance student experiences and guide equity planning. 

The census remains open until Dec. 12, and we encourage instructors, advisors and staff to remind students to complete the census. Even a quick mention in class or eClass can make a big difference. Learn more about this work through Access, Community + Belonging here.

Office of Research

Research Administration Education Series 

One way the Research Partner Network supports researchers and administrators is by providing education and training. Our Research Administration Education Series (RAES) continues with the following webinars:

Series 1, Session 5: Subgrants & Service Agreements (via Zoom)
Wednesday, Dec. 3, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Register

Series 2, Session 1: Navigating Researcher Home Page (RHP) & eTRAC 
Monday, Dec. 8,  10:00 AM - 11:30 AM   Cameron Library 1-30 Register

Research Administration Pop-Up 

Members of the Research Partner Network will be live and in-person to answer your research administration questions.  These could include questions about different research policies, working in the Researcher Home Page, eligibility of expenses, applying for funding, etc.  Please join us on:   

Tuesday, Dec. 2, 1 PM – 3 PM Kipnes Academy 2-420 (Formerly ECHA)

Would you like us to attend one of your department, faculty or research/finance administrators’ meetings?  Let us know where you would like us to pop-up next: rsoinfo@ualberta.ca.

Research Partner–Led Supports for SSHRC IDG Success

The Research Partner Network offers hands-on support to help scholars prepare strong SSHRC Insight Development Grant applications, including a recently concluded five-day IDG Bootcamp for 12 researchers that provided focused writing time, peer exchange, and dedicated coaching. Its impact is clear: last year, 10 participants submitted applications and 8 received funding.

Beyond the bootcamp, researchers also benefit from tailored consultations, advanced proposal reviews, budget guidance and a suite of resources developed to support the 2026 IDG competition. 

These supports reflect our ongoing commitment to helping scholars develop compelling, well-crafted IDG proposals. For questions about the 2026 IDG, please contact Sylvia Madueke.

I-STEAM Research Project Applications 

Don’t miss this opportunity to share your expertise and welcome a fully-funded Indigenous undergraduate student onto your team to support your research in summer 2026. The I-Steam Pathways Program team is waiting to hear about your Social Science or STEM project to facilitate a connection with an Indigenous intern. Supervisor Project Submissions from U of A Faculty and Researchers are due by Nov. 30. Learn more here.

Office of Education

Job Shadow Program

On Nov. 12, the Office of Education welcomed two students who are participating in the Career Centre's Job Shadow Program. Director Vanessa Grabia hosted Hitomi Hasegawa (BEd Secondary) and Avigna Jena (MA Psychology) for the day, meeting with several colleagues in the college to learn more about post-secondary administrative work and numerous and varied career paths.

The Job Shadow Program’s next round is during Winter Term Reading Week. To learn about hosting and being a part of a student’s career development, visit the program’s website.

Teaching Squares

Looking to connect with other instructors from our college to exchange ideas, refine teaching skills and explore pedagogical approaches? There’s still time to join the Winter term cohort of Teaching Squares.

For those interested in learning more, reach out to us using this form by Dec. 1.

Performance Corner

Department of Drama: antigone lives*

The aftermath of civil war forms the backdrop of one family’s struggle in this daring reinvention of one of Sophocles’ greatest tragedies. Mature content.

Date: Dec. 4-13
Location: Timms Centre for the Arts
Learn more

Department of Art & Design: The World to Come

Exhibition running in the FAB Gallery until Dec. 17
Learn more

Department of Music: كواكب Kawakib al Sharq | Stars of the East

Middle Eastern and North African Music Ensemble MENAME and the Belediyya Dance Company pay tribute to several stars of the Middle East through this performance.

Date: Dec. 5
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Convocation Hall, North Campus
Learn more

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