We Are The University

Vice-Chancellor's Update | Tuesday 26 March 2024

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Mon Mar 25 2024 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Kia ora koutou

I hope you are enjoying these pleasant Autumn days and the energy across our campuses as we settle into the rhythm of 2024.

Proposed new faculty arrangements

Over the past two days, I have met with academic and professional staff in four of our faculties to discuss a proposed change to the alignment of our faculties, which I would like to share with you.

The proposal, which has been developed by a working group comprising leaders of the faculties directly involved, is to establish an entirely new faculty that combines the Faculties of Arts, Education and Social Work, and parts of Creative Arts and Industries (i.e. the Elam School of Fine Arts, School of Music, and Dance Programme). It is proposed that the School of Architecture and Planning and the Design Programme would be aligned with either the Faculty of Engineering or the proposed new faculty.

The decision to propose this change follows the University’s prudent financial management during the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic. This ensured a stable financial position for the University and has enabled University leaders to proactively consider how best to shape the institution for the future, responding not only to our strategy, but also to the external environment.

In this sense, the proposed change reflects the University’s strategic goals and offers an opportunity to increase collaboration across and within faculties, enhance the scale and concentration needed for future success and build on our excellence in teaching and research in those areas. It would also enable greater experiential learning opportunities and provide access to a wider variety of courses and subjects for our students.

It is proposed that the new faculty would begin operating in January 2025.

We are inviting feedback from staff and students on the proposal via an online formhttps://auckland.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6olpVs826xcPZsi that will be open until 5pm on Tuesday 23 April. You can find out more about the proposal and its rationale, and download the Proposal Document, on the Notice page herehttps://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/notices/2024/proposed-new-faculty-arrangements.html, and in the detailed staff FAQshttps://www.staff.auckland.ac.nz/en/news-events-and-notices/notices/notices-2024/quarter-1/proposed-new-faculty-arrangements.html.

All-staff forum, Wednesday 27 March

I hope you can join us at midday tomorrow for this month’s all-staff forum, in which we will discuss the faculty proposal (outlined above) and at which Tim Bluett, Chief Financial Officer, will provide a summary of our 2023 financial results.

Ngā mihi nui

Dawn

Professor Dawn Freshwater

Vice-Chancellor