January 13, 1998 
     
    
   
   
    
     The Cadre 
     
    
   
   
    
     Audit uproar 
     
    
   
   
    
     Value for Money audit 
     
    
   
   
    
     By Todd MacLean 
     
    
   
   
    
     Opinions on the Value 
     
     for Money Audit presently 
     
     being conducted on UPEI by 
     
     the provincial government are 
     
     varied. Mostare in opposition 
     
     to the audit, particularly UPEI 
     
     President Elizabeth Epperly, 
     
     but others feel that such strong 
     
     opinions towards the audit may 
     
     be unwarranted. 
     
    

    
     Themaincriticism of the 
     
     audit is its inappropriateness, 
     
     which was explained ina letter 
     
     sent by Dr. Epperly to the 
     
     Minister of Education on the 
     
     day that the audit was made 
     
    
   
   
    
     public. 
     
    

    
     “This Value for Money 
     
     Audit is not really about how 
     
     much money we spend; the 
     
     proposed audit is an intrusive 
     
    
   
   
    
     examination of . How 
     
    

    
     would the Auditor 
     
    

    
     pose to determine the value of 
     
     s?” wrote Epperly. 
     
    
   
   
    
     The problem lies in the 
     
    
   
   
    
     fact that the government is 
     
     claiming to “know best” what 
     
    

    
     s the university should 
     
     offer. The university’s aca- 
     
    
   
   
    
     demic s are already 
     
     cousin externally re- 
     
     viewed on a regular basis by 
     
     experts in the respective fields, 
     
     and it is felt that this govern- 
     
     ment audit, with its extensive 
     
     criticisms, will only giveanega- 
     
     tive impression of the univer- 
     
     sity. 
     
    

    
     “Audits like this only 
     
     nothing positive will come out 
     
     of it,” said Janice Broderick, 
     
     Student Union President. 
     
    
   
   
    
     “They will simply be 
     
     ‘nitpicking’ our Liberal Arts 
     
    
   
   
    
     "I think she had every 
     
     right to do it, and it was an 
     
    
   
   
    
     excellent letter. Gillan said he'd 
     
     tell her ifthe audit was going to 
     
     take place, and when he didn’t, 
     
     she obviously had a right to be 
     
     frustrated." 
     
    

    
     In fact, ina Senate meet- 
     
     ing on December 5, 1997, the 
     
     day after the public announce- 
     
     ment was made, Epperly men- 
     
     tioned that prior to the an- 
     
     nouncement she had been told 
     
     that there would no be such an 
     
     audit at all. 
     
    

    
     Even as the Value for 
     
     Money Audit is underway, 
     
     exactly what is being audited 
     
     is still hazy within the univer- 
     
     sity community. Beyond a 
     
     study of academic programs, 
     
     little is known about the audit. 
     
     Its purpose, and what is ex- 
     
     pected from the results, is 
     
     rather unclear. 
     
    

    
     “The question of 
     
     ‘what’s in it?’ is a major con- 
     
     cern,” said Faculty Associa- 
     
     tion Head, Gerald Johnson. 
     
     “We know that they’ re basing 
     
     their study on so-called ‘per- 
     
     formance indicators’ however, 
     
     what is being studied is still 
     
     unknown.” 
     
    

    
     Johnson explained that 
     
     “because the faculty are con- 
     
     stantly being evaluated in many 
     
     ways, we are quite open [to 
     
     the audit), and have no prob- 
     
     lem with yet another evalua- 
     
     tion taking place. Evaluation 
     
     by another te ee ay 
     
     non-concerning. [Epperly is 
     
     Seoteaten andoppeeciots tht 
     
    

    
     matter, and appreciates 
     
     the faculty are used to this.” 
     
     iversity’s Board 
     
    
   
   
    
     community, according to 
     
     Broderick. 
     
    
   
   
    
     But she also made it evi- 
     
     ners 
     
     for harm shouldn't be taken 
     
    
   
   
    
     “When an audit was con- 
     
     ducted at a university in 
     
     Lethbridge, Alberta, the fac- 
     
     ulty went on strike, the presi- 
     
     dent was fired, and the univer- 
     
     sity was basically put in ‘limbo’ 
     
     for an entire year.” 
     
    

    
     The question of UPEI's 
     
     autonomy is also arising as a 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
     99 session. 
     
    
   
   
    
          
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     ed | Un tl Vv. @ 3s 
     
    
   
   
    
     eee) FACULTY © 
     
    
   
   
    
     result of the audit. In her 
     
     letter, Epperly wrote, “We are 
     
     nota government department; 
     
     we are not a business...To be 
     
    
   
   
    
     vital and sive the Uni- 
     
     versity must be fully responsi- 
     
     ble for its own programs.” The 
     
     assistance of the AUCC 
     
     and the AAU will be sought on 
     
    
   
   
    
     o f 
     
    
   
   
    
     this issue. 
     
    

    
     There will be opportuni- 
     
     ties during the process for the 
     
     University to question the au- 
     
     dit’s activity, and also to re- 
     
     view and to comment upon the 
     
     final report when it is finished, 
     
     before its release. 
     
    
   
   
    
     Invest in your future in the art and science of dentistry. 
     
    
   
   
    
     The University of Toronto 
     
     is Accepting 
     
     Applications to Dentistry 
     
     for September 1998 
     
    
   
   
    
     The University of Toronto Faculty of Dentistry has been provided with 
     
     an opportunity to offer Biochemistry and Physiology in the first year of 
     
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     Therefore, students who have not completed courses in Introductory 
     
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     In addition, the Faculty will accept February 1998 Canadian Dental 
     
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     official score reports to be sent directly to the Admissions Office. 
     
    
   
   
    
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