The
      Cadre
      +
      _26)January
      1999
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      UPEI
      News
     
    
   
   
    
     
      3
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Value-for-Money
      Audit
      greeted
     
     
      with
      cautious
      approval
     
    
   
   
    
     
      By
      MELISSA
      DOUCETTE
     
    
   
   
    
     
      On
      December
      16,
      1998,
     
     
      the
      controversial
      Value-for-
     
     
      Money
      audit
      on
      UPEI
      was
     
     
      tabled
      in
      the
      PEI
      Legislature.
     
     
      No
      audit
      of
      this
      type
      has
      ever
     
     
      been
      performed
      on
      a
      Cana-
     
     
      dian
      university.
     
    

    
     
      When
      the
      audit
      was
      pro-
     
     
      posed
      over
      a
      year
      ago,
      it
      was
     
     
      met
      with
      intense
      opposition
     
     
      from
      administration
      and
      stu-
     
     
      dents
      alike.
      The
      university
     
     
      community
      felt
      that
      the
      audit
     
     
      was
      a
      highly
      invasive
      step
      that
     
     
      threatened
      UPEI’s
      autonomy.
     
    

    
     
      Now,
      the
      administration
     
     
      is
      cautiously
      accepting
      the
      au-
     
     
      dit,
      while
      the
      UPEI
      Student
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Union
      Council
      spent
      very
      little
     
     
      time
      in
      discussing
      the
      results.
     
    

    
     
      “We
      knew
      that
      at
      a
      point
     
     
      in
      time,
      that
      despite
      our
      objec-
     
     
      tions,
      this
      [the
      audit]
      was
      going
     
     
      to
      be
      done.
      So
      we
      cooperated
     
     
      fully,”
      stated
      Dr.
      Lawrence
     
     
      Heider,
      Acting
      President
      of
     
     
      UPEI.
     
    

    
     
      Heider
      stated
      that
      the
     
     
      University
      was
      relieved
      when
     
     
      the
      audit’s
      findings
      were
      re-
     
     
      leased,
      and
      many
      of
      the
      rec-
     
     
      ommendations
      were
      already
     
     
      in
      the
      early
      stages
      of
      develop-
     
     
      ment.
      Heider
      does
      not
      have
     
     
      any
      serious
      disagreements
      with
     
     
      the
      audit,
      which
      many
      expected
     
     
      to
      be
      quite
      harmful.
     
    

    
     
      e
      audit
      deals
      with
      a
     
    
   
   
    
     
      variety
      of
      subjects,
      including
     
     
      the
      University’s
      governing
      bod-
     
     
      ies,
      faculty,
      research,
      the
      book-
     
     
      store,
      curriculum,
      and
      others.
     
     
      The
      audit
      also
      includes
      a
      back-
     
     
      ground
      financial
      section
      that
     
     
      contains
      selective
      information.
     
    

    
     
      One
      chart
      exhibits
     
     
      UPEI’s
      funding
      for
      the
      year
     
     
      1987-88
      and
      1997-98,
      but
      not
     
     
      the
      years
      in-between.
      Funding
     
     
      in
      87-88
      was
      $21.1
      million,
      and
     
     
      in
      97-98
      was
      $28.2
      million.
     
    

    
     
      But
      the
      audit
      does
      not
     
     
      show
      the
      peak
      years
      of
      fund-
     
     
      ing
      to
      the
      University
      of
      the
     
     
      early
      1990s.
      It
      also
      omits
      the
     
     
      cuts
      made
      by
      the
      government
     
     
      during
      the
      last
      decade.
     
    

    
     
      “It
      doesn’t
      tell
      the
      whole
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Parlez-vous
     
     
      English?
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Psychology
      student
      Héléne
      Deacon
     
     
      makes
      waves
      with
      her
      honours
      thesis
     
    
   
   
    
     
      By
      RANDY
      MCDONALD
     
    
   
   
    
     
      -Fourth-year
      student
     
     
      Héléne
      Deacon
      --
      profiled
      last
     
     
      week
      after
      winning
      a
      Rhodes
     
    
   
   
    
     
      --
      is
      attracting
      a
     
     
      a
      teams
     
     
      her
      innovative
      thesis
      on
      bilin-
     
     
      gualism
      in
      children
      and
      its
      ef-
     
     
      fects
     
    
   
   
    
     
      For
      her
      honours
      thesis,
     
     
      Deacon
      chose
      to
      investigate
     
     
      the
      effects
      of
      bilingualism
      on
     
     
      children,
      with
      the
      aid
      of
      UPEI
     
     
      psychology
      instructor
      J.
      Paul
     
     
      Boudreau
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Deacon’s
      interest
      in
      bi-
     
     
      lingualism
      stems
      from
      her
     
     
      background
      as
      the
      daughter
      of
     
     
      an
      father
      and
      a
     
     
      F
      mother.
      When
     
     
      her
      o
      brother
      was
      born,
     
     
      her
      mother
      usually
      didn’t
      speak
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      French
      at
      home;
      even
      today,
     
     
      he
      can
      understand
      both
      writ-
     
     
      ten
      and
      spoken
      French,
      but
      he
     
     
      isn’t
      fluent
      in
      French.
     
     
      By
      contrast,
      Ms.
      Dea-
     
    
   
   
    
     
      es
      would
      be
      confused.
     
    

    
     
      A
      slew
      of
      studies
      res
     
    

    
     
      thirty
      years,
      though,
      have
     
    

    
     
      Pevealed
      that
      this
      stereotype
      is
     
     
      quite
      false.
     
    

    
     
      As
      ageneral
      rule,
      young
     
    
   
   
    
     
      children
      who
      are
      fluent
      in
      two
     
     
      languages
      tend
      to
      benefit
     
    
   
   
    
     
      strongly,
      possessing
      signifi-
     
     
      ;
      kill
     
    

    
     
      their
      unilingual
      counterparts.
     
     
      “If
      you
      know
      thata
      chair
     
    

    
     
      can
      also
      be
      a
      chaise,”
      sug-
     
     
      gests
      Deacon,
      “then
      you
      know
     
     
      that
      an
      object
      can
      have
      more
     
     
      than
      two
      names
      ...
      a
      rose
      by
     
     
      any
      other
      name
      is
      still
      a
      rose.”
     
     
      A
      bilingual
      person
      has
      a
     
    

    
     
      in
      lan-
     
    
   
   
    
     
      story,”
      Heider
      stated.
     
     
      The
      funding
      information
     
     
      tuition
      at
      UPEI
      to
     
     
      Nova
      Scotia
      schools.
      In
      com-
     
     
      parison,
      UPEI
      has
      the
      lowest
     
    
   
   
    
     
      rate,
     
    

    
     
      But
      the
      report
      jects
     
     
      to
      mention
      that
      Nova
      :
     
     
      schools
      have
      the
      highest
      tui-
     
     
      tion
      rates
      in
      the
      country.
     
    

    
     
      Heider
      further
      com-
     
     
      mented
      that
      UPEI
      “hope[s]
     
     
      this
      will
      be
      per-
     
     
      suaded
      by
      the
      electorate
      to
     
     
      give
      us
      better
      funding.
      ...
      We
     
     
      want
      them
      to
      look
      at
      what
      is
     
     
      the
      fair
      amount
      of
      support
      for
     
     
      the
      University.”
     
    

    
     
      The
      audit
      also
      recom-
     
     
      mends
      that,
      due
      to
      resource
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      restrictions,
      a
      policy
      of
      aca-
     
     
      demic
      prioritization
      should
      be
     
     
      implemented.
      This
      polic
     
     
      would
      help
      to
      regulate
      whi
     
     
      programs
      are
      given
      the
      high-
     
     
      est
      priority
      in
      times
      of
      financial
     
     
      difficulty.
     
    

    
     
      “A
      mindless
      way
      to
      [cut
     
     
      programs]
      is
      to
      take
      a
      low
     
     
      enrolment
      program.
      Does
      [low
     
     
      enrolment]
      mean
      it’s
      not
      an
     
     
      academic
      priority?
      I
      don’t
      think
     
     
      so,”
      said
      Heider.
     
    

    
     
      He
      does
      agree
      that
      some
     
     
      kind
      of
      academic
      prioritization
     
     
      should
      be
      developed.
      Heider
     
     
      commented
      that
      people
      were
     
     
      reluctant
      to
      do
      so,
      and
      that
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Continued
      on
      page
      4