Relationship between U of A, province may be thawing: Phair

The frosty relationship between the University of Alberta and the provincial government may be on the mend after Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt took aim at president David Turpin and the university’s board of governors in early March.

In addressing the board of governors Friday, chairman Michael Phair said he had a sense the premier’s office was “very interested” in “moving forward (and) restoring the relationship between the university and the government.”

Phair said a public apology may be in the offing “relating to the comments made about the president.”

On March 19, Schmidt criticized the university and its plans to cut four per cent of its budget while raising student residence rents.

On his way to a cabinet meeting, Schmidt was critical of Turpin as one of the highest paid university presidents in Canada with a takehome pay of about $824,000 annually, including salary and benefits.

“It’s concerning to me to see the president lining his own pockets while he’s cutting money being spent on classrooms and students,” Schmidt said at the time.

In an email Friday, Schmidt said when budget cuts were announced, government heard “from hundreds of students, staff, and faculty at the U of A who all shared my concerns over how this decision would impact the university.

“We’ve been assured that the additional money we’ve again provided to the U of A will be used to support students, staff, and faculty this year, as we’ve made very clear was our expectation,” he said.

“We’re thankful to the board of governors, and especially the chair, for working with us over the past month to address our concerns.

“We will continue to work with the U of A moving forward as they continue to work to address concerns related to their budget.”