University of Ottawa vice-president addresses Cornwall Council

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A discussion that seemed to go on for as long as one of those evening lectures in a university amphitheater had numerous issues – some controversial – raised on post-secondary opportunities in Cornwall.

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University of Ottawa associate vice-president responsible for the strategic delivery of the core French mandate, Yves Pelletier, introduced it at the start of the May 14 meeting, telling the board he was there to share his university’s perspective on Cornwall’s current initiative and key roles in outreach to the provincial and federal government and in supporting other Ontario communities and beyond in increasing their access to university programs.

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“There are two key messages from my statement tonight, the first is that the university is here today at the request of city council members and because of the conversations city councilors initiated with me and (uOttawa colleagues),” Pelletier said.

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Second, Pelletier said, the university was asked to help chart a course forward, and in discussions with councilors and administration leaders, “there were a lot of questions about the social, economic and demographic indicators for Cornwall (and) the counties around, we wondered. if the age pyramid in Cornwall were different from that of other communities and the province as a whole, young people could leave Cornwall to seek educational opportunities in other regions without necessarily returning to (the area) after graduation.”

Pelletier said the discussion included asking about other key factors, including income levels and employment rates and population growth and how that has evolved over the past 50 years. He said the questions relate to how Cornwall attracts and retains new citizens from across the country as well as those new to Canada and how Cornwall attracts new businesses to the region, as well as questions about the ability of businesses to grow, especially by ensuring access to – qualified, trained professionals.

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“We wanted to get better data on these fronts,” Pelletier said. “We wondered what skill sets were missing. . . the city manager (Fleury) noted that he does not have the ability to perform this analysis. At the same time, there was a strategic advantage to an independent report, produced by a nationally recognized consultancy firm with full impartiality, reporting statistical findings on (Cornwall’s) social, economic and demographic indicators.

“This in-depth statistical portrait (currently) does not exist and (and) will be of great help to you, city council, beyond the current initiative.”

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Pelletier said a consultant in the coming months will speak with about 20 business and community leaders, helping to make a compelling business case to the government about needed community programs.

He said that as part of uOttawa’s in-kind contribution to the project so far, the terms of reference for a report have been set and “many, many hours” have been spent finding the right consultant.

Pelletier said he wants to make clear the consultant’s role is not to propose a model for moving forward — “that’s your role.”

As for one day uOttawa being the institute offering possible programs, he made it clear that it is currently beyond the scope of the initiative being discussed.

“We are asked to be allies in helping your community achieve your goals,” Pelletier said. “If we can offer programs locally in the future, we would be happy to have those conversations with you.”

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Some councilors during a question-and-answer session brought up issues that Pelletier said were not relevant to the presentation and that he avoided discussing, such as uOttawa’s previous involvement with the city.

Several councilors brought up topics such as possible future scenarios for uOttawa, which has a concrete presence in the city. What if the consultants’ report indicates what Cornwall really needs is more university courses?

For the most part, Pelletier wouldn’t bite; as an undergraduate he was in Cornwall for a dreaded week when advisers had final exams on their minds.

Regarding what Pelletier was in town to discuss, conf. Carilyne Hébert was overshadowed by the idea that data mining requires an outside consultant in a city that already has plenty of local organizations with such data.

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“Not one local organization was considered at all, because I can name a few that probably have a lot of the data that you’re looking for, that would probably be a fraction of the $60,000 (consultant cost),” she said.

Pelletier responded that uOttawa has been asked to identify consultants to do the process and that no local names have been recommended.

“If you choose to go another way, that would be fine, but that’s a conversation for the city council,” he said.

At times, scattered chatter led Pelletier to try to get the train on track, saying this initial stage of the process is mostly about finding what local employers are looking for and that plenty of economic development money is available through the provincial and federal government , but the city needs a business case narrative for that.

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