At a June 20th meeting of Trent’s Board of Governors, the university accepted a report detailing a near double increase in complaints and reports about sexual violence to its Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Office Consent at Trent, for a total of 33 this year, and the approval of new programs, including Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Bachelor of Sciences (Bsc) programs relating to Artificial Intelligence to begin in the fall.

The meeting began with a short presentation from President and Vice-Chancellor Cathy Bruce, who lauded the approval of new programs at Trent by the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security, including an Accounting and Economics BA, Artificial Intelligence BA, Artificial Intelligence Bsc, and Masters of Arts Management. Each of these programs also passed Trent’s Institutional Quality Insurance Policy review.

While these programs will only see their first graduates years from now, this year’s convocation was not without its own firsts.

“This year marked the inaugural graduating cohorts for our newest programs, including the Bachelor’s of Honours in Criminology, the Master’s of Management at the Peterborough campus … and the Master’s of Arts in Interdisciplinary Aging Studies,” announced President Bruce.

“I think these programs reflect students with specialized knowledge. When we think about our population as an aging population, I think it makes sense,” she said of the latter program.

The Board congratulated themselves on the “largest graduating class in the history of Trent University,” and on their forays into social media promotion for the university’s 60-year anniversary Momentous Change Campaign.

The ongoing fundraising campaign aims to bring donations from alumni and philanthropists to fund “both campuses, all colleges, student support, campus infrastructure, and a wide range of academic and research initiatives,” according to an executive report.

On the day of the meeting, the Board celebrated the campaign reaching the $60 million milestone, which would allow Trent “to support academic achievement and scholarship, to maintain vibrant campuses, and to ensure our financial sustainability,” according to the aforementioned report.

“Resources like this can change a student’s life,” said Trent Vice President External Relations and Development Julie Davis. “It can change their circumstances, and it will change their future.”

The meeting report also noted a significant improvement from the “reductions” deemed necessary to its budget last year, due in part to significant financial support from government grants. Among these, the university will receive $12.7 million from the provincial government to bolster its Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education programs, as well as $1.79 million from the Postsecondary Education Sustainability Fund.

New large capital projects currently en marche include the construction of the new Gidiga Migizii college and Otonabee College expansion, and an expansion of Trent’s Research Farm detailed in an exhaustive Master Plan.

Finally, the Board received its annual report on sexual violence, prepared by Consent at Trent. Use of Consent at Trent’s services is on the rise, but still represents less than one percent of the student population.

“Is that a function of an increase in activity, or is that a function of awareness of the service?” an attendee asked, noting the increase in the usage of Consent at Trent’s services.

“It is actually the latter,” responded one of the governors. “There’s much more attendance and much more at programs, and more programs, so there’s greater awareness.”

“Given the amount of education taking place, should we not see a flattening of the curve or some sort of decline in incidents, eventually?” asked the first speaker.

The governor assented, carefully noting the presence of external influences bolstering cultures of sexual violence, especially through social media.

In his following presentation, Associate Vice President Lawrence Lam noted a similar increase in the use of mental health and accessibility services as of late. In the last decade, he claimed, the amount of students registered with Student Accessibility Services at Trent has doubled, from 6% to 12%.

“I know I’m the only thing standing between you and summer,” said Chair Doug Kirk at the end of the meeting.

“Thank you all, it’s been an exciting year and a challenging year in many ways, but I’m super pleased. This board acts with … intensity and transparency, and it’s all that I can expect in considering the purpose of the university.”