Imperative: Nurture a culture grounded in belonging, transparency, trust, and pride in our community such that Mount Allison is an outstanding place to work and live.
Our strategies:
- Co-create an Indigenization framework for Mount Allison with local and regional Indigenous communities and foster relationship-centred partnerships through Reconciliation-focused engagement.
- Partner and collaborate with the Municipality of Tantramar to enhance community engagement and shared prosperity.
- Develop enhanced communication channels focused on connection, engagement, and transparency for current and future members of our community.
- Collaboratively develop short- and long-range people and culture plans that position all units for sustainable success and future-readiness.
- Adapt organisational structures to eliminate siloes, foster collaboration, and bolster resilience.
- Grow high impact professional, career, and leadership development opportunities.
- Co-create equitable systems and relationships that honour the knowledge, leadership, and rights of diverse communities, fostering a safe, inclusive environment through effective practices, policies, systems, and training.
- Invest in evidence-based practices and accessible services that support employee mental and physical well-being.
- Forge greater opportunities for alumni to be active participants through lifelong learning, volunteerism, and philanthropy.
Why this direction?
People are the heart of Mount Allison.
Our teams are the foundation for our success and drive the pursuit of excellence. A thriving Mount Allison requires a thriving community, and a culture grounded in transparency, respect, trust, professional development, and belonging.
To provide a transformative experience to our students, Mount Allison must invest in faculty and staff. In the current climate of global political and economic uncertainty, where the value of post-secondary education is increasingly scrutinized and achieving financial sustainability demands significant effort and adaptation, we depend more than ever on our colleagues to respond entrepreneurially, efficiently, and responsibly. The University must be prepared to meet challenges related to recruitment and retention of staff and students, shifting learner needs and expectations, and altered public perceptions of the role and value of the liberal arts and sciences.
These trends challenge the nature of working at a university and bring associated strains to employee experience. Mount Allison must take a fresh and critical look at its processes as well as the resulting impact on workloads and job roles. It must critically and responsibly engage technological solutions, AI, and new ways of doing that enhance human capacity and creativity. We want people to be able to focus on the most meaningful work. The University must collectively revisit its approaches to employee well-being, communication, and leadership, cultivating our sense of shared community, increasing the diversity of our staff and faculty, and providing opportunities for professional growth.
We also understand that the health of our community includes recognizing its deep reciprocal connections with its environmental, cultural, and social context. We value and seek to nurture relationships with the diverse communities of Tantramar, with Indigenous communities, and beyond.
A thriving Mount Allison means being a place where everyone can flourish. We are small and mighty: our size differentiates us as an employer committed to nurturing our close-knit community of employees, learners, alumni, visitors, neighbours, and partners. Central to employee thriving is a commitment to building and sustaining a culture of care, connection, and collaboration.