School of Policy Studies

School of Policy Studies
School of Policy Studies

School of Policy Studies Board of Advisors

The goal of the School of Policy Studies Board of Advisors is to enhance the external relationships and reputation of the School, in pursuit of the School’s mission of being the premier school of policy studies in Canada. 

Purpose

The purpose of the Board of Advisors is the following:

  1. To provide strategic advice and counsel to the Director, School of Policy Studies (or their designate) on the current state and future prospects of the School.
  2. To utilize (where possible and appropriate) the knowledge, contacts, and position of its members to further the interests of the School in the broad public policy domain (including government, business, the non-profit sector, academia, and the media).
  3. To aid and advise the School on how best it can ensure its graduates make a successful transition into various public policy employment outlets, and to help facilitate linkages with the broader employment sphere.
  4. To aid, advise, and facilitate the School’s efforts to develop fundraising opportunities and to help foster active linkages with other public policy schools, programs, and government offerings.

Function

More specifically, functions the Board of Advisors will perform include the following:

  • Providing ongoing suggestions and advice on curriculum such that what is being taught at SPS reflects both long-standing and cutting edge areas of public policy concern.
  • Broadening the School's linkages to important constituents in the public policy domain.
  • Helping facilitate strategically important external activities (recruiting of guest speakers, advising on fundraising opportunities, etc).
  • Advising on the School’s recruiting and employment strategy for its graduates.
  • Any other functions the Board, in conjunction with the Director, feels will further the interest of the School.

Structure and Process
  • The initial Board of Advisors will be between 8-12 members: membership size can be adjusted as the School evolves. There will be no committee structure created at this time.
  • The Chair shall be drawn from the membership of the Board and will be independent of the School’s Director. The Chair will serve an initial three-year term and may be renewed for an additional three-year term if desired.
  • The Chair will consult with the Director to established meeting agenda items and matters to be discussed at subsequent board meetings.
  • The Board shall meet four times per year. Three such meetings will be held electronically and should take one-half of a working day. One meeting per year will be of the full board in person, likely in Kingston, Toronto, or Ottawa, and will last a full day. Two-thirds of the board must attend in order for the meeting to achieve quorum and make decisions on agenda items.
  • In addition, it is likely that members of the Board will have extensive contacts and knowledge within the public policy domain and as such may contact the Director between meetings to advise on issues as they emerge.

Criteria for Membership

Because the School of Policy Studies serves so many constituents, its Board of Advisors will, by necessity, be a diverse one.  Board members will vary widely in background, experience and skill sets. Every board member must have a commitment to the welfare and ongoing development of the School of Policy Studies and be willing to serve actively on its behalf.

Specific skill sets and attributes that the Board should collectively contain include:

  • Experience in designing and delivering public policy at a progressively greater level of responsibility;
  • Experience with institutions of higher education;
  • Subject matter expertise in one or more areas of public policy;
  • Fundraising experience;
  • Experience with Queen’s and the School of Policy Studies;
  • Experience with program design and development; and,
  • Extensive contacts within the public policy domain.

Compensation

There is no monetary compensation for this role. The School will cover a board member’s legitimate expenses to attend meetings and activities related to the School. In addition, the School will be willing to contemplate ways that a member may further contribute to the School.

Members of the Board of Advisors (updated October 2020)