President's report - January Board meeting

We are moving into 2026 with good momentum and renewed enthusiasm for the work ahead of this year. As we welcome a new Board chair and deputy chair, and as the Province’s public post-secondary review continues, we are continuing to think carefully about building a sustainable budget model for SFU, communicating the value of the sector through strategic government relations and advancing funding opportunities out of the latest federal budget.

We are living through a moment of change and uncertainty—one where people are looking to the post-secondary sector to fuel innovation, social progress and hope for our communities, our province and the world. I believe SFU has the opportunity to play a critical role in this work as we continue to live out our vision and values, transforming into the leading research university that I know we can be.

Administrative updates

Tuition increases approved

At this meeting, the Board discussed and ultimately approved a tuition increase recommendation that will come into effect September 1, 2026. We had a fulsome discussion that recognized the thoughtful and considered feedback we received during the consultation process from students societies and students, faculty and program representatives, academic leaders, the executive team and Board. We will continue to engage students and the community on this topic into 2026.

The approved increases are as follows:

• Undergraduate
  • Domestic students: 2% per BC Tuition Limit Policy
  •  International students: 4% (both returning and new students)
• Graduate
  • All programs: 2%, except for programs with an existing differential rate for international
  • Each program with a differential rate for international students was assessed
    individually and recommendations are outlined within the Board materials

SFU remains committed to delivering an excellent teaching and learning experience. As the costs of operating the university increase, we have worked hard to find savings in other areas to minimize the impact on students, as well as to continue to invest in areas that improve the student experience.

Priority investments for the coming year include: 

• continued funding for student supports, academic programs, housing, efficiencies through technology, capital renewal and research initiatives;
• strengthening faculties and programs that are top-ranked and generate revenues, while also supporting key programs across all faculties;
• and continued investments in essential services for the operations of the university, which include technology, data, systems and facilities that support learning and research and improve the SFU experience for all. 

Enrolments and recruitment

Study permit allocations

The federal government allocated British Columbia 32,596 study permit application spaces for 2026, a 57% cut from the 2025 allocation of 76,087. This follows a 40% cut to British Columbia’s undergraduate allocation in 2025 compared to 2024. The provincial government’s principles guiding allocation for 2026 included supporting public post-secondary institutions to maintain their international student programs, manage growth in the sector and ensure best use of application spaces. As a result, we saw 80% of permits allocated to public post-secondary institutions—approximately a 30% increase to public post-secondary institutions from 2025.

SFU received 1,500 undergraduate provincial attestation letters (PALs) for 2026, which is an increase from last year and is based on each institution’s share of study permits approved/rejected by IRCC at the undergraduate level. In 2025, SFU received an initial tranche of 900, and due to our high utilization, received an additional 400 by request during the summer. In addition, graduate programs are no long subject to the PAL process, allowing for increased utilization of PALs for undergraduate students.

Spring term enrolment

Overall, early indicators point to stable enrolment, stronger student engagement, improved course utilization and funded AFTEs tracking above target, with continued attention required around new international student intake and enrolment mix as registration progresses. 

• Student participation and intensity: While the total number of students eligible to register is slightly lower than last year (-0.8%), actual participation is higher, with a greater share of eligible students choosing to enroll. Enrolled students are also taking heavier course loads, which is an encouraging signal for completion times.
• Program mix and new students: Co-op participation continues to expand with 770 co-op registrations, representing a 5% increase over last year. International students now account for 14.1% of registered students, down modestly from 15.7%, reflecting ongoing shifts in enrolment composition. As of day 36 of enrolment, 733 new students had registered (206 international and 527 domestic), compared to the Senate target of 796.
• Course utilization: Course demand is strong across most levels. Overall course utilization has increased to 89%, up from 87% last year, with notable gains in 100-, 300- and 400-level courses. 
• Preliminary AFTE outlook: Preliminary AFTEs for Spring 2026 reinforce these positive trends. Total AFTEs (including co-op) have increased by 2.1% increase over the same point last year, funded AFTEs have grown by 3.9% and unfunded AFTEs have declined by 7.9%. Current projections indicate that SFU is on track to be approximately 2% above both its funded and unfunded (non-co-op) AFTE targets for 2025/26.

What this means for the university

• Continued domestic UG over-enrolment: Growth in funded AFTEs and higher credit loads means that SFU continues to significantly over-enroll domestic AFTEs relative to government funding.
• Better use of capacity: Higher course utilization suggests instructional resources are being used more efficiently, particularly in high-demand undergraduate courses.
• Positive student momentum: Higher show rates and heavier course loads point to stronger student commitment and progress toward degree completion.
• Co-op growth: Continued expansion in co-op strengthens experiential learning outcomes and supports student employability and institutional reputation.
• Focus on recruitment: New student intake exceeded the targets for 2025-26. Domestic intakes in future will be managed according to the Academic Plan, while shifts in international enrolment will require ongoing monitoring as registration continues.

Government relations

SFU’s Government Relations (GR) team continues to drive forward the priorities outlined in the 2025 Integrated Government Relations Plan, including advancing discussions on a sustainable operating funding and securing investment in core facilities and campus infrastructure. The plan has resulted in a strong and sustained whole-of-government approach to government relations, with SFU increasing both the quantity and quality of engagements.

In 2025, SFU engaged with key provincial stakeholders, including the Premier, Cabinet Minister and Parliamentary Secretaries, MLAs and the Lieutenant Governor, on a variety of strategic topics. The top policy file we engaged on was ensuring a sustainable funding model for post-secondary education. Other key topics included the important role that universities play in advancing economic growth through our innovation ecosystem and expertise in cutting edge technologies like AI and quantum; this was the second-highest frequent advocacy topic for SFU. We also engaged provincially about the Cedar Supercomputer Expansion and key infrastructure investments in deferred maintenance funding and transit. 

Federally, we had 55 engagements with high-level political and bureaucratic stakeholders, including cabinet ministers, Secretaries of State/Parliamentary Secretaries and Members of Parliament. The Cedar Supercomputing Centre Expansion was the topic of our advocacy in over 50% of those meetings, with SFU’s strengths in AI and quantum, defense and dual-use research and innovation also frequently mentioned. SFU’s core facilities, such as 4D Labs, continue to be popular with officials and are a strong demonstration of SFU’s stewardship of federal investments to deliver world class research. 

Municipally, SFU engaged with the three local governments in our campus communities. Topics of discussion varied by city, and included general relationship-building, student housing and infrastructure (Burnaby and Surrey), land use and participation in the Official Community Plan process (Burnaby) and SFU’s innovation strengths, including agritech in Surrey, 4D Labs and Cedar in Burnaby and VentureLabs in Vancouver. Meetings with mayors accounted for 50% of municipal engagements, demonstrating a strategic approach to relationship-building with local leadership. The City of Burnaby and SFU Liaison Committee continues to be a valuable opportunity for regular connection, sharing priorities and collaborating on key files. We hosted the most recent Liaison Committee gathering at the First Peoples’ Gathering House at SFU, in recognition of the City’s contribution towards the building.

The GR team will be renewing SFU’s municipal government engagement plan, which aims to increase the quantity and regularity of meetings with our three municipal government partners, and engage with other governments on topics of regional importance (for example, the Burnaby Mountain Gondola).

Advancing strategic priorities

There is work occurring across the university to advance the What’s Next strategic priorities. Several key examples are highlighted below.

Uphold Truth & Reconciliation 

• On January 19, Monica McAlduff, CEO of the First Nations Health Authority, joined SFU in ceremony to mark the signing of a new memorandum of understanding. Developed in partnership with colleagues in the Faculty of Health Sciences and the School of Medicine, this agreement provides an “overarching framework for cooperation between the Parties in the development of programs, policies, research, and services that aim to improve the health and well-being of First Nations peoples in British Columbia.”
• We are excited to begin investing the landmark $5 million grant from the Mastercard Foundation for Indigenous Pathways to and through SFU. With a specialized project manager now on contract and with oversight from SFU’s internal Indigenous Council, we will be identifying key priorities and putting the money into action in 2026. Some of this funding has been used to establish an Indigenous Student Emergency Endowment, which supports Indigenous students who face a sudden emergency situation and have exhausted all other possible resources, and for whom such financial hardship would affect their ability to attend major life events (such as funerals).
• Our Indigenous Executive Lead convened the first SFU External Indigenous Council meeting in November, with five Host Nations sending representatives. Additionally, on December 3, the Office for Indigenous Peoples convened the first Indigenous Caucus for all Indigenous students, faculty and staff with the fireplace lit at the First Peoples’ Gathering House.
• The pilot phase of SFU’s Indigenous Welcoming Procedure continues to be underway in Student Services, the School of Medicine and the Faculty of Graduate Studies. Project co-leads Chris Lewis and Angela Wolfe look forward to sharing a more detailed progress report at the March Board meeting.

Engage in Global Challenges 

• At this Board meeting, we heard a presentation on SFU’s 2025-2030 Sustainability, Climate and Resilience Strategy, establishing the university’s sustainability, climate action and resiliency priorities for the next five years and a roadmap for meaningful progress. Thank you to the Sustainability and Climate Office (SCO) for their work to integrate What’s Next: The SFU Strategy, the Academic Plan, the Strategic Research Plan and other university plans into this strategy, as well as global goal frameworks like Race to Zero and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
• SFU is proud to have reached a sustainability milestone by fully divesting its public equity and fixed income portfolios from fossil fuel investments as of June 30, 2025, delivering on our 2021 pledge and reinforcing our commitment to climate action. The university is also on track to meet and exceed our commitment to reducing the carbon footprint of our public equity investment portfolio by 45% by the end of 2025, relative to the 2016 baseline. 
• Myself, Vice-President Research and Innovation Dugan O’Neil, Associate Vice-President, Knowledge Mobilization and Innovation Elicia Maine and Director of Entrepreneurship Sarah Lubic participated in the Canadian Science Policy Conference in Ottawa. The annual conference is attended by science and innovation policy leaders from academia, government, private and non-profit sectors, and is an opportunity to connect with partners and showcase SFU’s research strengths. Activities included SFU representatives speaking on and hosting panels around science diplomacy in AI and quantum, sovereign compute partnerships in Canada, innovation and entrepreneur training for STEM researchers and innovation governance. SFU also held bilateral meetings with ambassadors from multiple countries to advance research and academic partnerships. 
• The Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU) Food Security and Agritech Program held its first annual gathering in Singapore. SFU serves as the inaugural chair of this program, which is co-led with Nanyang Technological University and the National University of Singapore. The program serves as research and innovation hub that addresses local agricultural needs through fostering a strong network of interdisciplinary experts and practitioners across the Asia-Pacific region. The next conference will be held at SFU in fall 2026.
• The SCO convened a virtual delegation of 10 and sent two in person student delegates, as well as members of the Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue’s Mitigating Wildfire Initiative, to Brazil for COP30. PhD student Elodie Jacquet hosted a panel in collaboration with APRU and Chulalongkorn University, and the Centre for Dialogue Wildfire team hosted a panel in the Canada Pavilion with Indigenous leaders, scientists and practitioners on how Indigenous fire stewardship strengthens climate resilience, biodiversity and adaptation. SCO and the Faculty of Environment also co-hosted an in-person event at SFU’s Big Data Hub for COP30’s Youth Day, where participants watched live COP30 panels and participated in discussion with faculty members on climate change.
• In support of the VPA’s annual Nora and Ted Sterling Prize in Support of Controversy, the Dialogue and Engagement Unit, under the SFU Public Square brand, hosted a sold out in-person ceremony and presentation on November 27 featuring 2025 prize recipient Dr. Ron Deibert, the founder and director of the Citizen Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. The event explored the complex challenges of defending privacy, freedom of expression, and accountability in an age of surveillance, disinformation, and digital authoritarianism. 

Make a Difference for B.C. 

• The Government of Canada has launched the Canada Impact+ Research Chairs program—a new $1.7 billion investment to attract top international researchers to address national and global challenges in key areas. These include quantum, cybersecurity and AI, community and climate resilience, clean tech, health tech, food security and more. SFU is eligible to receive up to $6 million for researchers recruited under this program and launched a recruitment initiative in mid-December to attract nominees in strategic areas. Campus visits from top candidates are expected to begin in early February.
• SFU Core Facility WearTech Labs hosted an event at the Surrey campus celebrating the completion of its three locations, which now offer a complete prototyping-to-validation development loop for wearable technology. The $17 million project was supported by PacifiCan, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation and the BC Knowledge Development Fund. WearTech provides industry and researchers access to state-of-the-art facilities and expertise that many businesses and start-ups otherwise would not be able to afford, and supports the “wearables” industry which is expected to contribute $8 billion to the Canadian economy by 2030. 
• SFU and Hypertec, a Canadian global leader in sustainable AI infrastructure, announced a memorandum of understanding to expand the Cedar Supercomputing Centre using Hypertec’s Canadian-built infrastructure and immersion cooling innovation. Hypertec technology combined with SFU’s research leadership will create a sovereign, Canadian-controlled environment for AI research, technology development and defence-related workloads, safeguarding sensitive data from foreign interference.
• In November, SFU and the City of Surrey signed a memorandum of understanding to establish the SFU Frontier Hub for Agritech Research and Methodology (SFU-FARM), a new centre dedicated to accelerating agritech research, innovation and commercialization, with a focus on precision agriculture and smart farming technologies. The project reflects SFU’s commitment to advancing climate innovation and addressing global environmental challenges.
• Since achieving preliminary accreditation and opening for admissions on October 14, 2025, the School of Medicine continues to develop across multiple areas. 
  • Admissions: Following several successful recruitment and outreach efforts, the SoM application window closed on December 8, 2025 with more than 1,500 applications received, including a healthy number of applicants to the Indigenous stream. The next stage of applicant review is now underway. 
  • Technical Operations / Facilities: SFU continues to maintain the interim School of Medicine space while work is underway to develop a permanent space. With thanks to Fraser Health for their continued collaboration and handover of spaces within Surrey C, construction on the interim School of Medicine space is expected to take place between January - May 2026. This timeline will allow faculty and staff to prepare the space before the inaugural cohort arrives in August 2026. Early design and development work on the permanent School of Medicine space has started. Stantec and Revery Architecture have been selected by SFU and the City to design the building and fit-out. A schematic design is in progress, and an Expression of Interest has been issued to shortlisted contractors. In addition, development for seven clinical learning sites is progressing, while planning for additional sites is ongoing. 
  • Accreditation & Evaluation: The Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools has granted preliminary accreditation for our MD Program and requested the submission of additional information by April 2026. Our institutional application for residency program accreditation has been submitted, with the Canadian Residency Accreditation Consortium also requesting submission of additional materials by April 2026. Work is underway to address both informational requests. Our Family Medicine Residency Program application is due in February 2026 and we are on track for submission.
  • Health Partnerships: Three new Clinical Site Directors have been added to support our community-based clinical learning model throughout the Fraser Salish region: Dr. Baldev S. Dhillon (Surrey North Delta), Dr. Manpreet (Micky) Cooner (White Rock – South Surrey) and Dr. Richard Mithen (Langley), all of whom have decades of experience in areas including family medicine, clinical education, primary care transformation and team-based care. Their expertise will support the recruitment and preparation of community family practice preceptors, identifying community-specific learning opportunities and expanding clinical learning options for students and residents.
  • Research: Multiple streams of research planning are underway, including a broad program of engagement across health authority, community, health professional and academic partner organizations to co-develop our research plan setting priorities for the next five years. One grant has been successfully awarded (co-principal investigator from SFU School of Interactive Arts & Technology), two grants under review (co-investigators in the SFU Faculty of Health Sciences) and two more are under development, demonstrating a commitment to collaboration as a research unit.

Transform the SFU Experience 

• SFU’s inaugural Community Well-being Plan continues to take shape. Implementation of the plan is being guided by the Well-being Plan Taskforce, which brings together senior leaders to embed well-being across SFU. The plan has also been integrated into the university’s Academic Plan, reinforcing its importance in shaping the student, faculty, and staff experience. 
  • SFU received an early recognition of our journey to date from Excellence Canada on Nov 20, 2025, in honour of SFU's commitment to fostering a healthier, more supportive workplace. This honour affirms the meaningful progress we have made through our rapid baseline assessment and subsequent actions and initiatives to date, and reflects our dedication to creating conditions where our SFU community can thrive. We will be finalizing the Well-being Plan this spring and engaging with community members on action planning discussions in the months ahead. 
• In celebration of Black History Month, we are privileged to welcome Dr. Wisdom Tettey, chair of the Scarborough Charter Inter-Institutional Forum and president and vice-chancellor of Carleton University, to SFU in February 2026. Dr. Tettey will draw on his leadership experiences to engage in a dialogue advancing Black inclusion in Canadian universities.  
• February also marks the launch of the Black Student Centre (BSC), which will provide an adaptive response to SFU's diverse Black community's urgent needs and interests by providing culturally appropriate resources that are representative of diverse cultures, intersectional identities and Black experiences. The BSC will adopt a service approach to support students through racially and culturally sensitive services and programming.
• Our recent engagement with alumni, donors, and prospective partners highlights the critical work being done to foster their involvement in advancing SFU’s priorities:
  • I joined with Erin Morantz, vice-president advancement and alumni engagement (VPAAE), to host approximately 145 attendees at the President’s Seasonal Donor Appreciation reception. This key annual event allows me and the VPAAE fundraising team to connect with and thank many SFU donors, celebrating the impact of their philanthropy as well as the holiday season.
  • In November, VPPAE brought together more than 30 SFU alumni now working in the health care field, prospects, donors and health care partners to share more information about plans for the School of Medicine and provide a meaningful touchpoint with SFU leadership. The event included presentations from Dr. David Price, founding dean, as well as senior members of the SoM team. Following the event, Advancement has been reaching out to connect individually with attendees and continue the conversation on how they might support the School of Medicine.

Sincerely,

Joy Johnson
President & Vice-Chancellor
Simon Fraser University