As the 2020 Fall term begins at CityStudio, amid all of the uncertainty of a pandemic, we’re thinking about what it means to have worked so closely with Simon Fraser University (SFU) over this past decade. As President Petter steps aside and President Johnson takes over leadership at SFU, three things really stand out:
It has been an honour to work so closely with SFU under Andrew’s vision for what the role of a university is in our lives. This is a completely new and needed reimagining of the relationship between an engaged university and its community, one which prioritizes student learning, engagement, justice, and equity.- When CityStudio was just a dream, SFU was first in line to support our hopes for the project, guiding and incubating our idea of deep civic engagement and collaboration between cities and universities.
- And when the time was right, with Andrew leading, SFU launched us on our path towards becoming an independent charitable organization. For us, this was a true act of support and leadership, seeing the perfect moment for us to continue growing independently, while continuing to work together.
As president Johnson takes the reins, and as we look towards our second decade at CityStudio, we are inspired to continue growing our relationship and service to SFU, putting students, collaboration and experimentation at the centre of city building.
Thank you Andrew, congratulations Joy and Happy Birthday SFU!
Duane Elverum, Executive Director, on behalf of the CSV Society
