University of Ottawa aiming to do better on diversity | Metro Ottawa

A spokesperson for the University of Ottawa said it’s doing all it can to diversify research chairs, but a professor who once held one of the coveted positions said the school’s problems runs deep.

The federal government pledged earlier this month to prevent schools that don’t meet diversity targets — including women, visible minorities, Indigenous people and people with disabilities — from applying for future chair positions.

Recent data showed the University of Ottawa is missing all of those targets, but Isabelle Mailloux Pulkinghorn, said the school has made real progress since last fall. “We’re confident that the next time the chairs program collects this data, our numbers will show this progress.”

She said the school does open-advertising, has diverse hiring committees and is making every step it can to diversify.

“The University of Ottawa has redoubled its efforts to ensure measures are in place throughout its Canada Research Chair recruitment and nomination process to support the full participation of members of these groups.” Amir Attaran, a University of Ottawa professor who recently held a research chair and is now suing the university for discrimination disagrees.

“This is a university that went backwards on equity not forwards,” he said.

Attaran said the school has written into its policies that it’s a bi-cultural institution, which he believes is a mistake. He said promoting the school as a bilingual institution is laudable, but it should be multicultural, not bi-cultural.

“I like bilingualism. It’s biculturalism, which is racist.”

Originally published at www.metronews.ca on May 22, 2017.