GOVERNANCE IN TRANSITION - MOTHBALLING MANITOBA’S COUNCIL ON POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION

Oct 15, 2026

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Examining Manitoba’s 2014 decision to eliminate the Council on Post-Secondary Education (COPSE), the article argues the provincial government aimed to expand control over the public post-secondary system and its institutions. It contends that while the move matched the broader pattern of abolishing similar agencies across other provinces, the resulting governance model is less collegial and less consultative. The analysis emphasizes stronger regulation and ministerial influence, extending trends in Manitoba toward greater government control. The study is structured to address motivations, proposed alternatives, and reframing of system governance.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages38

Reading Time1 h 36 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Theoretical Framework

Massification and system political importance

System integration approaches (centralization vs. decentralization)

Methodology and Findings

Implications and Conclusions

GOVERNANCE IN TRANSITION: MOTHBALLING MANITOBA’S COUNCIL ON POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION Dan Smith, University College of the North Examining the Government of Manitoba decision in 2014 to eliminate the Council on Post-Secondary Education, this article argues that government sought to exercise greater control over the public post-secondary system and its institutions in the province for the purpose of exacting greater control over system integration. While the elimination of the agency was consistent with the elimination of similar agencies in other provinces, the article finds that the direction of the new post-secondary governance model is less collegial and less consultative with more emphasis on regulation, and ministerial influence than was the case with the previous intermediary model, continuing trends in Manitoba towards greater government control. Introduction On June 17, 2014, the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba passed amendments to the Advanced Education Administration Act (AEAA), fundamentally altering the governance structure for the system of colleges and universities in Manitoba. In brief, the new act eliminated the Council on Post-Secondary Education (COPSE), ending the 47-year use of intermediary agencies as the model for governing post-secondary education in the province, turning that governance over to the minister responsible for colleges and universities. Undertaken with little notice (Martin, 2014) prior to being announced in the provincial budget, the passage of new legislation followed a brief but acrimonious public debate about the appropriate role of the government in the management of post-secondary education (Manitoba Legislative Assembly, 2014; Winnipeg Free Press, 2014) . Interestingly, when the decision to eliminate COPSE was made public, little detail was announced regarding the new governance model (Enns, 2014) . Fundamental change in system-level governance occurs infrequently, and the transition from COPSE to a new governance structure presents an opportunity to better understand the motivations for, and impact of, such changes. This article explores the elimination of COPSE, arguing that in undertaking to govern post-secondary education in Manitoba using a departmental structure, the Government of Manitoba was seeking to establish greater control over, and better integration and coordination of, Manitoba’s post-secondary system. In pursuing this argument, I seek to answer the following questions: Why was the intermediary model abandoned in Manitoba? What alternative system governance model did the government propose? How is post-secondary system governance being reframed in Manitoba? By Manitoba’s “system” of post-secondary education, I mean the constellation of postsecondary institutions1 in the province, their type (e.g., university, community college), status (i.e., public or private), level (e.g., using Maclean’s terminology, medical/doctoral, comprehensive, or undergraduate universities, or at the certificate or diploma level), or institutional specialization (e.g., applied, technical/vocational, university education; language/culture, or geographic focus). Additionally, the conceptualization of Manitoba’s postsecondary system also includes governance processes (e.g., the funding process through which institutions receive operating and capital funds from government, tuition fee policy, or the regulations by which new and modified programs are approved by government) . Given their key 1 Public institutions in Manitoba’s post-secondary system include the University of Manitoba, University of Winnipeg, Brandon University, Université de Saint-Boniface, University College of the North, Red River College, and Assiniboine Community College. Private post-secondary institutions in Manitoba include the Canadian Mennonite University and its affiliate, Menno Simons College, Providence University College, and William and Catherine Booth University College. Another institution

FAQs

What governance change did Manitoba make in 2014 regarding COPSE?

The Legislative Assembly passed amendments to the Advanced Education Administration Act, eliminating COPSE and shifting governance of colleges and universities to the minister responsible for colleges and universities.

Why does the article argue the intermediary model was abandoned?

It argues the government sought greater control over Manitoba’s post-secondary system and better integration and coordination of institutions.

How does the new post-secondary governance model differ from the previous one?

The article finds the new model is less collegial and less consultative, with more emphasis on regulation and ministerial influence than the former intermediary approach.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Muffet