At the final Senate meeting of the year on April 17, a new Queen’s School of Public Policy and Global Affairs was recommended.

According to the University, the creation of the new school will allow Queen’s to expand its resources and establish a modernized approach to its education and research in public policy.

Talks about the school began in 2016 when Principal Daniel Woolf created a commission dedicated to advancing the future of public policy offerings at Queen’s. 

The commission, chaired by Michael Horgan, has been involved in the planning and creation of the new school. 

In early February, Horgan told The Gazette that the new school will ultimately “enrich the student learning experience, advance the university’s research and innovation goals, increase Queen’s policy influence, and enhance its national and international reputation.”

According to Queen’s, as one of the first schools to adopt a focus on the study of public policy, the University will play an integral role in advising various municipal, provincial, and federal inquiries of political executives. 

In an interview with The Journal, Dr. David Walker, executive director and Stauffer-Dunning Co-Chair of Policy Studies said, “it was evident that Queen’s was able to achieve more success within its school of public policy.” 

Walker explained that as a part of the transformation of the school, it has adopted a new goal of “leveraging its pan-university assets in policy relevant research to better educate future workers within public service, as well as excel when informing governments who are in need of assistance.”

Walker said the new school of public policy will move forward through the use of better research, the expansion of resources, and assets crucial to policy makers across the nation. 

According to Walker, the new school will promote the success of its students, ensuring all graduates will maintain a hundred percent employment rate, which was achieved by the graduating class of 2017. 

The commission will continue further discussions with Principal Daniel Woolf in June.