The Fickleness of Rankings

 

Business Schools
  Yesterday the respected Financial Times  released its rankings of MBA programs and some Deans are tooting horns, while others are looking at different rankings. The headline reads: "Wharton Tops 2025 FT MBA Ranking Despite Strong European Competition:  The Best MBAs are Holding Their Own Amid Challenges From Alternative Courses and Concerns for the Degree’s Future."
   Canadian schools did not do well, but some at least made the Top 100: 
76 University of Toronto: Rotman Canada 
79 Queen's University: Smith Canada 
86 Western University: Ivey Canada 
94 McGill University: Desautels Canada 
95 University of British Columbia: Sauder Canada 
  The focus locally should be on this article provided recently in the LFP: "New Ranking Give High Marks to Western University's Ivey Business School," Heather Rivers, Feb. 2, 2025. "Western University’s business school is among the best in Canada, according to a new list – and it comes amid what the ranking firm’s top official calls a difficult year for all post-secondary schools across the nation.
CourseCompare rankings are promoted as being primarily “rooted in job readiness,” said chief executive Robert Furtado, who ranks Ivey business school as the No. 1 blended online MBA program in the country." The article also mentions that," Ivey has been ranked No. 1 in Canada by Bloomberg Business Week for nine years.
  The rule of rankings is that they are only touted when one is near the top of them. Although one can use a low ranking to ask for more assistance to get higher, it is generally best to remain silent. That has generally been the case here in London, for there has been little news about this city failing to get into the ranking of "The 100 Most Livable Cities in Canada" ---- twice.
The 100 Most Livable Cities in Canada - 2023.
The 100 Most Livable Cities in Canada - 2024.   

Canadian Maple League Universities

    

   I realized that I have not posted in just over a month, so I will begin with a short one about a Canadian higher education entity of which I was unaware. It exists in the eastern part of the country in four locations in three different provinces and is known as the "Maple League of Universities." Perhaps you also did not know about it.

  The League members are: St. Francis Xavier, (Antigonish, Nova Scotia); Mount Allison, (Sackville, New Brunswick); Acadia, (Wolfville, Nova Scotia) and Bishop's University, (Sherbrooke, Quebec). The Maple League moniker is somewhat catchier than "The U4", which is how they were referred to in years past. 

   You may have guessed that these universities are consorting not because of a shared interest in the academic discipline of botany, but rather because the new brand under which they are united reminds you of the elite institutions located farther to the south. There are eight of them, which are identified here:

   

   I read about the members of the Maple League in an article which discusses the difficulties they are likely to face in the post-pandemic period, whenever that may be. The headline and opening paragraph indicate the source of their concerns: 

“For Maple League Universities, Shift to Online Education Threatens Close-Knit Appeal That They Rely On,” Joe Friesen, The Globe and Mail, June 2, 2020.

“The universities of the Maple League, with their historic red brick architecture and wide lawns, have long based their appeal on small classes,  a close-knit campus of dorms and clubs, and a level of attention from professors not always available at larger institutions.” 

   

   The concerns have spread beyond the campuses: “A fall without students could pose a grave threat to the local economy in university towns.” Such concerns have also spread like Covid across the country and are not restricted to the small liberal arts colleges.

Sources:

  The place to begin is at the website of the Maple League of Universities where links are provided to the four universities involved.  There is a short Wikipedia entry.

  There is a good piece in University Affairs, from which the following is taken. See" "Four Small Universities in Eastern Canada Rebrand as The Maple League," Moira MacDonald, Nov. 6, 2016.

"First coming together in 2013 under the less catchy banner of the “U4,” Acadia, Bishop’s, Mount Allison and St. Francis Xavier universities are now touting their pastoral, “small by design” campuses more loudly as an alternative to the larger, urbanized university experience many Canadians are familiar with.
The new name is “a little bit of a nod at the Ivy League,” acknowledged Michael Goldbloom, president of Bishop’s in Quebec’s Eastern Townships. “We’re not claiming that we’re Harvard or Princeton or Yale. But we do think that we share that same aspiration for excellence.”

"Why a Group of Small Universities Believes the Future is Theirs: Known as The "Maple League", the Four Universities Promote the Advantage They Have Over Big-City Schools: An Intimate Undergraduate Experience," Jennifer Lewington, Maclean's, March 14, 2017.

There are also some articles to be found at the institutions. See:
From Bishop's - "The Four Maple League Universities Sign Historic Agreement That Encourages Inter-Institutional Student Mobility," Bishop's University.
From Mount Allison - "What is the Maple League?" Laura Skinner, The Argosy, Feb. 6, 2019.
"Dr. James Devine, department head of politics and international relations at Mt. A, said that the Maple League shows potential: “It’s building a brand about small, primarily undergraduate institutions, which I think in Canada are a bit of a rarity.”

The Bonus Stuff: 
   You already know enough about the Ivy League. Perhaps you know less about the Public Ivies or the Hidden Ivies.  

    There is an Ivey here in London, but it is in a different league.

     There is also a university for women here in London - Brescia. It appears to be doing quite well and is apparently the only such institution of higher education in Canada. If, at some point, more aggressive 'branding' is required they could follow the example of the Maple Leaguers and try to figure out some way to associate themselves with  the "Seven Sisters",  which essentially were the elite, 'Ivey League-type' schools for women. It seems that only five of them continue to serve females only - Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Smith and Wellesley. 

Some Good News For a Change

Amit Chakma Engineering Building

     I mention this because you may have missed it.  The Chancellor of Western University, Jack Corwin, surprised the president of that university by announcing that he is donating $5 million and asking that the new engineering building be named in honour of President Chakma. He remarked that: "Some of you may not know that Amit is also an engineer, and a faculty member here in Engineering,” Cowin told guests at the opening. “His passion for the profession and field makes this the perfect tribute to his time as Western’s President.”

     I also mention it because you may recall that I recently suggested in a post that when the names of people are attached to buildings, rooms, chairs, scholarships, etc., it would be good if we could quickly learn more about them. I would be surprised if my suggestion is considered and I would be even more surprised if anyone even read this blog. But, if anyone did want to know about more about the story behind the naming of the Amit Chakma Engineering Building, the source provided below would be the place to begin.

Sources: 

"Chancellor Donates $5M to Engineering, Honours, President," Cory Habermehl,  Western News, Oct, 12, 2018.
"New Engineering Building Renamed to Amit Chakma Engineering Building," Liam Afonso, The Gazette, Oct. 12, 2018.
"Officially opened today, the formerly named ThreeC+ Engineering Building will be renamed the Amit Chakma Engineering Building, announced Western University on Friday afternoon."

Post Script:

For my post about this subject see: Western University Names

This is not the first time a donor at Western has made a donation in honour of someone else. The Allyn & Betty Taylor Library is named for a former Chancellor and his wife and the donor was anonymous. That library does a good job of identifying those who have supported it. See "Supporters of the Allyn and Betty Taylor Library".

I have discovered a couple of other useful links in relation to names that appear on campus.
The International Centre for Olympic Studies identifies clearly the names related to the holdings in the ICOS archive. See the descriptions for the Brundage, Lenskyj and Worrall collections which is found here. 

For a list of Centres & Institutes on campus see here. At the bottom of the list one finds this sentence which is unclear to me: "* Please note some names reflect legacy naming conventions and do not conform to above-mentioned definitions."

MORE GOOD NEWS FOR WESTERN/IVEY
     As I was writing this it was announced that a $7 million gift had been received at Ivey and that there will be new 'Names' on campus that will need to be explained. See: $7-million Gift Creates John F. Wood Centre for Innovation in Business Learning," Western News, Oct. 16, 2018.