William Edwin Beckel
Encyclopedia
William Edwin Beckel is a Canadian academic and former president of Carleton University
in Ottawa
and the University of Lethbridge
in Alberta
. He was an early proponent of the use of television as a university teaching medium.
-affiliated Scarborough College, which led an experiment in teaching half the courses using TV-only lectures.http://www.newsandevents.utoronto.ca/bios/02/history14.htm
Beckel was president of the University of Lethbridge from 1971 to 1979. During Beckel's tenure, the University implemented Management Arts, Native American studies and expanded cooperative education. Under Dean Russell Leskiw, the education program became one of the best in Canada. A highlight during Beckel's presidency was the Provincial Governments approval of the Centre for the Arts, a building that allowed for the creation of U of L's art collection.
Like many Ontario universities at the time, Carleton was in financial trouble when Beckel took the helm in 1979. That year it was running a $1.5-million deficit.
Unlike Carleton's rival universities, most of whom were raising admissions standards to compete for better students, Beckel decided to keep Carleton open to high-school graduates with averages as low as 60 per cent on the premise that "every student should have the right to fail."http://www.carleton.ca/cu/aboutus/years/s3.html
The benefit of this philosophy was that first year enrollment increased bringing with it increased tuition revenue that more than offset the impact of a lower retention rate. This egalitarian philosophy combined with tough financial controls resulted in a strong financial position for the university and made it "rare chance" university. For many students, Carleton offered a rare chance at a university education. (Beckel's critics were the first to coin Carleton's pejorative nickname "Last Chance U.")
On July 1, 1989, the same year he received an honorary degree of Legum Doctoris from Carleton,http://www.carleton.ca/senate/honorarydegreesawarded.htm Beckel was succeeded as president by Robin Hugh Farquhar
.
Carleton University
Carleton University is a comprehensive university located in the capital of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The enabling legislation is The Carleton University Act, 1952, S.O. 1952. Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton now offers over 65 programs in a diverse range of disciplines. Carleton has...
in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
and the University of Lethbridge
University of Lethbridge
The University of Lethbridge is a publicly-funded comprehensive academic and research university, founded in the liberal education tradition, located in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, with two other urban campuses in Calgary and Edmonton. The main building sits among the coulees on the west side of...
in Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
. He was an early proponent of the use of television as a university teaching medium.
1960s and 1970s
Beckel, a zoologist, was an early proponent of the use of television as a teaching medium. In 1964 he became the first dean of the University of TorontoUniversity of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
-affiliated Scarborough College, which led an experiment in teaching half the courses using TV-only lectures.http://www.newsandevents.utoronto.ca/bios/02/history14.htm
Beckel was president of the University of Lethbridge from 1971 to 1979. During Beckel's tenure, the University implemented Management Arts, Native American studies and expanded cooperative education. Under Dean Russell Leskiw, the education program became one of the best in Canada. A highlight during Beckel's presidency was the Provincial Governments approval of the Centre for the Arts, a building that allowed for the creation of U of L's art collection.
Like many Ontario universities at the time, Carleton was in financial trouble when Beckel took the helm in 1979. That year it was running a $1.5-million deficit.
1980s-1990s
Beckel oversaw several controversial faculty buyouts, and in 1980, the school had to dip into academic scholarship funds to help cover its debts. Beckel's efforts during the 1980s eventually pulled Carleton out of the red and into a building period that resulted in a new student residence, a new library, a Life Sciences Research Building,an Art Gallery,a Social Sciences Research Building, a Day Care Centre and the beginning of a new engineering complex.Unlike Carleton's rival universities, most of whom were raising admissions standards to compete for better students, Beckel decided to keep Carleton open to high-school graduates with averages as low as 60 per cent on the premise that "every student should have the right to fail."http://www.carleton.ca/cu/aboutus/years/s3.html
The benefit of this philosophy was that first year enrollment increased bringing with it increased tuition revenue that more than offset the impact of a lower retention rate. This egalitarian philosophy combined with tough financial controls resulted in a strong financial position for the university and made it "rare chance" university. For many students, Carleton offered a rare chance at a university education. (Beckel's critics were the first to coin Carleton's pejorative nickname "Last Chance U.")
On July 1, 1989, the same year he received an honorary degree of Legum Doctoris from Carleton,http://www.carleton.ca/senate/honorarydegreesawarded.htm Beckel was succeeded as president by Robin Hugh Farquhar
Robin Hugh Farquhar
Robin Hugh Farquhar is a Canadian academic and former university administrator. He was President of The University of Winnipeg from 1981 to 1989 and President of Carleton University from 1989 to 1996....
.