MEMORIAL UNIVERSITY OF NEWFOUNDLAND
Commitment to human rights: President Morrison provides update on human rights work

I'm writing today (Aug 31) with another update regarding Memorial University's commitment to promoting and protecting human rights across its campuses and communities.

Previous updates were posted on March 30, 2026, and June 26, 2026.

This communication is offered in the context of Memorial's objectives for equity, diversity, inclusion and anti-racism. It incorporates reflections gleaned through a variety of processes and engagement strategies, including the following:

• the process to establish our first Human Rights Policy, which Memorial University's Board of Regents approved in February 2026;
• Chinedu Wisdom conducted two reports on best practices in EDI-AR and human rights across Canadian universities;
• feedback solicited from the community between June 26 and July 15 regarding the reports; and,
• consultations held this month with staff from the Office of EDI-AR and the Sexual Harassment Office.

The feedback garnered over recent months has been significant and thoughtful. On behalf of our entire community, I want to thank the many people who invested time and energy in providing constructive comments.

Based on that input and the considerable work done over the last eight months, Memorial University is embracing the recommendation to proceed with creating an Office of Human Rights that will report directly to the president and have pan-institutional authority. While the title has yet to be confirmed, we will hire a senior leader to lead the office, which will incorporate both the Office of EDI-AR and the Office of Sexual Harassment. The leadership recruitment process will begin in September 2026.

In the interim, and to ensure that human rights are honoured and equity is advanced, I have asked Chery Ralhan (Office of EDI-AR) and Amnesty Rose (Sexual Harassment Office) to continue working with Dr. Amy Warren (deputy provost) to integrate their mandates and facilitate enhanced outreach to our community. Their leadership will be bolstered by Shazia Shaheen, the newly hired human rights advisor for the Office of EDI-AR.

Anyone with questions or concerns about the new policy, complaint processes or related supports should contact Ms. Shaheen via email at shazias@mun.ca. Inquiries regarding sexual violence should be directed to svprevention@mun.ca. EDI-AR related inquiries should be directed to cralhan@mun.ca.

Our shared goal is cultivating a learning environment where every person feels valued, welcomed and honoured. Thank you for your support of that aspiration and commitment.