Defining Academic Freedom in Governmental Policy in Québec, Canada

Our guest Today is Dr. Martin Maltais, professor of financing and education policies at the Université du Québec à Rimouski, where he used to be the head of the department of Education and of the School Manager's program. He is currently a member of 3 important groups of research in Québec : the Centre interuniversitaire de recherche sur la science et la technologie, the Laboratoire interdisciplinaire de recherche sur l'enseignement supérieur  and the Observatoire du numérique en éducation. Proximity manager, Dr. Maltais is a key player in the development of higher education and digital policies in Québec (Canada). A member of the Québec Council on Science and Policy, he is the author of several papers and communications concerning education and higher education policies and funding as well as distance education. Over the last ten years, he was appointed at different moments in time as counsellor and/or chief of staff in the cabinet of four ministers, mainly with the responsibilities of Education, Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology. We will be discussing Bill 32, a bill that passed in Québec on June 3rd of 2022. This bill defines academic freedom for Québec universities and binds higher education institutions to protect academic freedom by the state. It is the first of its kind in Canada.