8:30 - 9:30 a.m.    Session I: Introduction: Key Issues
                           Chair: Charles Beach, Queen's University

        Introduction on challenges to post-secondary education (PSE) in Canada

        Key issues in post-secondary education in North America (Ronald Ehrenberg, Cornell University)
        Link to his paper on "Key Issues Currently Facing American Higher Education"

        Key issues in post-secondary education in Canada (David Laidler, University of Western Ontario)
        Link to his paper on "Incentives Facing Canadian Universities: Some Possible Consequences"

9:30 - 10:00 a.m.     Coffee Break

10:00 - 12:00 p.m.     Session II: Role of Colleges / Universities and Value of Post-Secondary Education
                               Chair: France St-Hilaire, Institute for Research on Public Policy

        "Does Structure Matter: (Where) Do Questions about the Structure of the System Fit on the Higher Education Policy Agenda?" (Michael Skolnik, OISE, University of Toronto)

        "Returns to Post-Secondary Education in Canada: College vs University and Private vs Social" (Herb Emery, University of Calgary)

        "Universities as Drivers of Regional and National Innovation: An Assessment of the Linkages from Universities to Innovation and Economic Growth" (Julian Betts and Carolyn Lee, University of California, San Diego)

Discussant: Bonnie Patterson, Trent University

12:00 - 1:00 p.m.     Lunch

1:00 - 2:45 p.m.     Session III: Role of Government in Financing PSE
                           Chair: Richard Van Loon, Carleton University

        "'Muddy' Data: University Financing in Canada" (Ken Snowdon, Snowdon & Associates Inc.)

        "Financing Higher Education: Lessons from the UK Debate and Elsewhere" (Nicholas Barr, London School of Economics)

        "Collaborative Federalism and Post-Secondary Education: Be Careful What You Ask For" (David M. Cameron, Dalhousie University)

Discussant: Robert Best, Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
                Clément Lemelin (Université du Québec à Montréal)

2:45 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.    Coffee Break

3:15 - 5:00 p.m.     Session IV: Problems Faced by PSE Sector in Canada
                           Chair: Kenneth Norrie, McMaster University

        "Demographics of Student Demand and Projections of Faculty Supply in Canada" (Herb O'Heron, Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada)

        "Family Income and Participation in Post-Secondary Education" (Miles Corak, Garth Lipps and John Zhao, Statistics Canada)

        "Demand For and Access to University Education in Ontario" (Richard Mueller and Duane Rockerbie, University of Lethbridge)

Discussants: Nicole Fortin, University of British Columbia
        "Rising Tuition and Supply Constraints: Explaining Canada-U.S. Differences in University Enrollment Rates" (Figures 1,2,3a,4a; Figures 3b,3c,4b,4c; Tables)
                  Ross Paul, University of Windsor

Reception and Dinner (Four Points Sheraton Hotel -- 285 King St.)

        6:00 p.m.     Reception (sponsored by Queen's Faculty of Education)
        7:00 p.m.     Dinner: Guest Speaker Peter George (McMaster University) on COU's Quality and Financing Taskforce

8:30 - 10:00 a.m.     Session V: Student Financing of Post-Secondary Education -- I
                              Chair: Marilyn Rose, Brock University

        "Recent Changes in Effective Tax Rates on PSE Level Human Capital in Canada" (Jim Davies and Kirk Collins, University of Western Ontario)

        "Who Uses RESPs and Why" (Kevin Milligan, University of British Columbia and NBER)

Discussants: John Burbidge, University of Waterloo
                  Arthur Sweetman, Queen's University

10:00 - 10:30 a.m.     Coffee Break

10:30 - 12:00 p.m.     Session VI: Student Financing of Post-Secondary Education -- II
                              Chair: Kevin McQuillan, University of Western Ontario

        "A New Architecture for the Student Financial Aid System" (Ross Finnie, Queen's University)

        "An Analysis of Alternative Financial Aid Packages" (Lorne Carmichael, Queen's University)

Discussant: Sean Junor, Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation

12:00 - 1:00 p.m.     Lunch

1:00 - 2:45 p.m.     Session VII: Management of Resources and Enhancing Quality
                           Chair: Chad Gaffield, University of Ottawa

        "The Role of Politically Motivated Subsidies on University Research Activities: Evidence From the US" (Abigail Payne, McMaster University)

        "Demystifying Quality Assurance" (David Leyton-Brown, Council of Ontario Universities)

        "Perspectives on Performance Indicators in the PSE Sector" (William Bruneau, University of British Columbia and Donald Savage, Consultant)

Discussant: John Chant, Simon Fraser University

2:45 - 3:00 p.m.     Coffee Break

3:00 - 4:30 p.m.     Session VIII: Wrap-Up Panel on Alternative Perspectives, Directions and Innovations
                           Chair: Robin Boadway, Queen's University

        Panelists: Doug Auld, Loyalist College
                      Rosa Bruno-Jofré, Queen's University
                      John Greenwood, Social Research Demonstration Corp.
                      Craig Riddell, University of British Columbia
                      Elizabeth Parr-Johnston, University of New Brunswick