About the Collegium

The Collegium's Mandate

The York Collegium for Public Ethics (YCPE) is a research group housed within York University's School of Public Policy and Administration. Our focus on "public ethics" means that we are interested in examining the choices that public sector actors must make in order to serve and support the public good.

We are dedicated to providing mentorship and learning opportunities for students, and to working to advance new and innovative ideas about public ethics, accountability and governance.

To do this, the YCPE: 1) organizes a regular seminar series; 2) works with various partners to host workshops and conferences on public ethics; and, 3) conducts, facilitates and amplifies research and writing related to public ethics.

Although a "Collegium" is commonly defined as being a "group in which each member has approximately equal power and authority", the YCPE is managed by faculty members at York University for mostly administrative purposes. Our members have varied interests, come from varied backgrounds and are not required to be formally affiliated with York University.

Governance:  As of January 2022, the YCPE is managed by its Director Philip MacEwen, who seeks guidance from an executive board.

The executive board consists of  Dr. Naomi Couto, Dr. Ian Greene, Dr. Peter Constantinou, Dr. Gregory Levine, Dr. Ben Lowinsky, Bruce Preston, Jacob Blum and Andrew Molas.