Acadia University announced Reverend Marjorie Lewis has been named the university’s chaplain. She began her new role on March 2. Dr. Lewis most recently worked as a spiritual and religious care chaplain with the Nova Scotia Health Authority and has taught online courses about gender, church community development and health programs. She has also worked as acting Anglican chaplain for the Diocese of Nova Scotia in various hospitals in Halifax. Dr. Lewis received her BA from the University of West Indies, a master’s degree from the Atlantic School of Theology and a PhD from the University of Birmingham in the U.K.
Robert Summerby-Murray has been appointed to a second five-year term as president of Saint Mary’s University, effective July 1. Before becoming president in 2015, he spent 18 years at Mount Allison University, where he served for seven years as the dean of social sciences. He also spent five years as the dean of arts and social sciences at Dalhousie University. Dr. Summerby-Murray is an elected fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and in 2018 was named one of Atlantic Canada Business Magazine’s top 50 CEOs. He is originally from New Zealand and moved to Canada to complete a PhD at the University of Toronto in 1986.
St. Francis Xavier University appointed Andrew Hakin its next president and vice-chancellor. Dr. Hakin joins StFX from the University of Lethbridge, where he served as the provost and vice president, academic, since 2007. His other roles at U of Lethbridge included president of the Lethbridge faculty association, chair of the university’s chemistry and biochemistry department, and associate vice-president, academic. Dr. Hakin holds a PhD in chemistry from the University of Leicester in the U.K.
On Aug. 1, Anthony Vannelli becomes provost and vice-president, academic, at Wilfrid Laurier University. Dr. Vannelli comes to Laurier from the University of Saskatchewan, where he held the same position. Before working at U of S, Dr. Vannelli was the dean of the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences at the University of Guelph, and held several administrative and teaching positions in the faculty of engineering at the University of Waterloo. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Concordia University and a doctorate in electrical engineering from the U of Waterloo.
Nick Saul has been elected chancellor of Victoria University at the University of Toronto and begins a three-year term on May 14. Mr. Saul has been involved in community-based work for more than 30 years and is the co-founder and CEO of Community Food Centres Canada, a charity that builds and supports food-focused organizations. He is an officer of the Order of Canada and a recipient of the Jane Jacobs Award.
The University of British Columbia has appointed Lesley Cormack the university’s deputy vice-chancellor and principal of UBC Okanagan. Since 2010, Dr. Cormack served as dean of the faculty of arts at the University of Alberta. Before that she served as the dean of faculty of arts and social sciences at Simon Fraser University, from 2007 to 2010. Dr. Cormack is a historian of early modern science, specializing in geography and mathematics in 16th-century England. She will begin her new role on July 1.
As of April 6, Althea Blackburn-Evans is Western University’s chief communication officer, a new role at the institution leading the communications and public affairs teams. Ms. Blackburn-Evans joins Western from the University of Toronto, where she worked for 20 years, most recently as executive director of communications strategy and stakeholder relations.
Western University has appointed Britta Baron its vice-provost and associate vice-president, international, for a five-year term starting July 1. Ms. Baron has served as director of the international department at Humboldt University in Berlin since 2018. She was previously vice-provost and associate vice-president, international, at the University of Alberta for 12 years.
The Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education and 3M Canada announced the 2020 3M National Teaching Fellows: Dave Andrews, department of kinesiology, University of Windsor; Paul Cubbon, Sauder School of Business, University of British Columbia; Heather Jamniczky, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary; Nancy Nelson, electronic systems engineering, Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning; Sujata Madant, Desautels Faculty of Management, McGill University; Brent Mainprize, Gustavson School of Business, University of Victoria; Tiffany Potter, department of English, University of British Columbia; Diane Symbaluk, department of sociology, MacEwan University; Edōsdi—Judy Thompson, department of First Nations studies, University of Northern British Columbia; and Aleksandra Zecevic, school of health sciences, Western University.
Mark Abrahams, dean of the faculty of science at Memorial University, will serve as the university’s next provost and vice-president, academic, starting May 1 for a one-year term starting, or until the search to fill the position is completed. He is a professor in the departments of biology and ocean science and has held the dean’s position in the faculty of science since 2008. He has also served short stints as Memorial’s vice-president, research, and associate vice-president, research, between January 2017 and September 2018.
The University of Toronto has named Lisa Dolovich the new dean of the university’s Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy. Dr. Dolovich is currently the faculty’s interim dean and will begin her five-year term on July 1. She is an internationally recognized researcher known for her work on how individuals manage their health in the context of where they live. She has held more than $5 million in grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research as a principal investigator and co-founded the Ontario Pharmacy Evidence Network.
David Estok was reappointed vice-president, communications, at the University of Toronto, beginning his new five-year term on April 1. He was appointed as the inaugural vice-president, communications, in 2015 to transform the university’s communications to support goals related to funding, reputation and ranking. During his first term, he helped pioneer and adopt a “brand journalism” approach, brought the communications teams on each U of T campus together, and led the creation of new communications vehicles.
Kwantlen Polytechnic University announced Andhra Goundrey as the new dean of its Wilson School of Design. Ms. Goundrey is a KPU graduate, having completed the fashion and technology program in 1996, and holds an MA in leadership from Trinity Western University. She returned to KPU in 2001 as a faculty member and was the coordinator for the university’s fashion design and technology program. Ms. Goundrey was appointed to the associate dean position at the Wilson School in 2017 before serving as interim dean in 2019.
Jacques Frémont has been reappointed to a second term as president and vice-chancellor of the University of Ottawa. He became president on July 1, 2016 and will officially begin his second five-year term on July 1, 2021. Before coming to U of Ottawa, he held many positions at the University of Montreal, including director of the public law research centre, dean of the faculty of law, vice-rector, international, and graduate and postdoctoral studies, and vice-rector, academic affairs. Mr. Frémont also served as director of the International Higher Education Support Program of the Open Society Foundations in New York from 2011 to 2013.
It is the turn of Michael J. Strong to serve as chair of the Canadian Research Coordinating Committee. The CRCC is chaired by one of the presidents of the three federal granting agencies: the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. Dr. Strong, a former dean of the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University, is the president of CIHR since Oct. 1, 2018.
Annette Trimbee becomes the next president and vice-chancellor of MacEwan University, staring Aug. 1. She will also take up an academic appointment as a professor in the department of biological sciences. Dr. Trimbee has been serving as president and vice-chancellor of the University of Winnipeg since 2014. She currently chairs the board of directors for both the Canadian Research Knowledge Network and U Sports, and also serves on the board of directors for Universities Canada.
Melike Schalomon has been appointed the next dean of MacEwan University’s faculty of arts and science, beginning her five-year term on July 1. Dr. Schalomon joined MacEwan in 1996, and has served as associate dean and interim dean, and on multiple faculty and university committees. As dean, Dr. Schalomon will also hold a concurrent appointment as a professor in the department of psychology.
The University of Lethbridge appointed Lindi Shade as its new manager of Indigenous Student Services. Ms. Shade has primarily worked in mental health as a clinical therapist for youth, adolescents and families and as the director of the Kainai Wellness Centre within the Blood Tripe Department of Health, near Lethbridge. In her new role, she will focus on the mental health of students, improving students’ access to elders and on program creation.
The University of Alberta welcomes Bill Flanagan as president on July 1. Born and raised in Alberta, Mr. Flanagan joins U of A from Queen’s University, where he served as the dean of law for 14 years from 2005 to 2019. He holds a BA (English and philosophy) from Carleton University, a JD from the University of Toronto, a DEA in International Economic Law from Université Paris I-Sorbonne, and an LLM from Columbia University. His scholarly work spans property law, corporate law and international trade law.