TORONTO, April 8, 2008 -- Two longstanding York University professors have been appointed as deans to lead the University’s Faculty of Education and Faculty of Environmental Studies for the next five years.
"I am delighted that we have confirmed the appointment of Alice Pitt as dean of the Faculty of Education and Barbara Rahder as dean of the Faculty of Environmental Studies," said York President & Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri. "It speaks to the depth of the talent of the faculty at York that we were able to appoint two women from within the University to these important positions. Both are both first-class academics and administrators, and I look forward to working with them."
The appointments were made after extensive consultation with the York community and were approved by the executive committee of the Board of Governors of York University yesterday. They take effect July 1, 2008.
Educational theorist Alice Pitt has been a colleague in the Faculty of Education at York University since 1995. She served as the Faculty’s associate dean, pre-service, from 2002 to 2007. As associate dean, Pitt led curriculum renewal efforts in the pre-service program, as well as the design of experiential components, including the expansion of partnerships with schools and community organizations. In addition to education, she is appointed to the graduate programs in Women's Studies and Interdisciplinary Studies, and is affiliated with the Canadian Centre for German & European Studies.
She has served on the York University Senate and currently serves as a member of a Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada grant adjudication committee. Pitt holds a PhD in education, with specializations in curriculum theory, critical/feminist pedagogy, and cultural studies in education, from the University of Toronto. She has published widely in these fields, as well as in the areas of teacher education and the implications of psychoanalytic theories for the study of teaching and learning and teacher/student relations. Her current research investigates the significance of the concept of autonomy for teachers, from an interdisciplinary and comparative perspective involving Canada and Germany.
Pitt will succeed Dean Paul Axelrod, who completes his term on June 30, 2008.
Professor Barbara Rahder has been a full-time faculty member in the Faculty of Environmental Studies since 1993, having previously taught at York University on a part-time basis. She served as director of the Graduate Program from 2001 to 2003 and from 2004 to 2006; and since July 2007 she has served as interim dean of FES. She holds an MSc and PhD in Urban & Regional Planning from the University of Toronto. Her areas of research interest include participatory research and planning; women and planning; social sustainability, diversity and equity; access to affordable housing and community services; and urban planning history, theory, and education.
In 2004, Rahder was named a Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Planners in recognition of her contributions to planning education and the planning profession. At York, she is a member of the City Institute and the Institute for Research on Innovation & Sustainability. In addition to her scholarly interests, she has often served as a consultant and panel member on planning issues.
Rahder succeeds former FES Dean Joni Seager who resigned from her position as dean on June 30, 2007.
York University is the leading interdisciplinary research and teaching university in Canada. York offers a modern, academic experience at the undergraduate and graduate level in Toronto, Canada’s most international city. The third largest university in the country, York is host to a dynamic academic community of 50,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff, as well as 200,000 alumni worldwide. York’s 11 faculties and 24 research centres conduct ambitious, groundbreaking research that is interdisciplinary, cutting across traditional academic boundaries. This distinctive and collaborative approach is preparing students for the future and bringing fresh insights and solutions to real-world challenges. York University is an autonomous, not-for-profit corporation.
-30-
Contact:
Alex Bilyk
Director, Media Relations
York University
(416) 736- 5603
bilyk@yorku.ca
