Toronto, April 16, 2014 – York University President and Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri announced three senior appointments this week to lead Glendon College, the Faculty of Graduate Studies and the University Secretariat.
University of Alberta Professor Donald Ipperciel will join York as Principal of Glendon College at a critical juncture in the College’s development, as Glendon is poised to expand its French language programming and services to better serve the Francophone population of central and southwestern Ontario, in keeping with provincial government priorities. Ipperciel is a Professor of Political Philosophy at Campus Saint-Jean, the University of Alberta’s French-speaking Faculty offering programs in education and the liberal arts. From 2002 to 2012, he held the Canada Research Chair in Political Philosophy and Canadian Studies. He has held a number of senior administrative appointments and is a specialist in contemporary German philosophy. More recently, he has researched nationalism theory and Canadian nationalism and multiculturalism. His research also explores issues in educational technology and he is regarded as a leader in teaching technology, spearheading initiatives in blended learning, Moodle courses, language labs, and smart classrooms. Ipperciel holds a DEC in Pure and Applied Science from Royal Military College, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, a BA and MA in Philosophy from the Université de Montréal, and a PhD in Philosophy from Ruprecht-Karls-Universität in Heidelberg, Germany. Ipperciel follows Professor Kenneth McRoberts, whom President Shoukri thanked for providing outstanding leadership to Glendon College for more than a decade.
York University Professor Barbara Crow becomes Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Associate Vice-President Graduate, roles she has served in on an interim basis since 2012. Prior to her appointment as Interim Dean, she served in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies as Associate Dean Research and then Associate Dean Teaching & Learning, from 2009 to 2012. A Professor in the Department of Communication Studies, Crow was Graduate Program Director of the joint York/Ryerson graduate program in Communication and Culture from 2007 to 2009. With a BA, MA and PhD from York University, Crow has been a faculty member here since 2001, when she joined York from the University of Calgary. Her research focuses on the social, cultural, political and economic implications of digital technologies. She has authored, edited and presented numerous scholarly pieces on mobile technologies, US radical feminism and Canadian women’s studies. In her interim role as Dean, she has worked to strengthen graduate education at York, and has promoted a more integrated approach to undergraduate and graduate planning around curriculum and enrolments. She has also led efforts to develop the professional skills of graduate students, increase the profile of graduate research and scholarship, and improve the number of scholarships and scholarship results.
Maureen Armstrong will join York as University Secretary and General Counsel from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board (CICB), Ministry of the Attorney General, where she has served as Chair of the Board for the past six years. Prior to that, she was vice president of Central and Eastern Region at Legal Aid Ontario. She led the implementation of a reorganization of the legal aid service delivery for low-income Ontarians. She also served as the co-chair of the French Language Services Working Group to help improve the provision of French language services to clients. Armstrong also worked for many years with the Canadian Human Rights Commission in a variety of roles including Director General of Legal Services and Director General of Corporate Management. Her leadership helped the Commission reduce the time taken to complete human rights complaints by more than half. She received her BA from the University of Guelph, her LLB from Queen’s University, and completed her postgraduate degree in Human Rights Law from the Instituto de Derechos Humanos, Complutense University in Spain. Armstrong follows Harriet Lewis, who President Shoukri thanked for 25 years of exemplary advice, service and support as University Secretary and General Counsel.
“I am extremely pleased to welcome Donald, Barbara and Maureen to their respective roles,” says President Shoukri. “Their individual and collective contributions will enable us to fulfil York’s commitment to academic and research excellence, student success and community engagement at this critical and exciting time in our history. These accomplished leaders will contribute their considerable skills and experience to the achievement of our shared objectives for York’s future. On behalf of all members of the broader York community, we congratulate and welcome them.”
All of the appointments have been approved by the Board of Governors Executive Committee for five years, starting July 1, 2014.
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Media Contact:
Joanne Rider, York University, 416 736 5593 jrider@yorku.ca
