Call for Nominations – Advisory Committee for the Dean, School of Continuing Studies (PDAD&C #60) – Communications for Academic Administrators

From: Cheryl Regehr, Vice-President & Provost
Date: April 7, 2021
Re: Call for Nominations – Advisory Committee for the Dean, School of Continuing Studies
(PDAD&C #60)

On June 30, 2021, Dr. Maureen MacDonald will complete her term as Dean of the School of Continuing Studies. Dr. MacDonald has chosen to step down and retire.

During her time as Dean, Dr. MacDonald has accelerated the School of Continuing Studies (SCS) as a hub for learners to gain the knowledge and skills needed to thrive across a lifetime of careers. Dr. MacDonald’s exceptional commitment to continuing education has fostered growth in all areas of SCS, including new offerings in emerging areas such as data science and artificial intelligence. Dr. MacDonald has also taken the lead on developing a new Micro Course structure at the School – the first of its kind in Canada – which allows learners to develop specific competencies quickly, while also taking advantage of the Canada Training Credit introduced by the Federal Government in 2019. In addition to micro-credentials, the School has also introduced a variety of new formats including bootcamps, short courses, condensed programs, and corporate and organizational training; as well as transitioned to having 67% of its programming available online.

Looking beyond the School, Dr. MacDonald has been a champion for new and expanded strategic partnerships. SCS currently features partnerships with more than twenty professional associations in Canada, including the Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario, the Human Resources Professionals Association, and the Ontario Association of Architects. Dr. MacDonald has also deepened the SCS’s connections with Faculties at the University in order to leverage the academic and research excellence of our faculty members in delivering high-quality continuing education courses. As a result of her remarkable efforts, SCS has seen a steady growth in learners over the past five years, with more than 32,000 enrollments in 2019-20. Under Dr. MacDonald’s leadership, the School has further realized its mission and vision of being a global leader in continuing education and a centre of inclusive excellence for learners.

Although this appointment is not bound by the Policy on Appointment of Academic Administrators, we will follow a similar process (Section 60) for the search for the new Dean of the School of Continuing Studies. As such, I write to call for nominations for the Advisory Committee that will advise the President on the appointment of a new Dean.

The composition of the Advisory Committee will be as follows:

The Vice-President and Provost or representative who shall chair the Committee;
One to three instructors of the School;
One to three learners of the School;
The Dean of the School of Graduate Studies or representative;
A librarian, where appropriate;
Two or three qualified scholars from within or outside the University, but outside the School;
In addition, the Committee may include an alumnus/a, a member of the administrative staff, and a senior member of the appropriate professional community.

The Advisory Committee will begin meeting in the coming months. Nominations for the Committee’s membership should be submitted to the Office of the Vice-President & Provost by April 21, 2021, via the online form.

Questions about this advisory process may be directed to Assistant Provost Archana Sridhar at archana.sridhar@utoronto.ca.