Murray Sinclair, commissioner of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and a former member of the Canadian Senate, has been appointed chancellor of Queen’s University. He will begin the role on July 1. Mr. Sinclair is a leading advocate for Indigenous peoples in Canada and served as the first Indigenous judge in Manitoba and second Indigenous judge in the history of the country. He was recognized for his decades of service, which included leading the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that documented the history of residential schools, by being appointed to the Senate in 2016. Mr. Sinclair is Anishinaabe, a member of the Peguis First Nation and a Fourth Degree Chief of the Midewiwin Society. A graduate of the University of Winnipeg and the University of Manitoba, he has also received honorary doctorates from 14 universities, including Queen’s.
Western University announced the appointment of Michael Kim as the next dean of the Don Wright Faculty of Music. Dr. Kim is currently a professor and the director of the School of Music at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Before joining the University of Minnesota, he held several appointments at Brandon University, including dean of music and acting associate vice-president, external. He was also a professor and chair of the keyboard department at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. Dr. Kim will serve a five-year term at Western, beginning Aug. 1.
Sofie Lachapelle is the new dean of Wilfrid Laurier University’s faculty of arts. Dr. Lachapelle is currently chair and professor in the department of history at the University of Guelph and joins Laurier on July 1. At the U of Guelph, she held senior leadership positions, including interim dean of the College of Arts, acting associate vice-president, academic, and graduate coordinator. Before this, she was a postdoctoral fellow at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Germany.
The University of Manitoba has named Annemieke Farenhorst as its new associate vice-president, research, effective July 1. Dr. Farenhorst is currently serving as associate dean, research, and is a professor of soil science in the university’s faculty of agriculture and food sciences. She is also a registered professional agrologist. Dr. Farenhorst holds active grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
Cynthia Johnston Turner has been appointed the next dean of the faculty of music at Wilfrid Laurier University. Dr. Johnston Turner is the director of bands, artistic director of contemporary chamber ensemble and professor of music at the High Hodgson School of Music at the University of Georgia. After completing a master’s degree from the University of Victoria and a doctorate from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, she was a conductor for ensembles around the world. Before joining the University of Georgia, she was the director of wind ensemble activities and an associate professor at Cornell University.
Mount Allison University announced the appointment of Courtney Pringle-Carver as its new vice-president, university advancement. Her five-year appointment begins on July 1. Most recently, Ms. Pringle-Carver held progressively senior communications, stakeholder relations and government relations positions at the Atlantic Lottery Corporation (ALC), and later served as ALC’s vice-president of external affairs and head of brand and communications. She was a member of the Order of New Brunswick advisory council and the past vice-chair of the board of directors of the Codiac Regional RCMP and has received Canada 150 and Top 40 Under 40 awards.
Anne Comfort is Mount Allison University’s next vice-president, international and student affairs. Ms. Comfort has worked at Mount Allison since 2004 in roles including director of accessibility and student wellness, chair of the student concern case team and, since Nov. 2020, acting vice-president, international and student affairs. In her new appointment, which begins on July 1 and lasts five years, Ms. Comfort will oversee all services that support students and aim to enhance and enrich the student experience.
MacEwan University announced that Robert Sabulka is its new associate vice-president, infrastructure, planning and management. Mr. Sabulka began his career as a forensic engineer in the private sector before holding project management positions with the federal government. He joined Alberta Infrastructure in 2006 and served as the organization’s executive director of major capital projects. Mr. Sabulka begins his new role at MacEwan on May 25.
Julie Davis has been reappointed vice-president, external relations and development, at Trent University for a third five-year term. The new appointment starts on Oct. 31. Ms. Davis is responsible for philanthropy, alumni affairs and external relations and in her last two appointments, led a number of community-minded and future-focused initiatives. As her VP role expands, Ms. Davis will also be responsible for the Trent Lands, as part of the Trent Lands and Nature Areas Plan, which includes overseeing Cleantech Commons, the Trent Enterprise Centre and a collaboration with peopleCare Communities to create a long-term care home on university property.