News and commentary

Ottawa, January 19, 2009 – The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) is pleased to announce the appointment of Concordia University President and Vice-Chancellor Judith Woodsworth to the Board of Directors of the Association this week.

Dr. Woodsworth has been the president and vice-chancellor of Concordia since August 2008 and served as president of Laurentian University for the previous six years since 2002. She has also been an active participant of AUCC in the past, serving on standing committees dealing with educational issues, funding, legislation and bylaws.

Dr. Woodsworth will be regional director for Quebec until October 2009, at which time her appointment may be renewed for two years. She succeeds Pierre Moreau who is leaving his position as president of the Université du Québec to take a senior position at McGill University in February.

University presidents, rectors and principals are the members of the Association representing the interests of their 94 institutions across the country. Twelve members serve on the board of directors. The AUCC is the voice of Canada’s universities in Canada and abroad.

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For more information contact:

Leslie Cole
Communications Officer
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

Proven leader, successful advocate

Ottawa, January 14, 2009 – A strong leader with a track record for forging consensus has been named President and CEO of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

Paul Davidson will begin serving a five-year term as president of AUCC on May 11, 2009, succeeding Claire Morris who has led the organization since March 2004.

Mr. Davidson is currently executive director of World University Service of Canada, a leading international development organization linked to Canadian universities and colleges.

“Our Board believes that Mr. Davidson understands advocacy and has a remarkable talent to gain public and government attention to issues and causes. His passion, creative vision and motivation will serve higher education well,” said Tom Traves, chair of AUCC’s Board of Directors and president of Dalhousie University. Dr. Traves led the presidential search committee, which was made up of university presidents from across the country. “The search committee is unanimous in the belief that Paul Davidson is a strong leader and effective advocate, who will bring a remarkable ability to forge consensus.”

As president and CEO of AUCC, Mr. Davidson will join the AUCC’s 13-member board of directors and will manage the association which represents 94 Canadian universities and university degree-level colleges across the country.

“I am delighted to be taking on this new challenge. Canada’s universities are among the best in the world. They play an essential role in transforming Canada’s economy, improving Canadians’ quality of life and strengthening our democratic society,” Mr. Davidson said. “I look forward to meeting and working with Canada’s university leaders in my new role to identify and pursue public policy priorities that will help universities better meet the needs of students and communities across the country.”

During his tenure at WUSC, Mr. Davidson brought significant change – increasing student, faculty and administration participation in WUSC programs, doubling the number of international students studying at Canadian campuses through WUSC, doubling revenues, and doubling the size of the organization’s acclaimed Student Refugee Program. He also led the creation of Uniterra, a new international volunteer program delivered with the Montreal-based NGO Centre for International Studies and Co-operation (or CECI), which is attracting national and international attention for innovation and results.

Prior to joining WUSC in 2002, Mr. Davidson served in leadership roles for a number of organizations, including vice-president, publishing at Stoddart Publishing from 1999 to 2002, executive director of the Association of Canadian Publishers from 1995 to 1999, and vice-president of the lobby firm S. A. Murray Consulting Inc. in Toronto, Ontario. Previously, he was legislative advisor to the Leader of the Opposition and to the Treasurer and Deputy Premier of Ontario.

“To succeed our outgoing president, Claire Morris, it was clear that we would need to find an outstanding leader and articulate champion for higher education,” said Dr. Traves. “Paul Davidson will be able to build on Claire Morris’s achievements in making the case for higher education and research across the country.”

“Building on the accomplishments of my predecessors and with the support of AUCC’s outstanding staff, I am very excited about the contribution AUCC can make to our membership and to Canada,” Mr. Davidson said.

In addition to his organizational and management skills, Mr. Davidson brings to AUCC a strong commitment to community leadership. He served on the Board of the ALS Society of Canada for six years, leading its advocacy efforts, particularly in the area of legislating compassionate leave; was a member of the selection jury for Trudeau Foundation Scholarships; and in 2008 was the recipient of the Spirit of Trent Award, presented by the Trent University Alumni Association to recognize his contribution to international development, public service and administrative leadership.

Mr. Davidson holds a BA in politics and history from Trent University and a master of arts in history from Queen’s University. He is married to Elly Vandenberg and they have three sons aged 13, 11 and 9.

View Paul Davidson’s biography and photograph

AUCC is the national voice for Canada’s universities. It represents 94 Canadian public and private not-for-profit universities and university-degree level colleges.

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For more information contact:

Leslie Cole
Communications Officer
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

Ottawa, January 9, 2009 — Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada Board Chair Tom Traves (president of Dalhousie University, Halifax) is pleased to announce the recent appointment of André Dulude as vice-president of its National Affairs branch in Ottawa.

Mr. Dulude has held a number of senior executive positions in the federal public service, most recently as Assistant Deputy Minister of Policy, Partnerships and Corporate Affairs at Human Resources and Skills Development Canada. He has also worked for the Privy Council Office, Health Canada and the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Mr Dulude holds a B.A. in labour relations from Université de Montréal, a B.A. in journalism from Université Laval and an M.A. in labour relations from Université de Montréal.

As vice-president of national affairs, Mr. Dulude is responsible for developing and communicating advocacy strategy and policy positions for AUCC. He is also the key contact for partners within and outside the academic community. Mr. Dulude began working with AUCC January 5, 2009. He replaces Robert Best who retired in December 2008 after 19 years with AUCC.

AUCC is the national voice for Canada’s universities. It represents 94 Canadian public and private not-for-profit universities and university-degree level colleges.

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For more information contact:

Leslie Cole
Communications Officer
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

Read the pre-budget brief to Minister Jim Flaherty

Ottawa, January 5, 2009 – Investing in university infrastructure would make an important contribution to job creation in many communities across Canada, according to the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada.

The AUCC has submitted a brief to Finance Minister Jim Flaherty advising that investments in improving university infrastructure and supporting university research would act as an economic stimulus for dozens of Canadian communities and ensure longer-term knowledge and entrepreneurial advantages for Canada. The brief noted that AUCC member institutions have a physical presence in more than 80 communities across the country.

“In these difficult economic conditions, the federal government needs to maintain its commitment to enhance Canada’s competitiveness in the world,” says AUCC President and CEO Claire Morris. “Canada’s universities have declared their willingness to participate in stimulating the economy through infrastructure projects. We can also continue to play an important role in training the creative knowledge workers needed to find solutions to underlying problems of the current economic crisis and position Canada for a strong economic recovery.”

AUCC recommends a targeted university infrastructure initiative that could be complementary to the existing federal Building Canada Fund. Many universities have buildings constructed in the 1960s and 1970s or earlier. These facilities are in need of at least $5 billion in maintenance and renewal work to bring them to a standard to meet today’s research and teaching needs.

The Association also recommends that the federal government maintain its investment in university research to support Canada’s longer-term knowledge and people advantage. Institutional support for researchers, such as high performance computing and equipment technicians, has been partially funded through the federal Indirect Costs Program since 2001 and has been vital to the development of a strong domestic research capacity. AUCC urges that this kind of support be sustained through the economic downturn to help ensure the competitiveness of Canada’s university research effort when the country emerges from the current economic crisis.

AUCC is the national voice for Canada’s universities. It represents 94 Canadian public and private not-for-profit universities and university-degree level colleges.

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For more information contact:

Leslie Cole
Communications Officer
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

Read the presentation